Erica Lush
Sailing

Erica Lush

2 minutes

From Rhode Island, USA, Erica Lush pursues offshore sailing with determination. Family trips in her childhood sparked her love for life at sea, teaching her early on about the magic and adventure of leaving shore behind. Those memories continue to fuel her dream of ocean racing. 

A haven for young sailors, Rhode Island provided excellent opportunities for dinghy racing development. But after university, that track disappeared. Lacking a clear professional pathway, and facing many false starts and obstacles, Erica forged her own career without a road map—finding “lucky breaks” in programs designed to advance women in sailing. 

She first joined an affirmative action initiative The Maiden Factor, then later benefited from a structured mentorship with Sharon Ferris-Choat through The Magenta Project. She continues to carry those lessons in her own offshore solo and shorthanded campaign, giving back to the sport she loves. 

 

Today Erica has sailed over 75,000 nautical miles offshore. That’s equivalent to more than two laps of the planet. 

Her highlights include racing through the Southern Ocean, rounding Cape Horn, completing a circumnavigation, crossing the Atlantic in IMOCA 60s, and competing in double-handed races in Class 40s and Figaro 3s. 

Now she has set her sights on her toughest challenge yet: La Solitaire du Figaro 2025, a single-handed marathon regarded as one of the world’s most demanding training grounds for elite offshore racing. 

Erica first heard about this grueling series of solo races on the Atlantic coasts of Europe in 2019. The idea hooked her, but the event is decidedly French—and being American, she didn’t think she’d be able to enter. Undeterred, she formed a plan to begin racing double-handed back in the US and then internationally. 

 

Six years later, in September 2025, Erica will be on the starting line in Europe. After years of development in short-handed racing, re-locating to France and learning a new language, fundraising relentlessly, training in the French system and completing her first solo races, this year all the hard work is coming to fruition in the biggest challenge of her career. 

 
 Fast Facts: 

  • Her first love is languages, studying Linguistics and Arabic in university. 
  • Kitesurfing is her meditation / flow-state activity of choice. 
  • Once panicked by snorkeling, she took a freediving class—failing at first but eventually conquering it with a 16-meter dive on one breath. 
  • She left part of her heart in West Bengal, India, where she works with the Prabhat Alloi Foundation to provide resources, education, and cultural preservation, including long-term support for a leprosy village.  

  

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