Kay Cottee, at age 33, was the first woman to circumnavigate the globe solo in a boat she built herself in 1987.
Kay grew up on the water, spending much of her childhood on the Sydney Harbour in the boat her father had built. Most of her youth she spent working in anticipation for embracing her dream of sailing. This allowed Kay to completely commit to her dream of sailing and purchase her first vessel.
Kay Cottee sailed, built and handled many vessels. Her first vessel the Wimaway was a just a fibreglass shell which she built in thirteen months. Wimaway was a 10.6-metre yacht in completion.
Her next vessel was an 11.2 metre Cavalier Sloop which she also built and raced. She raced this vessel with her sailing partner Linda Wayman, competing both with her partner and solo at the Trans-Tasman race. It is there where she discovered her love for solo sailing.
The vessel in which she completed her solo circumnavigation of the world was her 11.2-metre sloop which was renamed First Lady to suit Kay’s intentions. The purpose of this voyage was for her own enjoyment and to raise money for Ted Noff’s Life Education Program. Blackmores health and beauty products sponsored her voyage, assisting in fitting out the First Lady for the journey.
Kay Cottee left Sydney Harbour on November 29th, 1987 with only a two-way radio as modern GPS was still in its infancy.
The voyage took 189 days in which Kay face 20-metre waves and 100-knot winds. The First Lady struggled with the 20-metre waves being knocked over more than once along the voyage. Off the coast of Africa, Kay Cottee was washed overboard when the First Lady was knocked over again. Despite the challenges of her voyage, she returned through Sydney Heads in June 1988.
Kay Cottee had travelled 22,100 nautical miles at an average speed of 117 nautical miles per hour. On embarking on this voyage Kay set seven world records and raised $35,000 for the Life Education Program.