I'm on a boat!!! ... Then NOT

Pretty lucky to survive being overboard...

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/12140365/ex-miami-dolphins-fullback-rob-konrad-swims-9-miles-fall

 

Now there's a story to tell at parties ...

 

Unbelievable. Lucky he wasn't out much farther. That accident that killed the former NFL guys in the Gulf sounded like a horrific ordeal. I read the survivor's book on that one. But if he had fallen off that far out I suppose he wouldn't have had any way to survive as long as they did. Reminder that if you go boating in the colder months, probably better to stick close to shore or be very well prepared for anything. Don't know the details (water temp, etc), but not only swimming/drifting that far AND not being overtaken by hypothermia is amazing.

 

I can't help but wonder if alcohol was involved. It's not easy to simply fall off a boat like that.

 

Possibly. But if he was fishing (trolling) and tripped over a rod or something ... anything is possible. Depends how high the sides are. Or he might have just done something stupid and made a huge mistake.

 

You swim 9 fucking miles you're one tough son of a bitch.

 

When you're 9 miles out, I'm assuming you can't see land, so how do you know you're even going in the right direction?

 

9 is close to the horizon. I think it is 12 or 13. But I think he fell over at night, so he could see lights on shore and light pollution / illumination that would extend higher than the shoreline.

 

Edit to the above: ESPN article in the OP has been updated, now saying he fell overboard at 1 PM, so I was wrong about the swim being completely during the night.

 

Ocean swimming is so much harder than swimming. I'm in a pool. I swim a mile or so a couple times a week in a pool. I'd give myself about a 1 percent chance swimming back to shore from 9 miles out.

The factors of disorientation, salt water in eyes, let alone exhaustion. .. wow.

 

People are capable of amazing things when they are trying to stay alive.

 

Wonder if they will find his boat.