A thrilling memoir from the first American woman to race a sailboat solo, nonstop around the world, pushed to the limits to find her strength.
When Cole Brauer sets out at age twenty-nine to become the first American woman to race solo around the world (at five feet tall, no less), she is sailing to break free. Racing 130 days alone, nonstop in a 40-foot sailboat, she navigates brutal squalls, near-catastrophic mechanical failures, medical emergencies that push her to her limits, and the crushing loneliness of isolation. But what begins as a high-stakes adventure soon reveals itself to be something more. With only the sea, her boat, and her intuition, Cole must learn when to fight and when to surrender, when to push forward and when to let go. She finds unexpected strength not in domination, but in trust-of herself, her on-shore team, her boat-First Light-and the wild world around her.
More than a memoir of endurance or triumph, First Light is a reckoning with what it means to belong-in a male-dominated sport, in a high-speed world, as well as in your own skin. Cole's story unfurls with feisty humor and emotional vulnerability, bringing a sharp, rebellious voice to a sport that's long taken itself too seriously. Cole emerges as a woman in command of her voice and her future, finding peace in chaos and presence in a noisy world.
First Light is both an edge-of-your-seat adventure on the high seas as well as a testament to what's possible when you rise above doubt, believe that small can still be strong, face down the impossible, and chart your own course. Cole Brauer is a record-breaking American professional sailor known worldwide as the first woman from the United States to race solo, nonstop around the globe on a sailboat. At the age of 29 she finished second in the grueling 2023-2024 solo race around the world navigating over 27,000 miles in 130 days aboard her Class40 yacht, First Light. A fierce advocate for breaking down barriers in the male-dominated world of ocean racing, Brauer captured the hearts of hundreds of thousands during her voyage by sharing her unfiltered journey online. A graduate of the University of Hawai'i, Brauer now continues to push the limits of the sport as a co-skipper for an IMOCA 60 team. Her story is one of grit, finding strength in vulnerability, and proving that size and stereotype do not define capability on the world's most challenging stage.
