(Neenah, Wisconsin)- Sally Barkow: From inland lakes to open oceans, from Optis and J/22s to Volvo 65 ocean greyhounds!
It’s as long way from Neenah, Wisconsin to sailing offshore in the
Volvo Ocean Race. But, having grown up sailing Optis, raced for years
on J/22s, Sally Barkow has now stepped into the limelight on the biggest
stage imaginable!You could say that Sally has been taking steps toward the Volvo Ocean Race all her life. Now 34 years old, her road from learning to sail on scows in Wisconsin would take her to the international Olympic and match race circuit, with her successes earning her the US Rolex Yachtswomen of the Year award in 2005 and 2007.
After competing for the US team in the keelboat event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and missing out on the match racing event at the 2012 Games, the next step, albeit a big step, was offshore racing. When Team SCA proposed an all-women’s crew for the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race, Sally answered the call:
“It was an opportunity of a lifetime which I couldn’t miss out on, made possible by this team forming, and I just knew I had to be a part of it. Coming from an Olympic background, it was a big decision to shift gears into offshore racing but it is such a new challenge for me and something I have wanted to do for a long time.
My roots are in lake sailing which is really good at preparing you for short course and unpredictable wind. And it also teaches an incredible level of patience. I was not sure how these skills were going to transform into ocean racing but I was surprised to learn that sometimes patience and the ability to read unpredictable winds are really valuable skills to have on the ocean, in offshore racing.
I knew the boat was going to be totally new to me as I had always sailed smaller boats, so coming with an open mind and trying to learn as fast as possible was my priority. I think it has also helped that the Volvo 65’s are completely new to everyone so we all had to start from scratch and work together in figuring out the most efficient ways to sail these boats.
There has been endless learning about the boat inside and out. Also working with such a large team makes it possible to focus on your specific role and trust that others are doing the same; that way we will be as strong as possible by the start of the race. The program managers took their time to be sure to sign the correct people and have the right mix of team players. I think we have come out with a very committed and strong team of people.
There have been countless lessons to get to where we are now, but I think the really exciting lessons are still to come once we begin racing!” Follow Sally, Team SCA and the rest of the Volvo Ocean Race here.
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