PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV/Gray News) – A man in Oregon left his Corporate America job and cashed out his 401K to sail the world with his cat.
His name is Oliver Widger, but many know him as Sailing with Phoenix (@sailingwithphoenix) on Instagram or TikTok.
He took off solo through the Columbia River Bar, known as the “Graveyard of the Pacific.”
“I’m in the middle of an ocean. It’s crazy,” Widger told FOX 12. “Every time I go outside, I look around, I’m like, ‘what is going on? What am I doing here?’”
Life changed when Widger was diagnosed with Klippel-Feil syndrome three years ago after seeing a doctor for neck pain.
“Finally, it got really bad, I went to the doctor, he freaked out, I freaked out,” Widger said. “I went through a crisis of some sort. You know? I thought I wanted the white picket fence, I was moving up the corporate ladder. … It felt like, completely empty. When I got the diagnosis, I was like, ‘what’s the point?’”
He learned that a forceful impact could paralyze him at any moment. While processing the diagnosis, he grew inspired by others on social media sailing the world’s oceans. So, he quit his job at a tire sales company and emptied his 401(k).
“Any bad financial decision you could think of, I’ve done it,” Widger said, laughing. “It’s hard to chase a dream.”
He began documenting his journey, outfitting the boat and spending a year learning to sail. He continues daily updates via Starlink.
Widger’s first week at sea tested him. He faced storms, sail repairs, and the most “terrifying”- a rudder failure.
“The boat was just rocking like this every thirty seconds,” he said, describing the difficulty of making repairs while the boat is battered by waves at its sides. “It was like being in an airplane with violent turbulence with the windows rolled down the entire time.”
Nevertheless, he’s stayed clipped in to the boat- the most important thing for a solo sailor, he says – and he’s learned each time.
“It’s all good moments,” Widger reflected. “I’m just gonna live life as hard as I can until I can’t.”
Plus, after a year of practice alongside Widger, Phoenix remains unbothered.
“It’s been so crazy to watch her turn into this boat cat,” he said. “She gets around the boat better than I do. She’s like a walking gimbal, she walks with the boat perfectly.”
He and Phoenix have gained an unexpected following on social media, with nearly 600,000 followers on TikTok on more than 700,000 on Instagram.
“I went completely viral and then I’m also sailing in an ocean for the first time,” Widger said. “So I’m literally battling, fighting for my life and then everybody from every corner of the world is messaging me, and saying all amazing things… I never in a million years thought I would inspire somebody.”
Widger also has an online fundraiser for his journey. After this trip across the Pacific, he plans to regroup in Hawaii before heading to French Polynesia for another adventure.
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‘I’m just gonna live life’: Man leaves corporate job, cashes out his 401K to sail the world with his cat – Hawaii News Now
