Cruising Club of America Awards Cole Brauer

Cole Brauer learned to sail with the University of Hawaii sailing team and went on to a career in professional sailing. She achieved this by doing all the hard work of managing other people’s boats and crewing whenever and wherever she could. As everyone knows, things really took off when she raced the Class 40 First Light to second place in the Global Solo Challenge. For that stunning achievement, the Cruising Club of America has awarded Cole the 2024 Young Voyager Award. The CCA describes the award: “This award recognizes a young sailor who has made one or more exceptional voyages, demonstrating exceptional skills and courage.”

Her 130-day solo voyage around the world has inspired many. And she’s not sitting still. She has passed First Light on to new owner Elizabeth Tucker of Australia, who is planning her own participation in the next Global Solo Challenge under the banner Za Ocean Racing. As part of that effort Cole and Elizabeth are now together aboard First Light, deep in the South Atlantic, to deliver the boat from Spain to Australia. Temporarily, the two solo sailors are a duo. You can see their position on the map below.

You can read more about Cole Brauer’s award here and the CCA reward recipients here.