Two hours and 37 minutes into the 64th day, Tim Crockett remembers what he was feeling. "I wouldn't say it was anti-climactic, but I was still gathering myself, having just fought this epic battle against the sea."

Crockett had just taken his final row stroke to pull his boat, The Kraken, into Antigua in the Caribbean the morning of February 13. He was physically spent and dehydrated, but it mixed into relief and joy. "The final 20 or 30 yards into English Harbour…I could pick out my family, I have a big grin across my face. And yeah, then it was just all the emotions bubbling up."

The 48-year-old Crockett is a Royal Marine veteran, having moved from the U.K. to the United States in 2003, now living in east Cobb County. It was two years ago a friend he served with in the Royal Marines took his own life. "When I learned about his death, I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I felt that I needed to do something other than just donate to a cause,” Crockett tells WSB Radio. Looking to help raise money for fellow veterans who suffer from PTSD, he found an outlet in a competition of will – crossing the Atlantic by boat.

LISTEN TO MORE FROM CROCKETT’S INTERVIEW WITH WSB’S EDGAR TREIGUTS BELOW:

The Talisker Whiskey Atlantic Challenge set-off in mid-December. Crockett was one of five solo rowers in the competition, joining other teams of two, three, or four. His training? "Being a veteran I'm a little bit worn around the edges - knees, joints. So I just wanted to strengthen my core muscles, the rear, and then just sort of conditioning." Then there was his boat – specially designed and “purpose built,” he says. One of the unique safety features – one that self-rights the boat to prevent a capsize.

It would be about two weeks after he began his journey from the Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa, that Crockett was struck by the sheer size of the challenge. “Here I am on a 24-foot boat, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean...a fair way into it, there's no way to get off the ride if I chose to." Two days in, he twisted his knee. There would be equipment failures soon to follow. “When you had those individual challenges kind of stack upon each other - poor weather, you're feeling a little bit unwell, there's equipment failure - that is when (the solo row) really weighs on you."

Crockett says through the weeks of his journey, he learned more about himself and what’s important. "I've always been sort of a loner. I've always sort of managed things by myself. So the importance of human contacts, whether it's community, whether it's family, friends. I think that was one of the things that I came away with, how important that is." Crockett did have ability through technology from his support team, to stay in contact with them and his family.

It would be however, the final half day of his row, that he faced his biggest challenge as he headed toward the finish in Antigua. The weather dramatically worsened. "I thought it was potentially going to end in disaster. I was getting pushed closer and closer into this cliff face and big waves crashing up over the rocks...I was struggling against the weather. At one point I thought that I might have to jump overboard, and watch it all end in disaster as my boat got slammed up against the cliff.”

Crockett describes a final, grueling 40-minute battle. “I thought I didn't have much energy left back in me, I was calling the local search and rescue for assistance, and wasn't getting the response I was hoping for. And then all of a sudden I started to creep out to sea, enough to clear (the obstacles).” From there, the rush of emotion, and seeing his family and friends.

Within the 63 days, two hours and 37 minutes, Crockett rowed through Christmas and his birthday (New Year’s Day), each on which he allowed himself to enjoy a can of beer – the brew from a U.K. buddy’s brewery.

Since February 13, he’s caught up on sleep, and been nursing injuries, including that knee and an old eye condition that flared up.

Crockett is proud of his effort, but equally as much for what it meant to shine a light on helping veterans in mental health crisis, through TameTheKraken.com. He has charities in both the U.K. (CombatStress) and the U.S. (GiveAnHour). "A lot of the time you can just reach out and engage with a veteran, or someone that may be facing a challenge with mental health,” he says.

He’s deciding on his next challenge, which could involve another ocean challenge, perhaps this time, in the form of a support role for a row team.  Or something else.

Crockett hopes his ocean journey can give hope to veterans in crisis to get the help they need. “One of the things that I learned during my crossing, that it's amazing what you can push your body beyond, based on what's between your ears."