'Adrift' Movie Is a True Story About Tami Oldham
"Come sail with me," goes the first line of the trailer for the new movie Adrift, delivered dreamily by Sam Claflin, who stars in the film opposite Shailene Woodley. The two play young lovers and expert sailors Richard Sharp and Tami Oldham Ashcraft embarking on a journey from Tahiti to San Diego.
But soon, the seemingly idyllic love story takes a grim turn. When the couple encounters 1983's formidable Hurricane Raymond, the force of the storm damages the ship and severely injures Richard. Tami must find a way to keep the vessel afloat and sail her fiancé to safety.
An incredible tale, yes, but believe it or not, it's actually based on a true story-and the 2002 memoir written by Tami herself titled Red Sky in Mourning: A True Story of Love, Loss and Survival at Sea. Only the real-life version is even more heartbreaking.
The True Story Behind the Movie Adrift
BUY TICKETS See when Adrift is playing near you.
It was 1983, and, just as the trailer depicts, Tami and Richard were engaged and in love-both with each other and with the water, which they had called home for six months of sailing in their boat, the Mayaluga. But everything changed when they were hired to transport a 44-foot yacht called Hazana from Tahiti to San Diego.
About three weeks in, the hurricane hit. Despite changing course to avoid it, the storm followed them, forcing the couple to combat 40-foot waves and 140-knot winds, according to the Chicago Tribune. In the preview for the film, Richard appears to be living (although it's unclear if he is really there or simply a vision), but sadly the real Richard died; he is believed to have been thrown from Hazana when it capsized.
Down below the deck, where Richard had just sent her to rest, Tami was knocked unconscious. When she finally woke up with a head injury more than 24 hours later, the storm had passed, but Tami was left with a broken ship-not to mention a broken heart. Richard was gone.
"Definitely the hardest part was dealing with Richard being gone," Tami told the Tribune. "There were times I didn't even want to live anymore because I didn't know how I was going to go on. I was never going to fall in love again."
Still, she persevered.
How Tami Oldham Ashcraft Survived at Sea
"While I was in the survival mode, the grief was fairly low," she continued. "It wasn't as intense as when I got to shore and the survival was over, and I could see people together and everything kept reminding me of him. I just really had a hard time. But that survival instinct [while at sea] just kicked in. It helped me to focus, to keep myself on track."
There was plenty of work to be done. The Hazana's cabin was flooded with water; Tami pumped it out. The sails were now useless; she fashioned a new one with a storm jib and spinnaker pole. The engine, radio, and electronic navigation system weren't functioning; she relied instead on a simple sextant.
"It saved my life," Tami told the San Diego Union Tribune of the navigational device, a diamond-encrusted replica of which she now wears around her neck.
For more than a month and 1,500 miles, Tami sailed alone, guided by what she calls her "inner spirit." Weak, hungry, and on the verge of a mental breakdown, the then 23-year-old sustained herself with only peanut butter and canned food, until she arrived safely in Hilo, Hawaii.
Writing Red Sky in Mourning
SHOP NOW Red Sky in Mourning: A True Story of Love, Loss and Survival at Sea ($15, amazon.com)
But the battle wasn't over for Tami. It would take years for her to fully heal, both physically from her head injury and emotionally.
"No one ever suggested it, but I wish I had [gotten counseling] because I definitely had some severe post-traumatic stress syndrome," Tami explained to the Chicago newspaper. "I really wish I had taken the time to do that. I'm fairly headstrong, so I'm always, 'Oh, I can get through this on my own.' Now looking back, at times I really needed some professional help."
So traumatizing was the ordeal, it was six years before she could even read a book--and even longer before she could put her own memories down on paper. More than a decade later, in 1998, Tami self-published her memoir, which Hyperion Press republished in 2002.
Tami Oldham Ashcraft Now
By the time she wrote her book, Tami had settled in San Juan Island, Washington, married, and had two daughters. The book helped her heal from the loss of her first love.
"His face is so imprinted on my brain," Tami said to the San Diego newspaper. "His intense blue eyes. There was no closure for me then. The book was closure. It was a tribute to him."
Years after his death, Tami tied her engagement ring to a rose and sent it out to sea. Amazingly, she never stopped sailing.
"I just love it," she told the Chicago Tribune. "I'm passionate about it. I kind of parallel [the hurricane] to being in a car accident. You get back in the car or, like they say, back on the horse. I couldn't wait to get out of the States and get back to some tranquility and get back to the water again. But it definitely made me a lot more cautious."
(h/t: Chicago Tribune)
You Might Also Like
