Episode 182: The Surfmen
the memory palace
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The Graveyard of the Atlantic
More than five thousand vessels have been wrecked there since they started counting about 500 years ago. The warm jet stream collides with arctic currents, which makes unpredictable tides a breeding ground for storms and sand bars that swell unseen. Richard ethridge was one of those men, and he joined the life saving service first at body island as a member of what they called a cheqker board crew - checker board because it had both black and white men. He waited out his time until the waves passed over, got his discharge and went back home,. to the outer banks, to the marsh reeds and the broken trees.
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