Sharon Sites Adams (born 29 May 1930) [1] was the first woman to sail solo across the Pacific Ocean, which she did in 1969, from Yokohama to San Diego in her boat named "Sea Sharp II". [2] [3] [4] For this feat she was named the Los Angeles Times Woman of the Year in 1969. [3]
She was born in Washington, with the given names Phyllis Mae. [1] After her parents died when she was quite young, she was looked after by different family members and given the new name Sharon. She took her first sailing lesson at Marina Del Rey, California in October 1964 at the age of 34. [2] [4] She was the only civilian besides the Captain's wife on the bridge of the "Queen Mary" when it rounded Cape Horn on its final voyage to Long Beach, California. [2] In 1965 she became the first woman to sail alone from California to Hawaii, which she did in 39 days in her 25-foot folkboat named “Sea Sharp”. [4] In 2008, she published her memoir Pacific Lady. [3]
Thelma Catherine "Pat" Nixon was First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974 as the wife of President Richard Nixon. She also served as Second Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961 when her husband was vice president.
Dame Naomi Christine James, DBE is the first woman to have sailed single-handed around the world via Cape Horn, the second woman to have ever sailed solo around the world. She departed Dartmouth, Devon on 9 September 1977 and finished her voyage around the globe on 8 June 1978 after 272 days, thus improving Sir Francis Chichester's solo round-the-world sailing record by two days.
Ocean rowing is the sport of rowing across oceans. Some ocean rowing boats can hold as many as fourteen rowers; however, the most common ocean rowboats are designed for singles, doubles, and fours.
Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz was a Polish naval engineer and sailor as well as the first woman to have sailed single-handed around the world, repeating the accomplishment of Joshua Slocum. She sailed from the Canary Islands on 28 March 1976, and returned there on 21 April 1978, completing a circumnavigation of 31,166 nautical miles (57,719 km) in 401 days.
The sport and practice of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember. The term usually refers to ocean and long-distance sailing and is used in competitive sailing and among Cruisers.
Rosalind Savage MBE FRGS is an English ocean rower, environmental advocate, writer and speaker.
Tania Aebi is an American sailor. She completed a solo circumnavigation of the globe in a 26-foot sailboat between the ages of 18 and 21, finishing it in 1987, making her the first American woman and the youngest person to sail around the world. Her record was not recognized by Guinness, because she sailed through the Panama Canal, which required assistance. She also sailed eighty miles with a friend in the South Pacific. Despite many challenges, Aebi accomplished her goal.
Sharon Baird is an American actress, voice actress, singer, dancer and puppeteer who is best known for having been a Mouseketeer.
USS Butternut (AN-9/YN-4/ANL-9/YAG-60) was laid down as a yard net tender on 11 March 1941 at Houghton, Washington, by the Lake Washington Shipyard; launched on 10 May 1941; and placed in service at the Puget Sound Navy Yard on 3 September 1941.
Clare Mary FrancisMBE is a British novelist who was first known for her career as a yachtswoman who has twice sailed across the Atlantic on her own and she was the first woman to captain a successful boat on the Whitbread Around the World race.
Zachary Tristan Sunderland is an American former sailor who was the first person under the age of 18 to sail solo around the world. Sunderland completed his trip after 13 months and 2 days at sea on July 16, 2009 at age 17. The record was previously held by Australian David Dicks, and was surpassed on August 27, 2009 by Michael Perham of England. Sunderland is the youngest American to complete a circumnavigation, surpassing Brian Caldwell, who finished in 1996 at age 20. However, Sunderland's record was not recognized by Guinness World Records, or by the World Sailing Speed Record Council.
SS Mauna Loa was a steam-powered cargo ship of the Matson Navigation Company that was sunk in the bombing of Darwin in February 1942. She was christened SS West Conob in 1919 and renamed SS Golden Eagle in 1928. At the time of her completion in 1919, the ship was inspected by the United States Navy for possible use as USS West Conob (ID-4033) but was neither taken into the Navy nor commissioned.
Joanna "Asia" Pajkowska is a Polish sailor, with a rank of captain, a sea life guard, she sailed over 250,000 nautical miles, often in singlehanded or in two-handed races. She is one of the best-known sailors in Poland and one of the most experienced ocean sailors in the world. In 2018 she completed, as the first Polish female sailor, singlehanded non-stop circumnavigation.
Sarah Dilys Outen is a British athlete and adventurer. She is also a motivational speaker in the UK and internationally. Outen was the first woman and the youngest person to row solo across the Indian Ocean and also the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Alaska. She completed a round-the-world journey, mostly under her own power, by rowing boat, bicycle and kayak, on 3 November 2015.
Abigail Jillian Sunderland is an American former sailor who, in 2010, attempted to become the youngest person to sail solo around the world.
Solo is an Australian ex-ocean racing yacht, winning over 80 races during her eight-year racing career, all on the east coast of Australia. Solo has circumnavigated the world three times, circumnavigated Australia twice and was charted for two Antarctic expeditions. All of these achievements plus many more have earned her the title "The lady of the sea".
Karen Thorndike, born in Snohomish, Washington in 1942, holds the Guinness record as the first American woman to sail solo around the world without assistance. Her voyage was 33,000 miles, which she started at age 53 completed in 1998 in a 36-foot yacht named Amelia after Amelia Earhart. The trip took her two years and two weeks, but was not done continuously; for example, she had a three-month hospitalization for angina pectoris after her trip began.
Laura Dekker is a New Zealand-born Dutch sailor. In 2009, she announced her plan to become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe single-handed. A Dutch court stepped in, owing to the objections of the local authorities, and prevented Laura from departing while under shared custody of both her parents. In July 2010, a Dutch family court ended this custody arrangement, and the record-breaking attempt finally began on 21 August 2010. Dekker successfully completed the solo circumnavigation in a 12.4-metre (40 ft) two-masted ketch named Guppy, arriving in Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten, 518 days later at the age of 16.
Angela Madsen was an American Paralympian sportswoman in both rowing and track and field. In a long career, Madsen moved from race rowing to ocean challenges before switching in 2011 to athletics, winning a bronze medal in the shot put at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London. Madsen and teammate Helen Taylor were the first women to row across the Indian Ocean. She died in June 2020 while attempting a solo row from Los Angeles to Honolulu.
Aurelia Ditton, known as Lia Ditton, is a professional sailor, ocean rower, motivational speaker and conceptual artist, now based in San Francisco, California.