Natasza Caban

As she herself says, during her voyage she is also going to strengthen relationships with the Polish community living abroad, promote this sport among women as well as popularize alternative energy sources and the need to live in harmony with nature. “I would really like to convince everybody that if they really want something then they can achieve it” Natasza states. “A lot of people write to me already assuring me that I’m fulfilling their dreams and that by hearing and reading about what I’m doing they will be able to feel as though they were taking part in the journey themselves.” 

Loneliness

As we were talking before Natasza set out I asked her if she was not afraid of the responsibility and loneliness that was going to accompany her when she was on board entirely alone for such a long time. This is what she replied “I’ve already once had an opportunity to sail on my own on the Pacific, though my stopovers were a bit longer and the distances weren’t that vast. And I must admit I can’t wait to be alone again, to make my own decisions and manage everything by myself. This is a considerable challenge for me. Fear? It surely is somewhere and it should be there. I’m of the opinion that if somebody is not afraid any more then it means they are in a bad way…” 

The Route

 To be able to claim that you really went round the Earth you need to satisfy two conditions. On your way you have to go past three capes and cross the equator twice.

Natasza is following a route from the East to the West – contrary to the “standard” sailing manner, i.e. in the opposite direction with regards to the flowing sea currents and blowing winds.

She set off from Hawaii and on her way there are: the Republic of Vanuatu in Oceania, the Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean, Chagos  and archipelagos in the Indian Ocean, Kochi – a city in the south of India, Oman – a country in Asia on the Arabian Peninsula, Dubai – a city in the United Arab Emirates, Egypt – situated partly in Africa and partly in Asia on the Mediterranean Sea, Israel – a country in  the Middle East, Sicily – the biggest island in the Mediterranean region, Gibraltar – a peninsula on the southern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, at the outlet of the Mediterranean Sea into the Atlantic Ocean, and then on the Atlantic Ocean the archipelago of the Canary Islands, an island country – the Republic of Cape Verde, the island of Barbados, Panama – a country in Central America, located on the Caribbean Sea, and the route will finish in Hawaii again.

Unwaveringly pursuing your goal

 Natasza was born on April 12, 1977 in Ustka in Poland. She finished secondary school in Slupsk. Her passion for sailing started with taking part in a sailing camp, some voyages and a sailing course. As she herself affirms: “I fell in love with a yachtsman. The yachtsman went away but the love of sailing has remained.”

“The yachtsman who Natasza met was a world record holder entered in the Guinness Book of Records for being the youngest person to have sailed round the globe. At that time he was 17 years old,” – says Krzysztof Kaminski, an active yachtsman and a person behind Inter Pro International Auto Body & Painting Inc. (one of but a few companies in the US that deals with mending aluminium bodywork of Jaguar cars and since just a couple of months one of only four companies in the USA authorized to carry out repairs to luxurious Aston Martin cars) as well as Inter Pro Sailing, the chief sponsor of the solitary voyage.

“I just got absolutely fascinated with sailing. I even tried to think of something that would discourage me from it, but I failed. The sense of achieving something, overcoming your weaknesses, especially on a solitary voyage, is truly wonderful. It changes you at that very moment. You begin to think that if you’ve managed it on sea there’s nothing on land that you  possibly couldn’t cope with,“ Natasza adds.

“For me sailing is simply a way of life and a unique method of getting to know myself, the world and people,” she maintains on her website.

She is not particularly bothered about the superstition that a woman on board brings ill luck. “Let men think and say so,” she laughs, “I’ve heard many captains’ opinions that women on board are hardier, calmer and more diligent, but it is not my intention to convince anyone otherwise.”

And how did her family receive her passion for sailing? “The moment they realized they couldn’t stop me they decided to support me instead. They patiently and carefully observe what I’m doing; they support me and worry about me, especially my mom.” What about other things – plans for the future? “If there is time, there will come family, children and studies. Right now the delight in sailing is stronger than anything else,” she asserts.

Natasza’s first attempt to sign on a sailing ship was at the age of seventeen.

To this end she hitchhiked to Germany, in winter. But the first attempt proved unsuccessful. Somewhat later, while studying in Paris she made a decision that she was going to be so good at sailing that others would pay her for doing it. And she did what she had decided. At the age of only 19 she signed on the famous racing boat Kia Loa IV.

From that moment, she sailed in various different corners of the world being driven by the conviction that the best way to sail is simply doing it. 

Meanwhile, as befits a woman who is not afraid of any kind of work and is curious about everything that is going on around her, she engaged herself with rigging masters, she managed to be a truck driver, rode a motorbike and a horse, went paragliding, played volleyball and the guitar, went scuba diving and snowboarding, played tennis…

The other day, when watching TV she saw a rescue action at the Sydney Hobart sailing regatta and it was then that she realized it was exactly where she should be. And that’s where she ended up a year later.

“Sydney Hobart is the most difficult regatta in the whole world that takes place on the Tasman Sea. Because of exceptionally severe conditions there yachts and people tend to disappear” says K. Kaminski. “Natasza has taken part in that race twice,” he remarks, “whereas to take part in it still remains one of my lifetime ambitions.”

  How a yachtsman became a sponsor

  “I first met Natasza in 2001 in the Dutch half of St. Maarten Island, in Simons Base Marina. We were getting ready to take part in the Antiqua Sailing Week regatta on a yacht called Gemini. The owner of the yacht was captain

Andrzej W. Piotrowski. When we arrived on St. Maarten we found Gemini and an accompanying notice which read, ‘If you’re sailing to Poland, I’ll be more than happy to join you.’ Unfortunately we had already completed our crew,”  K. Kaminski recollects.

Natasza easily figured out that Gemini was a Polish boat as it had the name of its home port - Warszawa - on the stern. “Once Gemini had reached Antiqua, two days after the beginning of the regatta, Natasza found us on the island and asked if she could join us for a few stages of the race. We agreed because owing to harsh weather conditions several members of the crew had decided to leave the boat. Natasza accompanied us on the return journey from Antiqua to St. Maarten that lasted 16 hours. During the passage, after keeping watch for quite some time, I decided to let her stand at the helm. I tried to teach her how to sail against waves and how to control the yacht. It came to me as a big surprise when I saw that after taking over the helm she was leading the boat with astonishing ease and much better that I had been. I realized she was a truly talented sailor,” he recalls. “You could sense genuine subtlety in the manner she led the boat, which surprised me a lot because according to some popular sailing beliefs a woman on board is supposed to be a bad omen, in a word, trouble,” he adds. “It was settled that Natasza would continue her journey on Gemini from St. Maarten to Florida together with Andrzej W. Piotrowski and a couple of crew members from Chicago whereas the rest of the crew was supposed to fly to Chicago. However, after reaching St. Maarten and getting news from Chicago Piotrowski decided to fly with us. This way Natasza found herself on land again.

It was already then that she seemed to me a yachtswoman-hitchhiker. I could see that question in her eyes, “Who will take me for the next race with them?” It was in those years that Natasza gained her experience on different yachts.”

Natasza and K. Kaminski met for the second time in 2004 when the latter together with captain Piotrowski were sailing across the Atlantic Ocean in 24 days from the island of Madera to St. Maarten on a yacht called Solidarity.  “The next day after arriving on St. Maarten we went to examine Gemini that had spent the winter there. Having found it we immediately realized somebody had been living on it. We went up the ladder and we came across… Natasza,” relates K. Kaminski. “During our conversation Natasza let us know about her plan to sail solo round the world, how she was going to raise sponsorship and who would be likely to be behind it. I liked the idea very much from the start and I immediately became interested in the project. But I don’t think Andrzej did as much as me since the meeting ended with Natasza being evicted from the boat. Fortunately, she managed to get on a different – Dutch – vessel the very same day.”

Third meeting: “A group of Polish yachtsmen arrived on St. Maarten. Doing shopping, they ran short of money and they could not communicate with the shop assistant either. Much to their surprise a young girl came up to them and chipped in towards the cost, thus saving them from trouble. They enthusiastically shared the story with a yachtsman from Chicago who instantly figured out it must have been Natasza. And he was right,” Kaminski affirms. “I consider Natasza to be a good spirit of sailing and therefore I hope the whole project works out for her exactly the way she planned it. I firmly believe she’ll make it.”

Natasza’s skills together with her determination and passion for sailing made K. Kaminski, a businessman and an experienced yachtsman, a graduate of the famous Mragowo Base, the present-day Olympic Championship School, sailing on a yacht called The Lightning, help to fulfil her lifelong dream. “The project includes many elements that are difficult for her to cope ‘I’ve already once with. Therefore I made this decision to help her at least with the most difficult elements related to safety (a rescue station, a computer or satellite telephone). Help was also offered by WDT company that donated some money which Natasza could spend on equipping the yacht with a couple of things indispensable to her life on sea, e.g. electronics, rigging, etc. Those elements are really expensive and Natasza was given a free hand to spend the money on what she pleased. After purchasing all necessary equipment, the Australian owner of the boat backed out and gave the yacht to a broker for sale. Naturally, with excellent equipment. An interesting turnabout,” he continues. “Perhaps we got too engaged in the project, but a prompt decision was needed so Inter Pro Sailing Team bought the yacht from the owner and all rights were transferred to the company, so there would be no doubts who was going to take further decisions in connection with the boat. The yacht was registered in Hawaii. We entered into a contract with Natasza leasing her the boat for 22 months, i.e. for the period of the voyage round the world. During this time she is exclusively in charge of the boat and it is up to her to make all decisions relating to herself, the yacht and the route she’s going to follow.

After that, if she decides so and finds a sponsor, she can purchase the yacht, which is potentially her home, from Inter Pro Sailing for the amount that we paid without any rise claim. Unless this happens, the boat will remain in Polish hands with the possibility of using it in other projects and it will praise the name of the Pole who sailed it round the globe.”