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Near Fatal Session

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RickI
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Near Fatal Session

Postby RickI » Wed Apr 18, 2007 10:01 pm

Image


- Winter in Northern California and big waves are running

- Two surfers are flushed a mile out to sea in a 5 kt. rip current

- No one knows they are out there, sunset is approaching

- Exhausted from fighting the current they drift further offshore, deeper into cold and despair

- Hope slowly grows from the sea in an unexpected and unusual form ...


Continued at:

CLICK FOR FULL SIZED IMAGES

CLICK FOR THUMBNAIL IMAGES



.

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RickI
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Postby RickI » Thu Apr 19, 2007 12:31 pm

With all the inlets and sandbars in the world, getting caught in rip currents must be fairly common. Avoiding problems can be fairly easy but people don't know or perhaps even forget to swim parallel to shore and then in. What other experiences and saves have occurred out there?

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GMan
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Postby GMan » Thu Apr 19, 2007 4:30 pm

Nice story... I cant believe the guys just left with out saying thanks after he saved their lives. :o

Nice guy though... you can tell he enjoys life :thumb:

G

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Postby tautologies » Thu Apr 19, 2007 8:28 pm

great story.

These things keep on happening though. Although not as dramatic as this, we had to tow someone to his kayak after he got overturned in the surf, and drifted way faster in the wind than he could swim.

A.

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Postby Clew In » Thu Apr 19, 2007 11:31 pm

Hey,

Those guys must have been in shock. Just to have left and not thanked that guy.

Great story.

Clew In

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RickI
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Postby RickI » Fri Apr 20, 2007 12:08 am

Thanks folks and thanks to Ray! It may be that the guys that were rescued were dazed and a bit ashamed. The latter isn't particularly logical but it is human and not that uncommon I understand after rescues.

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RickI
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Postby RickI » Fri Apr 20, 2007 9:28 pm

Rips are super common and take down way too many swimmers a year. Sometimes you may not immediately be aware that you are in one. You may end up swimming against it automatically for a time. Best to be aware of shore and bar conditions and anticipate when rips might occur. React early to avoid them or swim out parallel as indicated.

Image


More about rips at:
http://www.ripcurrents.noaa.gov/overview.shtml

So, much for business now I was wondering about ...

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RickI
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Postby RickI » Fri Apr 20, 2007 9:41 pm

What you guys thought about the original opening shot below. The one I chose was a slightly doctored photo from SoCal. There was only one guy, it wasn't all that gloomy and he wasn't in trouble or descending into an architectural "vanishing point." Still, I felt lucky to find it having spent only a single long weekend in California.

Image

vs. the original version ...

Image

This is a composite of some strange stuff. The altered backdrop is a free diving level shot off La Jolla when I was looking to photograph some seals. No joy on that, one just bounced up behind me for a verbal goose before vanishing.

The stuffed shark lives outside Innsbruck, Austria in Schloss Ambras along with some other interesting/strange museum pieces.

Image
The Schloss

Image
Our tiburon bud, hanging around. I would sue the plastic surgeon that put those stitches in.

So, which is better, the one that was used or the latter one?


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