Steven Callahan. Needham (USA), 1952. Callahan is known for having managed to cross the Atlantic after losing his boat in the middle of the ocean in 1982. For seventy-six days, he learned to live on a life raft and traveled 1,800 nautical miles . His later book, Adrift, was a best seller and has been translated into fifteen languages. In addition, Callahan has contributed writing, illustrations and photos to many other books on seamanship or survival, and has written hundreds of articles for the press around the world. He was a contributing editor for Sailor and Sail magazines and a senior editor for Cruising World, for which he continues to do special projects, such as testing new ships and salvage equipment. Since he was a child he was addicted to water and boats, and at the age of ten he built barges out of old roof boards. He soon learned the basics of ship design and astronomical navigation, and went on to help build a forty-foot sailboat before graduating. Since then, he has spent more than forty years in the maritime and communications trade, first building ships, then designing and teaching, as well as living on board, competing, writing, illustrating and doing marine photography. Callahan is intrigued not only by the technical elements of ships and the sea, but by the human issues that arise when navigating the world's largest desert. He resides with his wife in Maine, where they enjoy life close to nature.