111 Days Rowing the Atlantic Ocean

The Ultimate Story of Human Resilience

Debra was heralded “Britain's latest sporting heroine” (The Times) when the media worldwide went crazy for the story of the 5'4 petite novice rower who carried on rowing alone when her then husband, a 6'5 top-level club oarsman, left the boat after developing an uncontrollable fear of the ocean. Debra, who loved life at sea in her 23' plywood boat, saw no reason to stop and rowed on solo.

The 3300-mile journey that was initially supposed to take Debra and Andrew 6 weeks took Debra a staggering 3½ months on her own. It saw her battling with 30-foot waves, force 8 squalls and sharks, all while having to dodge container ships that came too close for comfort. Worse than all of this, however, was dealing with the loneliness. Focusing on one motto kept Debra going - "Choose Your Attitude" - it was the only thing out there that she had a choice about.

Atlantic Ocean. Start in Tenerife, finish in Barbados after 3300 miles.

111 Days at sea completing 1.5 million oar strokes. Two hours rowing, one hour off, 24/7.

At that time, more people had been to the moon than rowed an ocean!

No toilet or shower for 3 months– just a bucket. Toilet paper ran out on day 89!

Debra Searle - Choose Your Attitude merchandise

Choose Your Attitude Merchandise

“One of the many unexpected joys of rowing the Atlantic has been having the chance to create books and merchandise based around what I learnt during those long months alone at sea...”

Merchandise and gifts are available for companies looking to embed Debra’s Choose Your Attitude message in a more practical way. They include:

  • Rowing It Alone (Published by Chrysalis Group but now out of print)
  • The Journey: How to Achieve Against The Odds
  • The Choose Your Attitude Journal
  • The Choose Your Attitude water bottle
  • Barney The Sea Turtle necklace

FAQs

+ How did you come to row the Atlantic?

+ How long did it take you to row across the Atlantic?

+ Would you do it again?

+ Why did Andrew drop out?

+ Why did you continue alone?

+ What was the main danger of carrying on alone?

+ Why were you disqualified from the Rowing Race?

+ Who won the race?

+ What was your daily routine on board?

+ What happened to the boat while you slept?

+ What was life like on board?

+ What was the hardest part of this journey?

Top 10 Memories from from Rowing the Atlantic Ocean

Debra Searle

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Debra Searle

Best Memories

 
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To Check Debra's Availability Contact Laura:

About

Debra Searle MVO, MBE shot to fame after rowing the Atlantic solo.

As a sought after motivational speaker and author, she has spoken at 1,000 events in 40+ countries.

She has founded five companies and presented over 40 programmes for the BBC.