Sylvia Cook

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sylvia Cook is a British ocean rower and adventurer who, on 22 April 1972, became the first woman to row the Pacific Ocean, in tandem with John Fairfax.[1] With this accomplishment she became the first woman to row any ocean.[2] The journey took 363 days at sea from San Francisco to Australia.

Early life[]

Cook was born to a middle-class family, the daughter of a teacher and a secretary.[3]

Pacific crossing[]

External audio
audio icon Sylvia Cook, 12:42, Avaunt podcast[4]
audio icon John Fairfax and Sylvia Cook, 43:05, WNYC[5]

Cook and John Fairfax started rowing for their cross-Pacific journey in San Francisco on 26 April 1971 in a specially designed tandem row boat called Britannia II, a self-bailing, self uprighting vessel, designed by Uffa Fox.[2]

Later life[]

Cook works for B&Q in Surrey, UK, where most of her co-workers had no idea she had rowed across the Pacific Ocean.[3]

References[]

  1. ^ Stanford, Peter (26 February 2012). "Sylvia Cook: I rowed the high seas for love". The Daily Telegraph. London, UK. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Sylvia Cook". The Ocean Rowing Society. 2004. Retrieved 22 May 2015. Sylvia became the first woman to row an ocean.
  3. ^ a b Usborne, Simon (27 February 2012). "The pensioner next door who rowed across an ocean for love". The Independent. London, UK. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  4. ^ "Sylvia Cook". Avaunt. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  5. ^ "John Fairfax and Sylvia Cook". WNYC. 1973. Retrieved 31 October 2016.


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