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  • The Mug That Floated Home: How Four Choices Saved Three Lives

    The Mug That Floated Home: How Four Choices Saved Three Lives
    2026/10/28
    The Mug That Floated Home: How Four Choices Saved Three Lives

    A weighted ceramic mug survived a 22-mile overnight drift, sealed inside a dry-bag, and washed ashore upright on the Oregon coast on October 14, 2019 - while its owner remained alive somewhere at sea. How did four separate decisions, made by four people who never met, line up closely enough to bring three crew members home?

    In this episode, you’ll hear the sequence of events from the deferred maintenance note to the storm that arrived 12 hours early, and how improvised fixes, a handwritten log entry, and a gift mug all became part of the survival story. Which single choices mattered most, and how small margins kept them alive?

    Person: Christine O'Connor
    Person: Don Aldridge
    Person: Person: Petra Voss
    Date: October 2-14, 2019
    Vessel: 1984 fiberglass cutter, 34 feet, orange hull

    - Christine wrote "water-maker service check: deferred" in the log on October 1.
    - The failed water-maker left six gallons of fresh water for three people on board.
    - The mug traveled 22 miles overnight and washed ashore on October 14, 2019.
    - A storm arrived 12 hours ahead of forecast with winds up to 40 knots and 12-15 foot swells.
    - The headsail was lost when a forestay fitting let go in the early hours of October 7.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    19 分
  • Floating White Shoe: How an Anchor Chain Became a Lifeline

    Floating White Shoe: How an Anchor Chain Became a Lifeline
    2026/10/27
    Floating White Shoe: How an Anchor Chain Became a Lifeline

    A child's white high-top canvas shoe, size four, double-knotted with one lace scorched black, floated in the Atlantic for roughly thirty-one hours before a fisherman found it on September 9, 2014 - and there was no child, no boat, nothing else. What happened in the thirty-one hours before Denise Hoffman pulled that shoe from the water, and in the ninety minutes after her radio call, set off a cascade of equipment failures that left five people adrift; how did two survivors end up clinging to an anchor chain as the search drifted away?

    In this episode, we tell the sequence of events from the Ardent's departure to the moment Denise found the shoe, laying out the mechanical failures, decisions, and timing that shaped the outcome. How did a failed hydrostatic release, a drifting emergency beacon, and a sunken life raft combine to turn a routine delivery into a survival story?

    Person: Denise Hoffman
    Date: September 9, 2014
    Event: Ardent fire and abandonment beginning after midnight on September 8, 2014
    Vessel: Ardent, 38-foot catamaran
    Survivors: Two people clinging to an anchor chain

    - The child’s shoe had been floating for approximately 31 hours before being recovered at 7:52 AM.
    - Five people left Jacksonville on September 5, 2014 at 2:20 PM heading to Key West, about 350 nautical miles away.
    - The fuel line failed between midnight and 1:00 AM on September 8, 2014, roughly 31 miles northeast of Marbella Inlet.
    - The life raft failed to deploy because its hydrostatic release had been reinstalled incorrectly and the canister sank sealed after three pulls.
    - The emergency beacon guided rescuers roughly five miles in the wrong direction during the subsequent search.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    20 分
  • Dry Card in Cordgrass: How a Solo Sailor Vanished Then Returned

    Dry Card in Cordgrass: How a Solo Sailor Vanished Then Returned
    2026/10/26
    Dry Card in Cordgrass: How a Solo Sailor Vanished Then Returned

    A dry, sun-bleached laminated safety card from the sloop Ardent Sky was found wedged in cordgrass on Heron Neck Peninsula five days after the Coast Guard suspended the search - the card was dry, undamaged, and looked placed, not washed in. How did a solo sailor with a shattered shoulder, a seized engine, and a failing radio leave such a small, precise trace on land while his boat drifted across Pamlico Sound?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline of David Schmidt’s solo August run: his departure from Oriental Marina, the storm that broke his shoulder and tore the fixed VHF antenna, the engine failure from a disintegrated impeller, and the improvised use of his inflatable raft as a drogue - each step pushing toward the same question: how did those last choices lead to the card in the marsh?

    Person: David Schmidt
    Date: August 1-14, 2019
    Location: Pamlico Sound and Heron Neck Peninsula
    Vessel: Ardent Sky, 32-foot sloop
    Injury: fractured clavicle and two cracked ribs

    - Ardent Sky departed Oriental Marina on August 1, 2019 at 06:15.
    - Last confirmed radio contact placed Schmidt about 12 nautical miles northeast of Oriental in the early afternoon.
    - A squall on the evening of August 1 produced sustained winds of 35-40 knots and caused two broaches.
    - The fixed VHF antenna cable was torn free; the handheld VHF had 40% battery and the spare pack was inaccessible.
    - The engine seized on the third day after the impeller disintegrated, after which Schmidt deployed the inflatable life raft as a drogue.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    18 分
  • The Three‑By‑Five That Kept Her Alive: Midnight at Sea

    The Three‑By‑Five That Kept Her Alive: Midnight at Sea
    2026/10/25
    The Three‑By‑Five That Kept Her Alive: Midnight at Sea

    A woman went overboard at 10:22 PM on July 17 and survived thirty-one hours in the Atlantic with a three-by-five index card that never had its ink run-written in the dark, in the water, in the first hour. How did a broken GPS, a dockline, a ballpoint pen, and a grocery-list card become the central evidence at a maritime inquest, and what did that card say that mattered?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from the Bonner Davis leaving Skull Creek Marina to the trawler captain pulling a living woman from the water nine miles northwest of the wreck field; we describe the equipment she carried, the decisions made on board, and the unanswered detail that changed the search. What do the GPS track log, the missing crew member, and a soaked index card together reveal about those thirty-one hours?

    Person: Megan Farrell
    Age: 33
    Date: July 17 (incident) and July 19 (property visit)
    Location: Thirty fathoms, eleven nautical miles southeast of Calibogue Sound
    Time: 22:22 (ten twenty‑two PM) - wake hit the Bonner Davis

    - The Bonner Davis was struck broadside by a container ship’s wake at 22:22 on July 17.
    - Megan Farrell went over the rail in under two seconds with a dockline around her ankle.
    - Her GPS recorded every ten seconds and its track log ended at thirty fathoms, eleven nautical miles southeast of Calibogue Sound.
    - She had a Pilot G-2 fine point ballpoint pen in her right chest vest pocket and an orange GPS in the left lower pocket.
    - A trawler captain found and recovered her alive thirty-one hours later, nine miles northwest of the wreck field.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    19 分
  • He Wrote "I'm Fine" - Found Alive After Swimming From His Sinking Boat

    He Wrote "I'm Fine" - Found Alive After Swimming From His Sinking Boat
    2026/10/24
    He Wrote "I'm Fine" - Found Alive After Swimming From His Sinking Boat

    The first image is a yellow legal pad sealed in a zip-lock bag, handwriting still crisp after eleven days at sea - the note simply said "I'm fine." How did a fifty-two-year-old liveaboard leave a single, intact message that would travel one way while he swam the other, and why was the search looking in completely the wrong place?

    In this episode, we follow the sequence of events from the June 3 departure and the last confirmed sighting on June 4, through the squall on June 5 that sank the Nora Jean, to the discovery of the life raft on June 14 - and we ask how a routine float plan and a sailor's small, methodical choices changed everything.

    Person: Stanley Parker
    Age: 52
    Vessel: 38-foot sloop Nora Jean
    Departure Date: June 3, 2019
    Discovery Date: June 14, 2019

    - The Nora Jean was purchased in 2014 for $41,000 and kept at Slip Twenty-Two in Palmetto marina.
    - A photograph on June 4 showed the Nora Jean at the fuel dock on Big Pine Key, Bogie Channel - the last confirmed sighting.
    - On the night of June 5, wind gusts reached 51 knots and the forestay fitting failed, causing the mast to come down.
    - Stanley sealed a 40-sheet yellow legal pad inside a 2-gallon zip-lock bag and stowed it under the stern boarding platform before the boat sank.
    - Bird photographer Carol West found an orange life raft in the mangrove fringe of Morro Cay at 5:47 AM on June 14 and called the Coast Guard.

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    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 分
  • The Dry Shoe on Pryor's Bar: How an 8-Year-Old Survived the Talloway Queen Drift

    The Dry Shoe on Pryor's Bar: How an 8-Year-Old Survived the Talloway Queen Drift
    2026/10/23
    The Dry Shoe on Pryor's Bar: How an 8-Year-Old Survived the Talloway Queen Drift

    Cold saltwater, a dry size five sneaker wedged on a granite shelf and an eight-year-old who vanished after a ferry capsize - the photograph that stopped a paperboy at 6:22 a.m. on May 10, 2011, hinted someone stood on that rock all night. Why did an EPIRB registered to the wrong town send rescuers thirty miles away when the Talloway Queen went down four miles off Carteret, and could that error have cost lives?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from a May third birthday trip to the Talloway Queen’s sudden capsize on May eighth, describing the people on board, the automatic distress signal, and the critical registration mistake that redirected search efforts. How did routine protocols and small choices shape who was found and who was not?

    Person: Cooper Holmes
    Date: May 8, 2011
    Location: Four miles southwest of Carteret Municipal Pier
    Event: Talloway Queen capsize
    Person: Vincent Pryce

    - The Talloway Queen departed Carteret Municipal Pier at 9:45 a.m, with 17 passengers and 2 crew.
    - The vessel heeled to approximately 110 degrees and sank in less than eight seconds at 10:51 a.m.
    - The EPIRB signal activated on contact with water and was received by rescue coordination at 11:04 a.m.
    - The EPIRB was still registered to Millhaven, 30 miles north, causing search teams to be sent to the wrong location.
    - The water temperature where survivors clung to the hull was 53 degrees.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    17 分
  • The Logbook on the Gravel: How a Single Sentence Saved Her at Sea

    The Logbook on the Gravel: How a Single Sentence Saved Her at Sea
    2026/10/22
    The Logbook on the Gravel: How a Single Sentence Saved Her at Sea

    Fear of being seen but not found: a woman survived six days alone at sea with an EPIRB that kept sending the wrong coordinates, an aircraft that searched eleven hours in the wrong place, and a single waterproof logbook washed ashore with a last entry that changed everything-what did that sentence say that made rescue possible?

    In this episode, we follow the timeline from the Marguerite’s capsize in a forty-two-knot storm to the discovery of Christine O’Brien’s logbook on a gravel road, tracing what she did, what failed, and how one decision recorded in ink saved her life-what exactly did she write?

    Person: Christine O’Brien
    Date: April 2-24, 2019
    Location: Oregon coast (Marguerite sailed from Newport; logbook found near Morro Flat)
    Vessel: Marguerite, 31-foot cutter-rigged sloop
    Event: EPIRB transmitted fixed, incorrect coordinates after hard impact

    - Christine departed Newport at approximately 08:00 on April 2 with provisions for three weeks and 12 liters of water.
    - The storm’s conditions on the night of April 6-7 included 42-knot sustained winds, gusts to 55 knots, and 14-18 foot seas.
    - Christine activated the EPIRB at 02:48 on April 7; the device’s GPS locked on the capsize impact coordinates and stopped updating.
    - A Coast Guard C-130 searched for eleven hours on April 7 using the EPIRB’s static position and found only open ocean.
    - A waterproof logbook with salt crust and a tideline was found in gravel near Morro Flat on April 24, 2019, with entries in blue pen up to the final page.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    18 分
  • The Boot in the Marsh That Saved Three Lives at Sea

    The Boot in the Marsh That Saved Three Lives at Sea
    2026/10/21
    The Boot in the Marsh That Saved Three Lives at Sea

    A single white rubber boot, size seven with a woman's sock knotted inside, floated upright in eighteen inches of brackish water in the Marker Road marsh canal - and that odd sight would become the clue that saved three people adrift at sea. How did a boot that snagged on a stern ladder and traveled from a sinking forty-one-foot fiberglass boat through currents to a Carolina marsh connect to a raft drifting southeast of Cape Lookout?

    In this episode, we tell the sequence of events over the three days in March 2009 that tied a misread EPIRB coordinate, a failed impeller, and a flooded engine compartment to a boot found by an electrician in a marsh, and ask how that chain of small failures and tiny discoveries turned into a rescue.

    Person: Dawn Davis
    Event: Sinking of the Pelerin
    Date: March 2009
    Location: Marker Road marsh canal; drift southeast of Cape Lookout; Beaufort Inlet
    Status: Three people survived on a six-person life raft

    - The boot found was white rubber, size seven, with a woman's sock still knotted inside.
    - The boot was floating upright in eighteen inches of brackish water in the Marker Road marsh canal.
    - The Pelerin was a forty-one-foot fiberglass hull purchased in 2003 and captained by Dawn Davis.
    - The EPIRB activated at 14:28 but its GPS module failed to acquire satellite lock, sending the marina's registered address instead of the boat's position.
    - The crew abandoned ship after the main engine seized following a raw-water impeller failure amid eight to eleven foot swells and winds exceeding thirty knots.

    To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.

    © 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
    This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: business@obomedia.com.
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    18 分