On August 3rd 2009, as Sarah Outen touched land in
Mauritius, she became the first woman to row solo across the Indian
Ocean and only the fourth person to have made the crossing
alone. Turning 24 whilst at sea, she is the youngest solo
rower to have made the 4,000 mile journey and joins an elite club
of only eight women worldwide who have ever rowed an ocean
single-handedly.
Departing Western Australia on 1st April Sarah spent 124 days at
sea, rowing for up to ten hours a day in extreme heat and
solitude. Brutal weather conditions often saw Sarah confined
to quarters – a two metre by one metre cabin – for more than two
days at a time, unable to steer or row and at the mercy of the
waves. It also added almost 1,000 extra miles to her journey:
on several occasions wind changed direction and blew her off
course, forcing her to re-row previously hard-won miles.
Teaming up with Arthritis Care in memory of her Dad, Sarah
helped to raise over £13000 for the charity, as well as increasing
awareness of the painful condition. “For as long as I can
remember Pops lived with rheumatoid arthritis. It’s a
debilitating condition and he was so limited in what he could do,
yet he still achieved so much before his death in 2006.”
Throughout the journey Sarah’s Dad remained her motivation.
See Sarah Outen on the Records Breaker Stage Show on Sunday 20
September at 13:45 - 14:30pm. Sarah's boat will also be on the
marina berth 531 on Saturday 19 - Sunday 20
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