Garmin 2002 Annual Report Download - page 72

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Reese W. and Steve L.
GPSMAP 230
A Garmin GPS was his life preserver
When Steve purchased his 29-foot sport fishing boat along with a business partner, he insisted that they spend a little more money on a
GPS system. He chose a Garmin GPSMAP 230. Turns out that was a life-changing decision. Memorial Day weekend, 1999, Steve, Reese and four
friends spent a day fishing off Charleston Harbor. As Reese walked to the boat's stern, he was pitched overboard, but no one heard his
cries for help. Shirtless, and without a life jacket, he spent the longest 45 minutes of his life bobbing in the warm Gulf Stream waters.
Back on the boat, Steve woke up from a short nap and asked where Ward was. Nobody knew. Steve immediately radioed the Coast Guard. Then
he spoke the words every captain hopes he'll never have to: "I'm missing one of my crew members. I need some assistance." He started fid-
dling with the GPSMAP 230 and switched to TracBack, a feature that shows the boat's previous course. Steve turned the boat around and
started to backtrack. After 30 minutes, his heart sank. There's no way he could tread water for this long, he thought. But the man over-
board kept treading, and when Reese spotted a dot on the horizon, he found the strength to keep going. Aboard the Summer Girl, Steve was
the first to spot Reese, bobbing in the two- to three-foot waves. He radioed the Coast Guard. "We have him in sight... I can't believe it."
Amazingly, Reese was right on the 230's course plot. "He hadn't drifted a bit, and if we hadn't seen him, we would have run right over
him," Steve said. Safe on board, Reese hugged everyone and said he was sorry for ruining a good day of fishing. They all learned some
valuable seamanship lessons that day. New rule aboard the Summer Girl: No one goes to the back of the boat unless someone's been notified.
You can bet Reese follows the buddy system. And he's darn glad his buddy was an experienced captain who had insisted on buying first-
rate navigation equipment.
06
Photos by Bill Jordan, The Post and Courier