Take, for instance, Katie Spotz, a 22-year-old from Ohio who rowed a boat from the west coast of Africa to Guyana, which is on the northern coast of South America. Spotz arrived in South America on Sunday, after a 70-day journey, as reported by The New York Times. In doing so, Spotz became the youngest person to row across an entire ocean solo and also the first American to row from continent to continent without help.
Spotz rowed a 19-foot rowboat which was built to withstand 50-foot waves, but the Times explained that early in her trip, a steering cable broke and forced her to use a more difficult steering system. She rowed eight to 10 hours per day, and listened to audio books from her iPod, which was powered by solar panels and batteries.
Sleeping was obviously a major hurdle, as Spotz was forced to sleep in an airtight cabin and bob up and down with the waves throughout the night.
"Sleeping was a real problem," she told the Times. "It took a toll to put out that much physical effort on very little rest."
That wasn't the only issue she confronted:
Spotz did see sharks. She was splashed by dolphins as big as her boat. Fish leapt and slapped her in the face, and exhausted birds nestled beside her as she rowed.
Spotz raised $70,000 for the Blue Planet Run Foundation with the journey.
