Synopses & Reviews
Stuck in a corporate job rut and faced with an unraveling marriage at the age of thirty-six, Roz Savage sat down one night and wrote two versions of her own obituary — the one that she wanted and the one she was heading for. They were very different. She realized that if she carried on as she was, she wasn't going to end up with the life she wanted. So she turned her back on an eleven-year career as a management consultant to reinvent herself as a woman of adventure. She invested her life's savings in an ocean rowboat and became the first solo woman ever to enter the Atlantic Rowing Race.
Her 3,000-mile trial by sea became the challenge of a lifetime. Of the twenty-six crews that set out from La Gomera, six capsized or sank and didn't make it to the finish line in Antigua. There were times when she thought she had hit her absolute limit, but alone in the middle of the ocean, she had no choice but to find the strength to carry on.
In Rowing the Atlantic we are brought on board when Savage's dreams of feasts are nourished by yet another freeze-dried meal. When her gloves wear through to her blistered hands. When her headlamp is the only light on a pitch-black night ocean that extends indefinitely in all directions. When, one by one, all four of her oars break. When her satellite communication fails.
Stroke by stroke, Savage discovers there is so much more to life than a fancy sports car and a power-suit job. Flashing back to key moments from her life before rowing, she describes the bolt from the blue that first inspired her to row across oceans and how this crazy idea evolved from a dream into a tendinitis-inducing reality. And finally, Savage discovers in the rough waters of the Atlantic the kind of happiness we all hope to find.
Review
"Savage is an amiable, often humorous narrator, extolling the joys and the unforeseen pitfalls of going it alone on the open water.... Bold and invigorating." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"Rowing the Atlantic is a grand adventure — mind boggling, inspiring, and a book that I just couldn't put down. A fantastic read!" Lynne Cox, author of Grayson and Swimming to Antarctica
Synopsis
In this motivating and inspiring tale, Savage compellingly tells the tale of her 103-day solo voyage across the ocean, during which she discovers her soul and realizes that there is so much more to life than an unhappy marriage and a high-paying job. b&w photos throughout.
About the Author
A latecomer to the life of adventure, Roz Savage was previously a management consultant and investment banker, before realizing at the age of thirty-four that there might be more to life than a steady income and a house in the suburbs. In 2005, she was the only solo female competitor in the Atlantic Rowing Race, the first solo woman ever to compete in that race and the sixth woman to row an ocean solo. In 2010, Roz was selected as an "Adventurer of the Year" by National Geographic.