Penny Bird
Greetings from paradise: The Seabirds in their scrappy vessel, here on the beautiful blue waters off the coast of Italy.
By Brooke Porter Katz
July 7, 2026
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Sleep deprivation, physical exhaustion, isolation and weeks spent surrounded only by water: Long-distance ocean rowing demands a high tolerance for discomfort. Which explains why most people who do it only do it once.
But four years after completing a four-person, record-setting, 2,600-mile journey from California to Hawaii, former UCLA rowers Sophia Walters ’18 and Elizabeth “Libby” Costello ’19 are preparing for yet another watery feat: a 3,000-mile race across the Atlantic Ocean.
In December, Walters, Costello and two teammates from Switzerland will compete as “The Seabirds” in the World’s Toughest Row, a grueling challenge in which competitors cross from the Canary Islands to Antigua. Over four to six weeks, the all-woman crew will row around the clock aboard a 29-foot boat barely wider than a hallway. They’ll clock more than 1.5 million oar strokes before they’re finished.
“We did our best to prepare the first time, but there were so many things we couldn’t understand until we’d done it,” Walters says of their original Hawaiian adventure. “It’s a cool opportunity, because we’re in a small club of people who have a chance to improve.”
The team is also using the race for far more than a chance to earn the shiny trophy that goes to the winners. The women are also hoping to raise money and awareness for Take Back the Night, an international organization that provides resources and covers legal costs for survivors of sexual violence. The rowers say their choice of charity reflects a larger sense of purpose that emerged during their Pacific crossing, when Roe v. Wade was overturned.
Penny Bird
Walters (far left) and Costello (third from left) with their all-woman crew in Portofino. Costello loves — and lives by — a particular John Wooden quote: “The star of the team is the team.”
“The community that was built during our first row was centered around women’s empowerment,” Walters says. “The climate in politics right now is really upsetting, with no accountability for people who are harming women. And we liked that the organization is really making strides toward justice.”
While much of the training is centered around physical endurance, life aboard the boat will also require deep reserves of mental and emotional strength. The crew will follow a relentless, nonstop schedule of two-hour shifts at the oar, followed by a two-hour break to eat, repair equipment, manage hygiene (there are no toilets on the boat — they use buckets), and sleep.
“Sometimes you only get 10 to 90 minutes of rest before you come back to the seat and give it your all,” Costello says.
Penny Bird
“The race will be a success,” says Walters, “if we execute on all fronts.”
Both athletes credit UCLA with shaping the mindset they now bring to ocean rowing, pointing to legendary basketball coach John Wooden and his emphasis on teamwork. “My favorite Wooden quote is ‘The star of the team is the team,’” Costello says. “Everyone has their own strengths, and it’s wonderful to see how far we can go knowing everyone is supportive of each other.”
To navigate the mental strain of weeks at sea, the crew relies on a daily communication exercise designed to address problems before they escalate. “When you’re doing something so high-pressure in a close-quarters environment, it’s easy to get lost in the question of what’s next. That cloud of uncertainty can become overwhelming quickly,” Costello says. “Checking in reminds us we’re all experiencing this together.” (When they’re feeling down, dance parties and listening to Miley Cyrus help, too.)
As the race approaches, the team continues to train, update a shared document of inspirational quotes, and prepare for the unexpected, ranging from inclement weather and a capsize to a person overboard and marlin strikes. Throughout it all, the focus remains on the process more than the outcome — another lesson the two UCLA grads learned from Coach Wooden.
“This race will be a success if we execute on all fronts, meaning we show up strong, row hard every shift, navigate smartly, and handle any issues as a team,” Walters says.
“We’ll feel like we’ve accomplished our mission if we land,” adds Costello, “and there’s nothing we could have done to go faster.”
Want to support The Seabirds on their epic journey? Contribute to their GoFundMe.
Read more from UCLA Magazine’s Summer 2026 issue.
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