Abhalish Tomy, in one of the first extended interviews since he was rescued from his boat via stretcher in the southern Indian Ocean, said that he fell from atop the mast after he nearly was washed overboard in a 110 degree knockdown in a violent storm. Tomy was unable to move after his boat Thuriya a replica of Robin Knox-Johnston’s 1968 Golden Globe Race winning boat was dismasted. Tomy is the first Indian man to sail solo-nonstop around the world and was competing in the solo-sailing around the world 2018 Golden Globe Race.
Photo by Abhilash Tomy/GGR/PPL; Tomy climbs the mast in preparation for the 2018 Golden Globe Race.
Here is a quote from Indian Navy Commander Abhilash Tomy:
“It was scary as hell. When the first knockdown happened, I was swept off my feet. I fell down to the mast and put my hands around it. I got swept outward to the tip of the mast. And then a few seconds later when the boat straightened, I found myself hanging from the top of the mast. The hiccups haven’t stopped since the mishap. I have some problem in speaking because of that, My watch got entangled in it. I was hanging by one hand. I felt my wrist would crack. Then the watch strap snapped and I came crashing down to the boom attached to the mast on the deck.”
He went on to describe 150 kmph winds and 14-meter seas. His boat suffered from gas and diesel leaks that he could not stop, and his boat was uncontrollable in chaotic seas.
Unable to move after the storm, Tomy said he awaited rescue by meditating. “There were no thoughts in my mind during those 70 hours. That is something I have taught myself over the years. Thinking can lead to problems,” he told the Hindustan Times.
SLOW BOAT SAILING 