Sunday 13 May 2012

Sarah Outen sets out to row the Pacific ocean


Sarah Outen, RCC Life Member, has left on her record breaking North Pacific Row. At 7:06am (JST) today (13th May, 2012), she headed off on her record-breaking solo row across the North Pacific Ocean, from Choshi in Japan to Vancouver in Canada.  And in doing so, is set to become the first woman to ever row across the North Pacific Ocean.

This is an epic 4,500 nautical mile journey across the world’s largest ocean and will mean between 150 and 200 days alone out at sea.  Only two men have previously rowed solo across this northern route from Japan to North America.

 This North Pacific row is part of Sarah’s wider, two and half year expedition, “London2London: Via the World” that will see her cycle, row and kayak a continuous loop of the planet – that’s over 20,000 miles.  She is sharing her stories along the way through her website and social media (Facebook/Twitter/blog) to hopefully inspire young people to follow their dreams and believe that anything is possible.  She is also hoping to raise £100,000 for her four chosen charities – CoppaFeel!, The Jubilee Sailing Trust, MNDA and WaterAid.

 Sarah, who has a fear of deep water, says of the row:

“The North Pacific will be the most gruelling part of my whole London2London expedition. Physically and mentally, I expect to be exhausted most of the time – the distance, the solitude, the weather conditions and my complete isolation will make it hugely challenging.  In spite of the challenges and dangers ahead, I still can’t wait to get out there.”

She adds: “I am an ocean girl at heart and love being so close to the water and living to the rhythms of the wild. The energy out there is magic and the dynamics so exciting. I am hoping for some special wildlife moments and hopefully not too many storms.  But I am especially looking forward to the sunsets and the stars.”

Sarah will be rowing completely on her own and will be 100% self-sufficient, taking all her food with her on her 7metre customised rowing boat, Gulliver.  Also on board will be a desalination machine, with which she can convert seawater into drinking water.

She will have a full suite of communications equipment on board, which will allow her to do interviews, blog and tweet while out on the ocean.  She will also have an iPod for music, a Kindle for books and will be tracked live using GPS technology. Everything will be charged using the on-board solar panels.

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