It's in the early 2000s in London. Roz Savage sits on a commuter train, brooding about her seemingly perfect life: husband, corporate career, big house, little red sports car.
Skip ahead several years: She's 38, single, homeless – and alone on the Atlantic, in a 23-foot carbon-hulled rowboat. Here's the strange part: She has never been happier.
The environmental activist has chronicled her transition from her “cubicle days” as a consultant to ocean adventurer in Rowing the Atlantic: Lessons Learned on the Open Ocean, released this month. She lost 30 pounds, battled rogue waves and once had to be rescued during those 3,000 miles and 103 days at sea. Through it she gained personal satisfaction and a commitment to protecting the planet. And she's not stopping there.
Next spring, Ms. Savage will embark on the final leg of a three-stage bid to become the first woman to row solo across the Pacific Ocean. She speaks to The Globe and Mail about pushing boundaries.
Take me back to that day on the commuter train. What was the source of your unhappiness?
I was stuck in this job, feeling like I was just on a treadmill of having to earn enough money so that I could afford to buy the house that was near enough to my job. It was just like this crazy cycle. On Sunday nights, me and my husband would be just grumpy and unhappy about having to go back to work. And I'd think, you know, we don't have to do this. … I felt like I wasn't being true to myself.
You eventually wrote two obituaries for yourself, the first reflecting where you felt your life was headed and then the obituary of your dreams. What did the first obituary describe?
I thought it would be a pleasant life. In 2001 we bought a big house in west London. But I think it was the purchase of the house that helped bring about crisis. Because I heard my husband say, we need never to move again. And I just thought, oh my God, is that what the rest of my life going to be like? There's a part of me that always wanted to be a writer. And I felt like, to be a writer, I needed to get a lot of rich life experiences. Maybe when I heard him say that, I realized it was incompatible with this dream.
How did you feel after you wrote the second obituary – the one you wanted?
I just felt so energized and excited. And it almost felt like it had been my life. It felt very real to me. It wasn't about what I would do, but it was about the kind of person that I would be. And I think I recognized in that moment that I had that potential to actually become that more happy, more achieving person.
Why couldn't that life include your husband?
I think I just sensed that he was too conventional to come on this path with me. But the primary reason was more selfish than that. When you're in a relationship, you always have to compromise to a certain extent. … I felt like I needed to be on my own to have the freedom without compromise to follow my own path.
Why row across the Atlantic?
