Cole Brauer sailed solo around the world. She plans to do it again

Cole Brauer docked her 40-foot sailboat, named “First Light,” in A Coruña Spain on March 7, 2024. The moment marked the end of a four-month solo, non-stop race around the world, which made Brauer the first woman from the U.S. to complete the journey alone.

She documented her race with video blogs and TikToks, gathering a following close to half a million people on Instagram. Most recently, she recounted the race in her memoir “First Light: Sailing Solo but Not Alone.”

“I think that there were so many people that had told me no, over and over and over again,” Brauer said. “‘You're too small, you are a woman. You don't come from the correct family.’”

Eventually, Brauer found a sponsor who gave her a lot of freedom.

“Normally with sponsors, you have to give a lot of return-on-investment,” Brauer said. “And with these sponsors, they were like, ’no, we are purely investors in your company.’”

She spoke with “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal about the race, the world of professional sailing and offshoring racing, and what she’s up to now: racing and training with Team Malizia on a 60-foot boat, with the goal of eventually taking another solo race around the globe in 2032.

To listen, click the “play” button at the top of the page.