This was, without question, the longest two seconds of Graeme Spence’s life. He’s a member of the Oracle Team USA sailing team, arguably the best sailing team in the world.
These boats are incredibly fast. Back in June of last year, Emirates Team New Zealand reached a speed of nearly 51 miles per hour. The America’s Cup sailboats are also the most high-tech boats on the planet. These boats are often made out of carbon fiber and feature razor sharp hydrofoils slicing through the water.
What happened in this instance was a sailor went overboard but instead of falling clear of the boat to Port or Starboard he fell over the front. In this situation, there’s the hydrofoil that could’ve sliced his body in half like a knife cutting through butter. And there are the two hulls of the catamaran which could have ripped him in half like William Wallace getting tortured by the Brits.
This tense clip takes us through what life was like for the Oracle Team USA crew in the immediate aftermath of Graeme Spence falling overboard, and the million thoughts which raced through every crew member’s mind.