Sailling boat knockdown caught on Video - this could happen to you
by Kym Pasqualini on 10 Apr 2010
Knockdown - this could happen to you!! Sharon Dreschler
The founder of The Sail Through Cancer Foundation, Dick Drechsler, accompanied by his wife, Sharon, battled serious waves that nearly turned their Catalina 470 sailboat upside down while crossing an extremely shallow bar to get into the estuary of San Blas, on the western coast of Mexico.
While Sharon was narrating their video-taped approach, she was able to catch on camera the waves nearly over-turning a sailboat that traveled ahead of them through the entryway. What happened next could have been dread fully serious for sailing vessel (S/V) Last Resort.
They had watched in dismay as the two boats preceding them rolled and pitched; one of them even came close to doing a 180-degree turn. They counted nine serious waves in the set through which the two hapless boats were attempting to navigate.
'Cappy, as I call him, judged the wave set to be over and figured he'd just pop the boat into overdrive and forge ahead,' said Sharon Drechsler. 'As we reached the shallowest point over the bar, an enormous wave built up by the ebb tide's current clashing with the influx of water just about knocked us over!'
Though the sail boat popped back upright, the Drechsler's were thankful to only lose a $400 camera to the ocean's fury.
What makes this potentially life-threatening event even more interesting is that Dick Drechsler is a cancer survivor who has battled Stage 3 throat and neck cancer leaving him unable to swallow anything and now survives on a strict liquid formula diet.
Despite his battle with cancer, Dick has gone on to follow his dream of sailing the world and now lives on his Catalina 470 sailboat called the Last Resort. Dick is also the Author of Manning Up in Alaska, his true story of survival, adventure and inspiration, as he sailed 2600 miles from Ensenada, Mexico to Glacier Bay, Alaska.
Dick is also founder of The Sail Through Cancer Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing respite and inspiration to those afflicted with cancer.
8776 E. Shea Blvd., Suite B3A-306, Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
www.sailthroughcancer.org
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