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New podcast episodeThe fight for survival of two damaged crews - with YACHT editor Morten Strauch

Leonie Meyer

 · 20.06.2025

Morten Strauch is a passionate sailor. He came across the story through a Terra X documentary and wanted to research it directly.
Photo: Morten Strauch
In the 42nd podcast episode of YACHT - the sailing podcast host Timm Kruse and YACHT editor Morten Strauch take you on a journey back in time. More precisely, to the year 1864, in the middle of the southern Pacific, at a time when ships in the "Furious Fifties" - a notorious zone between the Auckland Islands and the southern hemisphere - repeatedly had to contend with devastating conditions.
Topics in this article

At the centre of this episode are two fateful accidents that occurred almost simultaneously in the isolated surroundings of a desert island. Two ship crews - a small square-rigged schooner ("Grafton") with five men and a larger ship with 25 - stranded, separated by the sea, but equally confronted with life and death. While the "Grafton" crew overcame the crisis thanks to clever organisation, cohesion and craftsmanship, the other group descended into chaos, indiscipline and despair.

The difference between survival and demise

Morten Strauch, who researched the story, talks to Timm Kruse about the crucial aspects between the two crews: What made the difference between survival and sinking? The YACHT editor provides the answer. You can also find out from the research how the crew members of the "Grafton" became survivalists and how the other crew ended up in a maelstrom of conflict, hopelessness and hunger, which ultimately led to several tragedies.

Solidarity vs. competition

In addition to the exciting survival strategies, the two also discuss the importance of leadership and organisation under extreme conditions. What lessons can be learnt today from these historical events? How can modern rescue measures and emergency depots ensure the desire to survive? And what does history tell us about human nature in extreme situations? Timm Kruse and Morten Strauch also address these questions in the 42nd episode.

Here you can listen to the YACHT podcast with Morten Strauch

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Leonie Meyer

Leonie Meyer

Editor News & Panorama

Leonie Meyer was born in Detmold in 1997. The passion for boating runs in her family: every year they spend their summer holidays in Croatia with their boat. Even as a child, she leafed through her father's BOOTE magazine.

After training as a design assistant at school, she moved to Magdeburg to study International Journalism. During this time, she completed an internship abroad at a German daily newspaper in Greece and an internship at BOOTE magazine. After graduating with a BA (2020), Leonie did a graduate internship in Mallorca. Her last stop was a cross-media traineeship at a daily newspaper in OWL. Leonie Meyer has been working as an editor in the watersports digital editorial team since 2023 and turned her passion into a career.

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