On Watch, Cole Brauer

An offshore and inshore sailboat captain and professional sailor with dreams of being the first American woman to race solo around the world, Cole Brauer made history last month as the first female sailor to take line honors in the singlehanded first leg of the Bermuda One-Two Yacht Race.

“I grew up in a small town called Springs, which is a hamlet of East Hampton on eastern Long Island, New York,” says Cole. “My first boat was a kayak that I used to paddle to Springs Middle School in the mornings. I started sailing very late, at 19 years old when I moved to Hawai’i for college. The first boat I sailed was a CFJ, as part of the University of Hawai’i Sailing Team.

“I loved the University of Hawai’i. What a wonderful experience! I have my degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition with a focus in Medicine. I worked quite hard to balance my sailing offshore and inshore with getting good grades in my degree program. I loved to study and learn new things, whatever it was!” – Full report