She's been this way before. But regardless of nationality, anyone in this race is heroic in the eyes of a country utterly mad for single-handed sailing, which is considered as much art as competition.
Stories of brilliant, improvised boat repairs and selfless rescues of fellow skippers in mortal peril are the pinch-hit home runs and Hail Mary passes of this sport, except that life and death really do hang in the balance.
Davies, 38, who is British, female and the mother of a month-old boy, is an anomaly in the fleet only on paper. She was truly born and bred to belong in this elite company, and well-suited to a playing field where women compete on equal terms with men.
Her paternal grandfather commanded a submarine during World War II. Her grandfather on the other side built powerboats. She was cruising with her father and mother before she can remember, and her parents, now retired, live full time aboard a custom-built wooden schooner. She met her boyfriend and the father of her child, Romain Attanasio, on the racing circuit.
She has an engineering degree, preternatural calm and enormous passion. There are far more similarities than differences between Davies and her male counterparts, even aside from her lighthearted but accurate observation this week that "We're all a little crazy.
