Maine Skipper Sails Alone Around World in 150 Days, Breaks Record

With bagpipes wheezing and children waving American flags, Maine skipper Dodge Morgan completed a solo voyage around the world in just 150 days Friday, cutting the previous record nearly in half.

Morgan, a 54-year-old businessman, docked his 60-foot cutter American Promise in the picturesque colonial town of St. George’s at 1:05 p.m. EST, ending a 27,500-mile voyage that began Nov. 12.

“Whoopee!” he shouted as he leaped in the air after tying up.

His wife, Marian, and his two children, Hoyt and Kimberley, rushed to hug and kiss him, and yacht designer Ted Hood shook his hand.

“I’m going to stay ashore for a while,” Morgan said as the Bermuda Regiment Band played “God Save the Queen” and “Congratulations.”

The 150-day journey reduced by almost half the record for a solo non-stop circumnavigation of the globe. The previous record was set by Englishman Chay Blyth, who took 292 days to sail around the world in 1971.

At least 85 other sailors have sailed around the world alone. Joshua Slocum made the first such recorded voyage in 1898 in a 37-foot yacht he sailed from Boston. It took him three years.

Morgan faced two cyclones and a near-collision with an iceberg during his voyage.

“It takes a great oath, iron will, and extraordinary luck,” Morgan said of the trip. “That friend of mine back there is a great boat.

“As beautiful as solitude can be, and as close to the truth as you can come in the presence of the sea, as satisfying as are the long string of small victories I’ve had--I have made up my mind that the race I want to belong to is the human race.”