"You don’t have to feel brave in order to do brave things."

Those are the words of Guinness World Record-breaking rower and environmental campaigner Dr Rosalind Savage MBE who became the first woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. She holds four Guinness World Records.

She will be in Breamore near Fordingbridge this week talking about her experiences and environmental campaigning as part of the final Hulse Hall centenary speaker event, which takes place on tomorrow (Friday, May 27) at 7pm. 

An environmental epiphany led to a radical career change for the management consultant when she left behind city life to take on her rowing challenge.

She said: "It’s a long story – but in short, I felt I wanted to make a positive difference in the world in a way that management consulting didn’t seem to provide. In 2003, I saw the retreating glaciers in Peru and found out about climate change, and passionately wanted to do something to raise awareness of our environmental challenges.

"The fact that I knew how to row made rowing across oceans seem quite do-able – although as it turned out, rowing ability is largely irrelevant on an ocean, where seamanship and the ability to stay sane and balanced are much more important.

"My ocean adventures gave me a way to get people’s attention for my environmental message, through my blogs, talks, books, and documentaries."

The former Oxford law graduate spent 520 days and nights alone on the ocean - battling the weather as well as injuries and being alone.

Recalling, the experience she added: "It was hard. Intensely solitary, and usually some drama going on – damaged equipment, injuries, tricky winds and currents. But also, it was tremendously character-building.

"I feel very fortunate to have had these experiences. They have really taught me that we are all capable of much more than we allow ourselves to believe."

She has written several books on her experiences.

"If I was going to pick just two take-aways, it would be that you don’t have to feel brave in order to do brave things – you just have to be really motivated, and motivation trumps fear. Also, that you don’t have to be brave enough to row a whole ocean – just brave enough to get past the point of no return," continued Roz. 

Roz says she is "looking forward" to be part of the talk series and says she'll be keeping it "fun and informal" and said: "It’s less of a lecture, more of a fireside chat, with lots of salty old sea stories and hopefully a few laughs along the way."

The lecture series has been running to commemorate the centenary of Hulse Hall.

Hulse Hall was built in 1921 following the death of Captain Sir Edward Hulse during the First Word War. His mother, Lady Edith Hulse, built the hall in his memory and left it in trust to Breamore Parish Council.

Tickets for the talk are £5 per person visit: ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/fordingbridge/hulse-hall-breamore

 

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