Have you ever been caught in a vicious rip current? Did you survive?

I’m still in Japan etc. Snowboarding. Pow. Turns. Miso. Edamame. Etc. but did you read the story about the Japanese man who is in Australia and drifted 6 kilometers out to sea whilst surfing Bulli Beach south of Sydney?

6 kilometers!

Let’s read about him!

He got into trouble in a current, tried to paddle back into shore, but the waves were too big, he told police.

“He was attempting to paddle back in for six hours before he ran out of energy and drifted at sea,” Inspector Darren Wood from the Marine Area Command of NSW Police said.

He spent the night clinging to his surfboard and it is estimated he spent about 16 hours in the water.

Luckily, the eagle-eyed crew of the 300-metre long container ship MSC Damla spotted the man on top of his yellow surfboard.

As he drifted alongside the ship, the crew threw him a life buoy, and were able to pull him aboard.

He was given food and drink and warm clothing, and the crew contacted authorities. A boat was sent out to the container ship to retrieve him.

He was taken to Wollongong Hospital where a doctor said he was in surprisingly good health with high spirits, and he was discharged Friday afternoon.

Police said there was no active search conducted for the man, as he was not reported missing.

The surfer told the police he had travelled to Australia a couple of times before.

“He appears to be travelling by himself, and that was why no-one was alerted to the fact that he was stuck in this rip and that he was out there,” Inspector Wood said.

And what a feel-good story!

Have you ever been caught in a really bad rip current? I was once in Oregon and had to cling to a rock whilst my Nev potato chip got ripped off my leg and probably went all the way to Japan.