Operation Deep Blue

A few years ago, a young surfing writer asked me if freaque waves can be surfed. My answer at the time was clearly negative, since we don’t know where or when it’s going to happen and when it happens, it is happening in the middle of the ocean so it appears to me to be nearly impossible for a surfer to get there to catch the freaque wave. That was a few years ago, of course. I thought I gave a reasonable answer albeit a little simple minded. Well, not anymore! Earlier this month Sunshine Coast Daily published this article “Mark Visser jumps into storm swell” that has made what I thought as nearly impossible a few years ago a distinctive reality: modern satellite technology can locate and track the giant waves and the surfers can fly there to jump into the waves to do the surfing – why didn’t I thought about that possibility?

Here's the story:

With the help of satellite technology and a group of scientists, Visser is in search for the next big thing that of which all big wave surfers dream about - the 100ft wave.

The 28-year-old athlete has been training with Navy Seals and a variety of specialized experts to complete his next “Nine Lives” project titled, “Operation Deep Blue”.

"Operation Deep Blue" follows Visser and researchers from the International Aerospace Centre as they discover massive waves located thousands of miles from land.

These "freak" waves have been responsible for sinking ocean-liners, naval vessels and destroying oilrigs.

Until now, they have been nearly impossible to predict and no athlete has ever gone to these lengths to find them.

Not only is Visser finding these waves, he’s surfing them.

“Everyone knew that these rogue waves were out there. We knew that they were bigger than 80 feet,” said Visser.

“The hardest part was figuring out how to get out into the middle of the ocean.”

In order to get to the waves in time, both he and his crew (including his jet skis strapped tightly with his surf boards) dropped from the air into outer sea locations where a seaplane could not land and helicopters did not have the fuel range.

These areas take up to four days to reach on a boat, so airdropping is the only option in order to arrive at the optimal window for surfing conditions.

“This project was really terrifying.

"Being out in the middle of the ocean without seeing a speck of land is a very humbling experience and you definitely feel very, very alone out there,” Visser said.

The article completes with a video and this breathtaking picture of the Operation Deep Blue project.

How can we not deeply appreciate and admire the courage and innovation of the surfer and his surfing team to successfully carried out this incredible operation? For ordinary people like me may considered it nearly impossible, but for an extraordinarily courageous young surfer like Mr. Visser, I don't think the word "impossible" had ever entering his mind! All the best to him in his future ventures. God speed!

A case of three-sisters in Lake Michigan with a happy ending!

I just came across this Lake Michigan case reported in the Ozaukee Press a week ago by Bill Schanen IV:

Veteran captain and Divers’ Delight owner says freak waves flipped boat, spilling him, his crew and 10 customers into a churning Lake Michigan.

Lake Michigan was already riled up by a freshening northeaster when veteran diver Ralph Ripple arrived at the wreck his customers wanted to explore Saturday morning, but Ripple had seen conditions like that more times then he can remember.

“We’ve gone out in conditions a hell of a lot worse,” said Ripple, who owns Divers’ Delight scuba diving charter service, which typically operates out of Port Washington but had departed from McKinley Marina in Milwaukee that morning to dive on the wreck of the car ferry Milwaukee about seven miles northeast of the city. “Heck, it was actually a pretty nice day.”

It happened in an instant. Hidden amid two to four-foot waves were three monsters — rogue waves that Ripple swears had to be 10 feet high — that swamped his custom 28-foot dive boat, then capsized it.

“We had just tied up to the wreck buoy and I was about to call off the diver because it was getting pretty lumpy, but I never got the chance,” Ripple said. “The first two waves swamped the boat and third rolled it over. It wasn’t violent, but there was nothing you could do to stop it.

“It was the strangest damn thing. These were freak waves that just came out of nowhere.”

Ten customers from Chicago, two crewmen and Ripple were left floating in the churning lake three miles off shore near Whitefish Bay.

“I think the divers jumped after the second wave hit,” said Ripple, who lives near West Bend. “They were about 20 feet from the boat when it rolled.”

The divers, all of whom were wearing wet suits, and Ripple, who had on a T-shirt and shorts, climbed onto the overturned boat.

It's a fairly long and detailed report, the rest was about getting rescued. This is a nice report with all the details about the freaque waves -- a case of 10' three sisters amidst 4' seas -- clearly provided by the experienced veteran captain. All 13 people on board the 28 feet boat were successfully rescued, no one was injured. A great happy ending story to read! Deo Gratias!

I was somewhat confused at first when they indicated that the boat was near Whitefish Bay. I know Whitefish Bay in eastern Lake Superior -- I have been there! It turned out that there is also a Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin in Lake Michigan. This, of course is only my personal ignorance. You learn something new every day!

Wave watchers beware!

This picture was published in Scarborough Evening News showing a spectacular waves crushing over Royal Albert Drive. The picture was taken by Andrew Higgins.

HOLIDAYMAKERS have been warned that they are playing with their lives in heavy waves along Scarborough’s seafront.

Both the police and the coastguard yesterday spoke out against wave dodgers on Royal Albert Drive, alongside the railings in North Bay. Their warnings come on the sixth anniversary of the inquest on a family of three – swept to their deaths after a freak wave dragged them out to sea.

Kim Barrett, 33, and her two children, Luke and Aimee Greenwood, 11 and 13, drowned after being pulled into the sea from the slipway at North Bay. This week in 2005, coroner Michael Oakley said: “It is clear the deaths of these two children and their mother was an accident and demonstrates the power of the sea cannot at any time be ignored.”

There could have been another tragedy during Tuesday’s high tide, as a family were witnessed making their daughter, about six years old, pose in front of the railings on Royal Albert Drive as waves came crashing behind her.

Well wave watching is always fun -- but make it certain that you are safe first and foremost! There are plenty of lives lost just to post for a picture in front of the waves.

Giant waves crush over

This is not freaque wave as we think, still some experience! Even though I think they expected that, it's not clear that they knew exactly what was going to happen:

Whatever, it can't possibly be a pleasant experience especially when those muddy water crush on you. Give a thumb up to the poor reporter.

Happened in Caribbean waters

This case, with one unfortunate casualty, happened a few days ago in Caribbean waters, just reported in this Westport News:

A former Westport resident died Tuesday when he was swept off a boat owned by supermarket magnate Stew Leonard Sr. into rough Caribbean waters off the Virgin Islands.

Robert Speranza, 73, the owner of the Ocean Club in St. Maarten, according to the St. Maarten-based Daily Herald website, was one of four people aboard Leonard's 70-foot powerboat, "Stew's Special," when it was hit by large waves traveling from the island to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Leonard Sr., his son Tom and the powerboat captain, Martijn Haasdit, were also on the vessel when it was struck by what Leonard described as a "rogue wave."

Recounting the accident in a statement issued Friday to the Westport News, Leonard Sr. said, "As we got further out to sea, the waves turned from 2- to 3-foot to 5 to 6. As we were approaching Virgin Gorda, about one mile offshore, a rogue wave about 12 to 15 feet high suddenly came out of nowhere and hit the bow of the boat.

"I was behind the 10-foot-wide bulletproof windshield, which took the full force of the impact of the avalanche of water, and put my two arms up to protect my face," he said in the statement. "But both Bob (Speranza) and my son Tom were swept down to the back of the boat. Tom was able to grab onto a railing, but the torrent of water swept Bob overboard and he was left drifting unconscious in the water."

Haasdit, the captain, dove in and was able to bring Speranza back the to boat, Leonard Sr. said, "and we immediately began CPR, which continued for the next 30 minutes until we reached the dock in Tortola" in the British Virgin Islands.

According to the Daily Herald website, the efforts to revive Speranza -- who suffered a gash on his head -- were unsuccessful on board the boat. Tom Leonard was also injured, but not as seriously.

An ambulance was waiting at the dock, Leonard Sr. said, and Speranza was transported to Peebles Hospital, where he later was pronounced dead.

"The hospital did everything they could. They were excellent," Leonard Sr., who has a home on St. Martin as Westport, told the Daily Herald.

Speranza, he added, had lived in Westport for several years and "had been my friend for 40 years, and his death is so unexpected and very saddening. Our family's thoughts and prayers are with his wife Barbara and the entire Speranza family."

This report consists detailed account on what had happened that includes even the sizes of the waves encountered given by the owner of the boat. This is, without a doubt, a real case of freaque wave encounter. Besides that being sudden and totally unexpected "came out of nowhere", the owner of the boat proficiently estimated that they were sailing in 5-6 ft waves and being hit by one 12-15 ft. That's exactly meeting the conventional ad hoc, or operational definition of a freaque wave! Sadly the tragedy happened when "the torrent of water swept Bob overboard and he was left drifting unconscious in the water" and Bob was never being revived. May God bless him to rest in peace! It is demonstrated once again that a freaque wave can happen anywhere, anytime -- and a tragedy is lurking not far behind!

A separate news item in WestportNow by James Lomuscio has this picture of the powerboat 70 ft Stew's Special:



Clearly this is a local case happened to a well-known, well-to-do local family and only local newspapers were interested in reporting. Nevertheless it is a clearly full-fledged freaque wave case that should always being reported. I can't help wondering though if it might not be reported if the people involved were not famous local personalities?! How many cases could have happened out there but never get reported?