This Wave Killed 6 Men

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As an Aussie, only 7 at the time, I recall this well, it was all over the news, my parents were talking about it. People couldn't believe an Olympic swimmer could drown, but then you saw the chopper footage and immediately understood. There is no skill that will avert 10-20 meter high waves, in gale-force winds. One guy got super lucky, as his yacht was being battered about, he was flung into the freezing water, he said he knew he'd die as the sea was ferocious but suddenly a chopper appeared and spotlighted him the whole time (he said if the spotter has lost sight of him in the waves, he'd of drifted off and drowned too, or if the chopper had arrived a few seconds later, he'd of never been seen). Basically, the biggest ships survived (and won, outrunning the storm; the largest ship won the race) while the littler, quaint pleasure yachts (if they didn't pull out or didn't hear the call) were obliterated. It made the race more professional, but more corporate, kind of a shame, but not worth dying over.

I was on board a 56 foot yacht called Future Shock in the 98 Hobart, we finished in 6th place (over the line). Conditions after the first 14 hours were brutal, highest windspeed was 92 knots with waves over 20 metres. Larry Ellison was on one of the largest yachts with a fully professional crew and ahead of the worst of the weather. It would have been terrifying on the smaller yachts.

The events described starting at 12m 13s most likely describe the classic MOB maneuver known as the "Williamson Turn." This rescue alone deserves an entire video because the odds of achieving it under those conditions were literally astronomical. Having practiced it in calm weather, it's never easy.

En route to perform one of the rescues, the Victorian Police air WING helicopter was flying at 420kmh, with a tailwind. When performing winch rescues, into the head wind, they were flying at 160kmh....just to remain stationary.

I don't participate in any water activities, yet I am enthralled by every video you drop. Phenomenal storytelling! Keep em coming!

Brutal. The ocean can be a savage place. There was a triathlon in Cork this year were two people died during the swim. They went ahead with the swim despite being warned about the conditions

As a US Navy vet, son and nephew of WW2 USNavy men, and an avid lover of history, your channel keeps me enthralled... there are other historical genres I watch... But nothing beats this channel... Well researched, well narrated and incredibly interesting material... Thank you...

I didnt know how complex sailing is. Thank you for explaining it.

I remember this race well. When I was younger, I used to go on Christmas holidays with my parents at a town called Narooma, which is about 100km north of Eden in NSW, where a boat known as Loki retired from the race after it had been knocked down and damaged. I remember the captain of it saying that he had considered making a run to New Zeland so he could move with the wind as the conditions were so bad. I can also remember stopping at a town called Lakes entrance in victoria on boxing day on the trip up and struggeling to stay standing as the wind was so strong. I can strongly recommend a book known as Fatal Storm by Rob Mundle to anybody who wants to lean more about the race, and the incredible rescue mission that took place.

Thankyou for this info, I actually had a family member on a sailboat named "Kickatinalong" during the 1998 Sydney to hobart and they were listed as missing at sea for a full 24hours, until they later established communication with the race coordinators.

This race and the Fastnet that went pear shaped are the two sailing events that are used in safety classes/sea survival courses. One point that was rammed home is stay with your yacht until it actually sinks. In both races many drowned after abandoning ship but only a couple of yachts actually sunk. It can be unnerving but the reality is that survival after leaving the yacht are 5% at best.

I was in HMAS Newcastle when we rescued some of the sailors that year. Biggest seas I had seen.

I love your technical acumen and story-telling skills. Good shit.

I'm Australian. Watching this race start is a tradition in my house. I was 10 when this happened. It is one of the few things I remember from that long ago. The understanding of just how dangerous this race actually is. I think it gave me a whole other level of respect for the ocean. In brighter news in the 2023 race there was a four legged sailor. A cat called Oli. Look him up. He is cute af.

The Bass Strait is fun to take baby sailors into. They learn really fast to respect the ocean, and that it doesn't matter how good of a swimmer you are, if the ocean wants to take you it'll be the fight of a lifetime. That tribute at the end was beautiful!

What you didn't mention was that Larry Ellison never went offshore racing again. The big problem was that the Australian ego thinks that man can beat mother nature. The BOM upgraded their forecast to a full storm warning 2 hours after the start, and that was the time for the CCA to notify all racers to return to Sydney and restart the race when the weather improved. There will be another tragedy one day when they find out all of the new equipment will no stand up to those conditions. Other race organizers postpone starts, even for around the world racers.

You should have done the bathtub shot showing the yacht design sitting in a tub of bath bubbles, speaking in serious tone.

Another fantastic video as always! And I really like the new style of shooting when you had the model boat! It’s a great personalized addition :)

Living a board of my cabine cruiser and being a former member of the French sea rescue as chief medic and rescue swimmer I can't understand the unnecessary risks some take just for a race... And apparently a few without the bare minimum equipment!