Great post Murph!
I got caught in a Riptide swimming off the coast in Kauai many years ago. I was an excellent swimmer and also in very good shape at that time. Totally freaked me out. I had heard about riptides, read about them - a bit, but never actually been caught in one or knew how to get away from one. Kauai is a small island, and the beach was getting pretty small and I was getting real tired. It finally let me go about a half mile from the beach. I was freaked out thinking I would not be able to swim back to shore. I did eventually, and ended up a good mile from where I had planned. I read up on them after that near death experience.
