‘I’m sailing around the world in my 70s’
We chat to the inspiring Jeanne Socrates who recently broke the record to become the oldest person to sail solo around the world non-stop
It was an electrifying moment as Jeanne Socrates pulled into Victoria harbour in Canada. Surrounded by a flotilla of boats manned by friends and admiring strangers who came to support her, cheers and hooting boat horns rang out across the bay to mark her achievement. And what an incredible achievement it was. At the age of 77, Jeanne Socrates had just become the oldest person in the world to solo circumnavigate the globe, totally unassisted and without stopping, for a staggering 340 days. Her boat was battered, she’d had barely any sleep but as she stepped into the crowds, she knew it had all been worth it. Speaking recently, just a few weeks after her return, Jeanne said: “For me it’s not so much about breaking the record but the fact I finally managed to do it after overcoming all the problems.”
And there were certainly many challenges for Jeanne to overcome. Her sailing story started aged 48 when she was a maths teacher and took her pupils on a watersports summer activity. Discovering a passion she didn’t know she had, she threw herself into learning everything she could about sailing, along with her husband George. By the time she retired a few years later, she knew sailing was all she wanted to do and the day after she finished work, she flew out to Sweden to pick up their new boat. From there, she and George cruised through Norway, Denmark, Portugal and Spain and over to the Caribbean, where, tragically, George was diagnosed with cancer in 2001. After a few last poignant sails from
‘My radio was a lifeline as I was able to communicate with people all over the world’
Grenada to Venezuela and on to the nearby island of Bonaire, he sadly lost his fight in 2003 and Jeanne scattered his ashes at sea.
Although it was a daunting prospect, Jeanne decided to continue sailing on her own and went on to cruise the Tropics and circumnavigate the world, stopping
often. But as she pushed herself to do more adventurous sails, she was always looking for the next challenge, eventually settling on the plan to sail around the world non-stop via Cape Horn. In 2009 she made her first attempt but issues with rigging forced her to stop in Cape Town. The next year she tried again but was badly knocked down by waves off Cape Horn. Undeterred, Jeanne made it to the end just over seven months later – at the age of 70 becoming the oldest woman to complete the trip.
At first, Jeanne thought that would be it for non-stop round-the-world-sailing but a few years later she got itchy feet again and decided to have another go. But just as before, it didn’t come off without a fight. Her first two attempts were scuppered, first by damage caused by a big storm and then by issues with her boat. Then just days before her third go she fell off a ladder, breaking her neck and ribs, and was forced to postpone the voyage. Battling back to health thankfully she made a full recovery and it was third time lucky as she set sail on October 3, 2018.
But once at sea it wasn’t plain sailing as she had to deal with a catalogue of potentially catastrophic problems as her boat equipment and instruments went down. Her mainsail tore, the solar panels were washed away in a damaging knockdown and the batteries that powered important things, such as her autopilot and water-maker, failed.
But in the darkest moments the things that kept her going were her steely determination that no problem would stop her in her mission – and the amazing support of the people following her journey. “My radio was a lifeline as I was able to communicate with people all over the world who were so supportive,” says Jeanne. “I was also able to call my grandchildren and talk to friends, which really helped.” The incredible sights she saw as she sailed also spurred her to keep going. “Rounding Stewart Island in New Zealand after a storm as the sun came up and a rainbow came out was definitely a highlight, as was seeing all the wildlife that kept me company, from albatrosses to the noisy sea lions that tried to board the boat,” she says.
Upon making it to the end in Canada, Jeanne enjoyed a great party with local yacht club members, along with a muchappreciated glass of bubbly and fresh fruit which tasted like nectar after almost a year of tinned food.
Since coming home Jeanne, who now plans to write a book about her experience, has been overwhelmed by the support she’s received, including more than £3,000 in sponsorship donated to the lifeboat charity RNLI. She’s also been humbled by the messages of congratulations for breaking the record to become the oldest person. But for her, she says it’s not about that. “After George’s death I adopted a motto that life is precious and you must make the most of it. For me, age is just a number. I think if you’re healthy and you have enough determination to do something, you should just go and do it.”
■ To help mark her incredible achievements Jeanne has set up a fundraising website for the RNLI. If you’d like to make a donation visit at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ jeanne-socrates2
‘One of the highlights was seeing all the wildlife keeping me company from albatrosses to noisy sea lions that kept trying to board the boat’