In a Stunning Feat, a Self-Proclaimed Girl’s Girl from NY Has Rocked the Boat—and Broken Several World Records Rowing from Calif. to Hawaii
Having finished the 2,400-mile journey in 43 days, 32-year-old Kelsey Pfendler has broken men’s and women’s records—and become the youngest and fastest to ever finish the route alone.
Photo: Unsplash/Ajay Kumar Jana Sports Hawaii
It’s been a big news weekend for plutocrats—but amid all the pomp and hubbub of a certain billionaire’s wedding and another tycoon-in-chief’s lavish 4th-of-July event, on Friday night, a 32-year-old made quiet waves of her own—and broke records from the world round after rowing from California to Hawaii.
Kelsey Pfendler, originally from New York, arrived in Hawaiian harbor Ala Wai a little before 9 p.m. on Friday, where she was met with cheering spectators that had been following her journey since she began it 43 days earlier in May. (Per her Instagram page, her official time was 43 days, 17 hours, 55 minutes, and 59 seconds.) She breaks not only the women’s record, previously held by Lia Ditton—at 86 days—but also the men’s, at 52.
“I can get in my own way,” Pfendler told Outside Magazine on the 28th day of her journey, responding to the reporter’s question of whether it’s really the year of women’s big sports wins. (It kind of is.) “I know women are strong, but I feel very average as a person most of the time. So I’ve been trying to ask myself that question a lot,” she replied.
“Women are good at endurance sports,” she continued. “There are a lot of really cool women, especially in the endurance sports world…We’re good at pain management and emotional regulation. I’m a girl’s girl, for sure, and I deeply believe in the power of women.” Damn straight.
According to Ocean Rowing Society International, Pfendler is the youngest and fastest to have ever completed the 2,400-mile journey without any added help. She finished the route on her 21-foot boat, called Lily, and spent nearly a month and a half at sea.
“My mission goes beyond just rowing an ocean,” Pfendler wrote in her fundraising page. “It’s about inspiring women everywhere to recognize and embrace their strength.”
Likely a testament to her great vibes, Pfendler’s arrival in Honolulu on Friday was hailed by fans and locals alike. “This is amazing girl power,” Amanda Wentz of Honolulu told Hawaii News Now, a local news agency. “So impressed with what Kelsey’s been able to do I think with everything that’s going on. Just so impressed.”
Another woman, Sarah Maune, who’d been following Pfendler’s journey early on and happened to be in the area, told the New York Times that the rower was greeted in the dark with fans’ flashlights. “We all had our phone lights on guiding her in to the harbor, sort of like guiding stars,” she said. “Everyone was chanting her name.”
“You go, girl,” one person wrote on her fundraising page. “I mean goddess.” Again—damn straight.
Keep scrolling for more great stories.