Emma grew up in a family with a sailing tradition. Replacing one of the ropes at the top of the mast gave Emma a very hard time

M: What first spark your interest in sailing?
W: It wasn’t really a conscious decision. It all just kind of happened. I’m the youngest of the four in my family and I started sailing with my brothers and my parents. I began racing when I was ten or eleven with my brother. Then we moved up into bigger boats and started helming, which was very exciting.
M: What do you love about it?
W: Everything, really. I love being outdoors and I love the freedom of just being able to jump in a boat and sail. But there are so many different parts of sailing. You have to concentrate on the tides and currents and weather. Just by sailing under a cloud, you will get more wind. There is a lot to learn about aerial dynamics.
M: Where is your favorite place to sail?
W: The west coast of Scotland where I grew up. I guess home is always your love, but it’s definitely the most beautiful sailing I’ve ever done. It can also be the most dangerous because it’s so tidal and the weather hits the coast there pretty badly. Second is New Zealand, particularly the North Island. I’ve sailed and cruised around there. That’s beautiful.
M: What was it like sailing on your own? Did you get lonely?
W: Yes, I did sometimes. But it’s quite funny because you are so busy all the time that days just disappear. You try to feed in as much as you can in daylight, and at night, you have to make everything secure. But if you get really lonely, you can always pick up the phone and speak to someone.
M: What was the worst moment on the Around Alone race?
W: Having to climb the mast on the second leg. I broke the main hauling yard, which is the rope that hauls the main sail at the top of the mast. It’s snapped right at the top, so I had to go up and replace it. As you can imagine, at the top of the mast, the yacht’s motion is really exaggerated. It’s very dangerous and you don’t want to go up there too often.
M: Was there a time during the race when you thought you might not get back?
W: A couple of times I thought: Why am I doing this? But there was never a time when I thought that’s it—I’m fish food, having said that. There are so many moments when you get up a bit slack about fitting the safety harness because it’s a real pain to keep moving alone. If you trip or follow over board, that’s it. You are going to watch the boat sail off into the distance on autopilot. You either stay on the boat or you die.
M: Do you ever get enough sleep sailing alone?
W: You go into a state of exhaustion, so you sleep in bursts never more than 20 to 30 minutes at a time. In really rough weather, you just try to lie down for 10 minutes. You rarely sleep but your body somehow gets some energy back, because your life revolves around sailing, keeping the boat fast, navigating, eating, sleeping and it’s a constant routine. You only spend a few minutes doing anything at a time.
M: Would you do the Around Alone race again?
W: No, I’ve done it once and I have proved to myself that I can. The problem is that it’s a big chunk of your life and there’re so many other things I want to do, although I’m very lucky to be only 29 and have done the equivalent of a few around the world.