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Do you like boats, but also the obliteration of structural inequality?
Beyond being wildly dangerous, the Ocean Rae was (and is) expensive.
Boats alone cost upwards of $1 million.
But the film carries an impressive emotional weight, too.
Near the beginning of the film, she scoffs at a reporter who asks her if shes a feminist.
I hate that word, she says, laughing.
This was despite their personalities ringing so distinct.
Each crew member feels pulled from the page; thinkTheBaby-Sitters Clubat sea, orLittle Womentransplanted to the 1980s.
Maidens only flaw is that it doesnt let you in on what happens after the Whitbread.
It wasnt until this time last year, when they reunited to watchMaiden.
So what happened the moment they stepped back on land?
How do you move on toanythingafter youve sailed around the world?
Do they feel they changed the sport of sailing forever?
And most importantly, can they still communicate telepathically?
We just look at each others eyes, says trimmer Heath.
We dont even have to have an expression.
Were very emotional about all of this, trimmer and medic Claire Russell adds.
So much has happened in between and Id forgotten all about it.
It was so long ago, and now its come,whee!, back into our lives again.
Tracy Edwards, skipper:Edwards says watchingMaidenwas a surreal experience.
I just looked at me and went, Thats not me!
I was a bit of a can I say this?
I was lurching from one disaster to the next, she recalls, laughing.
So watching me give sensible interviews, Im like, I dont remember doing that at all!
Edwards struggled more than most.
I didnt deal well with the end of the race, she admits.
None of us really thought about the end of it, I dont think.
On the last few days, I thought,Bloody hell.
Weve been together for two years, and theyre all gonna go.
Three months later, they divorced.
Soon after, she discovered her agent had been screwing her out of paychecks.
She had a daughter.
In 2001, she put together the first mixed-gender pro racing team to similarly wild success.
(She made sure to clarify that shed never sail again with men, ever.
They smell so bad.)
These days, she doesnt do the risking-my-life shit anymore.
Now, she runs the Maiden Factor Foundation, raising money around the world for girls education.
Id kind of putMaidenaway, Edwards said.
But she was like, Hello?!
So she went back to Wales a place thats hard to escape where shed grown up with Edwards.
Im on a bit of an adventure!
As for her conflict with Edwards?
Five years after the race, the two came together, talked about what happened, and made peace.
We just had a good chat, says Heys.
We know we were very young, and very passionate.
These days, theyre good friends.
While Heys is pleased with the doors thatMaidenbusted open, shes frustrated by the lack of progress made overall.
You still see these big racing boats with not one single woman onboard, adds Edwards.
Not much has changed.
So she kept sailing, racing, and delivering yachts around the world.
We have to buy a yacht!
We were well-trained athletes, she says, pretending to be shocked.
As soon as we stepped off the boat, it was straight in the gym.
Everyone erupted in laughter.
Needless to say, Russell has been busy.
She says she realized a few years back how she regretted letting theMaidenwomen slip out of her life.
Theres a natural time in your life when you go,I need to reconnect with these people.
And youre like,Jesus, Im 50 now; I better do it.
Shes 56; shes lying, says Heath dryly.
Well, I was 50 when I first thought that!
Im so much more comfortable in my skin now, she says.
They were very formative years, and we were all growing up together.
Youre trying to stay in the team; its tough going.
When I looked at myself, I could see a tension in my face.
I prefer being older because I couldnt care less anymore.
Heath also says she doesnt think of herself as particularly funny, and the women erupted in disagreement.
You were a one-line wonder!
Our comedic relief on the boat.
After the boat, Heath changed.
I had to get to know my husband again, she says.
But I wanted to really finish the race, and create a new life.
It was hard to keep going back.
It was so big.
Even going to the yacht club, it was like, Youre the girl fromMaiden!
I just wanted to be Angela again.
We have to get a pen and finish the rest.
Its up in my room.
You just cant believe it, says Heath.
Nearby, she heads up a sailing school, Oakcliff Sailing Center.
Ive tried to instill in my children the values I learned fromMaiden: Dont give up.
There is always a way of overcoming anything.
Shes currently based in the South Pacific for the next five years, which sounds mysteriously glamorous.
She went on to get a masters degree in electronic engineering and work as an engineer.
Shes now a regional managing director of Visas U.K. and Ireland outposts.
Women athletes still have to carry day jobs, she said.
I did expect us to be a lot further on in these many years.
My patience has run out cmon!
But the women are determined to find her.
Were all going to meet up once a year now, from now on, says Hunter.
Well go to Michele.
Well get on a boat and well chase her.
