Hats off to courageous Jeanne

Hats off to a very brave lady on her way round the world, alone, hoping to win the record for the oldest person to become a Cape Horner, to have sailed right round non-stop.

Jeanne Socrates has sailed all the way around once but once isn't enough.

 But the last time, the good lady had to call into port for repairs along the way.

 This time fingers are well crossed that she has all she needs to remain at sea from the end of September to next May.

A gentleman shouldn't mention a lady's age, naturally, but so you can understand how truly remarkable are her plans, I'll whisper it. Jeanne, who I had met briefly on Facebook's Solo Sailing section, is 76.

Compare this with your own grandmother, and then note this astonishing news. The lady was setting off last year when …'I fell off my boat, 15 feet onto concrete.' She broke her neck, nose, multiple ribs, and suffered internal injuries.

Two previous attempts

Two previous attempts to be the oldest person to sail alone, with no resupplies, no engine, and no help, around the world were cut short when rough seas damaged her yacht.

'This will be year number three.'

'I never say die. If I have something I want to do I won't give up. I'm a pretty determined person,' she told the Canadian news site.

I gather that Jeanne already holds the record as the oldest woman to circumnavigate the globe in her 38-foot sailboat Nereida.

For any sailor, at any age, sailing around the world is a massive undertaking. 'I'm a little bit crazy. We should all be a little crazy. It makes life worth living. Why not go for what you want to do?’

Wikipedia reports that Minoru Saitō, of Japan, is the oldest person to circumnavigate the world alone. The last voyage around was said to be his eighth. Continues on the blogs for my ocean sailing adventure book, Sailing to Purgatory, at SailingToPurgatory.com