Southampton sailor Sam Goodchild swept overboard in Global Ocean Race (From Daily Echo)

Southampton sailor Sam Goodchild swept overboard in Global Ocean Race

8:43am Thursday 19th January 2012 in News By Will Carson

Sam Goodchild

A SOUTHAMPTON sailor was washed overboard in one of the world’s deadliest oceans without a lifejacket during a round the world yacht race.

Sam Goodchild 22, spent 25 minutes in the freezing Tasman Sea west of New Zealand after a huge wave swept him off his 40ft yacht.

He was forced to cut away layers of his heavy thermal clothing with a knife as he trod water not knowing how long it would be before he was found.

Sam, who lives in Portswood, was leading the Global Ocean Race at the time the near-disaster happened.

He was changing a sail on Cessna Citation with Kiwi skipper Conrad Colman when he was thrown into the water.

Conrad immediately threw him a line but the yacht’s movement pulled it out of his crewmate’s reach.

The skipper then activated a man-overboard alert to mark the spot Sam fell and began the difficult job of turning the boat around with half changed sails amid gusty winds.

Meanwhile, Sam prepared for a long wait in the sea, bobbing in bitterly cold 15ft waves.

“At first I thought it was fine and he’d just turn around and pick me up,” he told the Daily Echo. “But it slowly started dawning on me as ten minutes passed that he hadn’t tacked yet and I couldn't see him and he certainly couldn’t see me.”

Conrad eventually turned the Class 40 boat around and after several passes of the area finally spotted the yellow flash of Sam’s hood amid the waves.

He threw a lifebuoy and pulled in Sam with a rope that was still attached to one of the sails.

The narrow escape did not stop Cessna Citation crossing the finish line at Wellington Harbour in first place, completing the 7,000 nautical mile leg from Cape Town, South Africa, in 30 days.

But Sam, the youngest sailor in the race, said the result paled in significance to his rescue.

He said: “It was a harsh lesson and one I will never forget. You hear these stories and think, well that’s a bit stupid, but that’s not going to be me, which is a bit arrogant. It only takes a second for something to turn into a big disaster and I’ll be clipping on in future.”

Sam and Conrad, who only met face-to-face days before the race started, had been lying in fourth position before winning the leg into Wellington lifted them into the overall lead.