Gérard d'Aboville

[1] D'Aboville previously built boats and organized races before undertaking this 3,500 mile trip, which he completed in 72 days.

[2] In 1991, at the age of 46 he spent 134 days crossing the Pacific Ocean, beginning in Japan and ending in Washington state.

For this crossing, d'Aboville's twenty-six foot craft, nicknamed "Sector", had a pumping system to right the boat if it capsized, a sleeping place, and a canopy to protect him from inclement weather.

[3] The boat was made out of the light, sturdy composite material Kevlar, and had attached solar panels that charged the batteries of d'Aboville's radio.

He faced forty foot waves and winds speeds reaching eighty miles per hour.