Japanese Man Becomes Oldest Person to Sail Solo Across Pacific
2022-06-07
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1A Japanese man has become the oldest person to complete a solo, non-stop sailing trip across the Pacific Ocean.
2Eighty-three-year-old Kenichi Horie returned to his home port off Japan's western coast on Saturday.
3His trans-Pacific trip began in San Francisco in late March.
4It took 69 days to complete.
5Horie spent the night aboard his 6-meter-long sailboat before he was welcomed back Sunday by community members and supporters at the port of Shin Nishinomiya.
6Upon arrival, Horie took off his hat and waved to the crowd from his boat.
7Later, he met with supporters and was presented with flowers.
8"Thank you for waiting!" Horie said.
9He had carried a supply of medicine in case he got sick.
10But he said the only things he used during his more than two months at sea were eye drops and Band-Aids.
11"That shows how healthy I am," Horie said.
12"I'm still in the middle of my youth."
13Horie added that it felt like the trip had "burned all my body and soul."
14But he said he is still ready for more exciting experiences.
15"I will keep up my work to be a late bloomer."
16Horie told reporters that setting the record for the oldest person to complete the trip was a dream come true.
17He said it brought happiness "to have been able to make a challenge as a real goal and safely achieve it, instead of just holding onto it as a dream."
18"I want to be a challenger as long as I live," Horie added.
19It 1962, he became the first person in the world to sail a solo non-stop trip across the Pacific from Japan to San Francisco.
20Sixty years later, he traveled the opposite path.
21Soon after leaving San Francisco, Horie faced stormy weather.
22But conditions improved after that and he was able to reach Hawaii sooner than expected in mid-April.
23Horie said he had struggled toward the end of his trip with pushback from some strong waves.
24In an internet report Friday, he said he felt close to success, but was exhausted.
25Horie has completed several long-distance solo trips.
26In 1974, he sailed solo around the world.
27His latest success was the first trip since 2008, when he traveled solo on a wave-powered boat from Hawaii to Japan's Kii Strait.
28Despite sailing on his own, technology helped him keep in touch with family members and others throughout the trip.
29"I imagine my next voyage would be even more fun," he said.
30I'm Bryan Lynn.