Forty years ago Colin Quincey was first to row across the Tasman Sea, in just 63 days.

When Colin Quincey set out in the summer of 1977, alone, to be the first to row across the Tasman Sea, he calculated he had a good chance of dying.

He was carrying only a short-range two-way radio, so once he was out of sight of land, he had strictly limited chances of seeking emergency help.

The odds of surviving or not were about even - 50/50 - says Colin, now aged 71

"I didn't know that the middle of the Tasman particularly is very unpredictable ... the biggest danger was the possibility of breaking an arm or something like that. Had that happened, I probably would have died.

"You can mitigate against those things as much as you can by being careful, in terms of personal injury, but ultimately it's luck whether you get there or not."

Hardback in very good condition, some wear to dust jacket. Signed and dated by Colin Quincy, December 1977.

204 pages; black and white photographs; map; plans; drawings; original dust jacket; signed by author.

A great gift idea!