Gerry Spiess

Gerald F. Spiess (January 24, 1940 – June 18, 2019) was an American schoolteacher best known for having sailed his 10-foot (3.0 m) home-built sailboat Yankee Girl solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1979 and across the Pacific in 1981.^[1][2]

Gerry Spiess
Born	Gerald F. Spiess (1940-01-24)January 24, 1940 Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S.
Died	June 18, 2019(2019-06-18) (aged 79) Pine County, Minnesota, U.S.
Occupation	School teacher
Known for	Sailing single-handed across the Atlantic Ocean in a 10-foot (3.0 m) sailboat

Sailboat construction

Spiess designed and built the boat in his garage in suburban White Bear Lake, Minnesota, from plywood. After a test launch in the local lake, Spiess transported the boat to the East Coast for launch.^[3] He sailed from Norfolk, Virginia, on June 1, 1979, arriving in Falmouth, England, after a 54-day Atlantic crossing.^[4][5]

Legacy

In 1991, a tribute song^[6] was written about Spiess's journey with Yankee Girl.

See also

• Tinkerbelle, the story of a similar sailing feat in 1965.