Sarah Outen

24-year-old ocean rower from small town Oakham in the middle of the UK, Sarah got into boats and water sports as a teenager, learning to kayak and sail on her local reservoir. Some coastal trips inspired her love of the sea and marine wildlife, and the relationship with the ocean began — albeit a sometimes long distance one — given that her home town is completely landlocked. At Oxford University she took to the water with oars and from there planned her first ocean row, across the Indian Ocean.

It took three years to plan and fundraise for, with Sarah finally pushing off from Australia in Spring 2009. It took her one failed attempt, 500 bars of chocolate, 2 broken oars and 124 days rowing to reach the tiny island of Mauritius on the other side. She had rowed over 4,000 miles to become the first woman and youngest person to row solo across the Indian Ocean, as well as the youngest woman to solo any ocean.

The voyage was dedicated to the memory of her late father, who died suddenly in 2006, having suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for all her life. Sarah raised £30 K for arthritis charities, spreading the message that it’s not just about old people – young people suffer too.

In the same way that the planet is green and blue, Sarah’s degree is in Biology and she has a keen interest in marine wildlife ecology and conservation, which makes her projects green and blue, too. She has teamed up with the RSPB to help promote their ‘Save the Albatross Campaign’ and supports various other NGOs, such as the John Muir Trust. She is all for increasing access and opportunity to experience wild places, for she believes that increased love and knowledge leads to increased sense of stewardship.

Since returning from the ocean, Sarah has been sharing her stories with folks of all ages and backgrounds – inspiring them to follow their dreams and confront their challenges and fears. With such positive responses, she has decided to divert from her original plan of a teaching career and focus on sharing adventures and telling interesting stories about people and the planet.

She is currently planning her next project, an unprecedented voyage which will see her circumnavigate the globe entirely under Sarah power, by land and sea. ‘London to London: via the World’ – she will row, cycle, kayak and trek her way around the planet. The focus in on inspiring young people to expand their horizons, encouraging them to challenge themselves and on bringing the adventure and the experience to the wider public, so that the journeys are shared by everyone. The emphasis on green and blue stories will thread the narratives through blogs, podcasts and videos, as well as talks and shared adventures along the way. The plan is to create opportunities for people to get actively involved en route  and join in for part of the journey.

Watch this space for more information on route plans, schedules and opportunities to be involved with this fruitloop adventurer from Blighty.

Name: Sarah Outen

Age: 24

Location: UK

Education: BA Biological Sciences, University of Oxford (2007)

Occupation: Adventurer & motivational speaker

Random bits of info

Favourite colour: Blue – a bright blue of infinity which you only get on a sunny day staring down into the fathomless deep of the ocean

Favourite food: Chocolate & fresh fruit

Favourite country: Scotland

Favourite season: Late summer

Describe yourself in three words: Self-confessed fruit-loop

Favourite adventure book: I have too many favourites: Moby Dick/Seven years in Tibet/Sailing alone around the World/Mad,   Bad and Dangerous to know/Scott’s Diaries make great reading, too/ Touching the Void

Favourite poem: ‘Sea Fever’ by John Masefield; ‘If’ by Rudyard Kipling

Favourite quote: ‘With courage, nothing is impossible’ Sir William Hillary

Sunset or sunrise? Sunset to open the show, ready for the starry skies in the second half

Moon or the sun? The moon – you can stare at it for hours without frying your eyes

If you were an animal what would you be? An albatross – the ultimate wanderer of this planet

Website: www.sarahouten.co.uk

Twitter: SarahOuten