Global Solo Challenge: Instagram star Cole Brauer crosses the finish line
Morten Strauch
· 07.03.2024
After 130 days at sea, the runner-up in the Global Solo Challenge and the first Class 40 is back on land. US sailor Cole Brauer and her "First Light" arrived in A Coruña, Spain, in the early hours of Thursday morning. The youngest participant and only woman in the starting field was welcomed by numerous fans, and thousands of people at home followed the Instagram livestream.
It had already become clear during the race: This woman, who is only 1.55 metres tall, is a huge asset to the sailing world. At the trials for the Ocean Race, the ambitious Brauer was still deemed too small and sent home. A tough and tearful knockdown for the American. But she bounced back and used the first edition of the Global Solo Challenge to show herself and everyone else what she was made of. She uses Instagram like no other sailor has ever done before. With authentic videos, she not only gets sailing fans on board, but also countless people who had never been involved in sailing before.
For me, Cole is an influencer. A Kardashian. She couldn't care less what American sailors think" (Marcus Hutchinson, top team manager for ocean racing)
Brauer's recipe for success: instead of constantly presenting the tough heroine in a professional offshore outfit, she sometimes shows herself with a comforting plush teddy bear, getting a manicure or freaking out to rock music. You just love watching her and enjoy being part of her race. Brauer celebrates sailing, and everyone joins in. A video in which Brauer is thrown across the boat with full force shows that the ride around the large capes is naturally also associated with agony. An unexpected wave had crashed onto the Class 40, causing the solo skipper to suffer severe rib bruising. Her words of warning afterwards: "Never lose respect for the ocean!"
More articles on the Global Solo Challenge:
Cole represents the next generation of sailors. They tell their story in a different way - and it works" (Dee Caffari, offshore icon and Brauer's mentor)
Nothing now seems to stand in the way of a successful professional career. The market value of her fan base on social media is gigantic. Sponsors will be queuing up to share in her popularity. For comparison: Brit and marketing stuntman Alex Thomson has 140,000 followers, and "Our Boris" Herrmann, whose woollen jumper achieved cult status at the last Vendée Globe, has 116,000 followers. Both have also built up their following over the years. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the new sailing rock star.
About the Solo Global Challenge
Just like the Vendée Globe or the Golden Globe Race, the route runs non-stop around the three large capes. In this new race format, the participating boats were grouped according to their performance characteristics and sent into the race with a corresponding time delay. The race started at the end of August 2023. Once at sea, there are no longer any class distinctions - whether small or large, the first boat to cross the finish line wins. The start and finish harbour is A Coruña, Spain. On 24 February, Frenchman Philippe Delamare secured first place after 147 days. Nine out of 16 boats have already had to finish the race early.
