[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 17885-17886]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF DYLAN LeVALLEY OF McKINLEYVILLE, 
                               CALIFORNIA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 12, 2006

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge 
and honor the accomplishments of Dylan LeValley of McKinleyville, 
California. With his fellow rowers on the James Robert Hanssen, Dylan 
completed a historic feat in winning the 2006

[[Page 17886]]

Ocean Fours Rowing Race across the Atlantic Ocean. Dylan LeValley was 
raised in the First Congressional District of California and is the son 
of my constituents, Linda Doerflinger and Ron LeValley.
  Mr. LeValley, along with 3 fellow rowers from the University of Puget 
Sound, set out on June 10th to row across the Atlantic Ocean from New 
York City to Falmouth, England. They performed this remarkable feat in 
a small, open-topped boat without the aid of any motorized power, and 
with only the supplies they could carry inside the boat. In 68 days, 
these young men traveled approximately 3,800 miles while being knocked 
far off their course by storms, currents, and unusually strong winds. 
In doing so, they became the first Americans to row from the United 
States to the United Kingdom, and the first team to ever row from 
mainland to mainland without pausing.
  Mr. Speaker, this accomplishment is extremely impressive, but is made 
more meaningful because it was done in the name of charity. Drawing 
inspiration from the death of one team member's father to asthma, the 
team named their boat, the James Robert Hanssen, in his honor and set 
out to raise $300,000 for the American Lung Association. Such an 
ambitious goal reminds us that this endeavor had significance for the 
team members beyond the physical challenge. A remarkable achievement, 
their journey will be remembered both for the records they set and for 
their personal contribution to medical charity.

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