Jeanne Socrates waved to supporters Wednesday morning as she left Victoria to begin her quest to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the world.
Socrates got under sail near Ogden Point after being towed out of the Inner Harbour. She had planned to depart on Monday, but had to wait for a replacement part to arrive.
The 74-year-old has already been recognized by Guinness World Records and nautical associations as the oldest woman to circumnavigate the globe in such a fashion. She completed the trip in 2013, Victoria to Victoria in 258 days. She was 70 years 325 days old at the time.
Now she wants to be the oldest person — man or woman — to complete the feat.
That record is held by yachtsman Minoru Saito of Japan, who completed a successful sail around the globe in June 2005 at the age of 71.
Socrates is a mother and grandmother and a former mathematics professor at a university in London, England. She and her husband, George, bought their first sailboat in 1997. They spent many happy days sailing, continuing even after 2001, when George was diagnosed with terminal cancer. He died in 2003 at age 65.
Socrates has continued to sail. This is her fourth circumnavigation attempt. Two previous attempts were unsuccessful. She hopes to complete the trip in seven to eight months.
To meet the criteria for a solo, non-stop, unassisted trip, a sailor must not use any machinery-assisted power, such as an engine, or tie up to any land. Face-to-face contact with another person is also not allowed.
Going through the Panama Canal would count as touching land, so Socrates must sail down the coast of the U.S. and the length of South America, going around Cape Horn.
After that, she plans to sail for the southern tip of Africa, then head toward Tasmania, Australia, northward to New Zealand and back to Victoria.
She plans to avoid areas close to Indonesia and certain parts of the African coast where piracy is a problem.
For more information, go to Socrates’s website at svnereida.com.
