What It's Like To Sail Solo Across the Atlantic Ocean (at Age 16)

Last year, Cal Currier decided to try to sail across the Atlantic Ocean from Massachusetts to Portugal, alone.  But he was only 16--and he didn't know how to sail! With a lot of dedication and determination, and a refusal to take "no" for an answer, Cal overcame every obstacle (including convincing his initially-reluctant mother); and in late June 2022, he set out solo, into the Atlantic Ocean, heading east.  The trip wasn't as "exciting" as Cal had hoped, but he did encounter 20-foot waves and potentially deadly jellyfish, and he had to endure day after day of solitude and 90-minute sleep cycles. Along the way, Cal learned that he was setting a world record, as the youngest person ever to solo sail west to east across the Atlantic.  But that was never his motivation.  Hear Cal's remarkable perspective--and who he says the real heroes are of this remarkable journey.

In this episode:

• Days and nights flowing into each other on the ocean (01:35)
• Why do it when it wasn't "fun"? (04:12)
• What Cal did for entertainment on the boat (05:36)
• How he dealt with sleep deprivation (09:30)
• What he ate at sea (14:35)
• How this idea came became reality (15:45)
• Technology's role in this adventure (18:41)
• Unknowingly setting a world record (21:24)
• How Cal's parents felt about this journey (22:22)
• Characteristics that may make Cal a good candidate for this adventure (24:40)
• Landing in Lagos, Portugal (29:21)
• Reflections on life and the "real heroes" of the journey (30:35)
• What's on the horizon for Cal (32:25)

Want to know more about Cal?

• Watch this video of his journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qcct4RgHEsM

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