Adrian Barich: Bravo Austin Appelbee, the teenage hero who proves pure grit can overcome the impossible

They say character is what you do when no one is watching. And 13-year-old Austin Appelbee’s character shone through when he was absolutely alone, defying the unforgiving Indian Ocean that was trying to swallow his world whole.

He held on when there was nothing in him except the will to say, “hold on”.

I first heard about awesome Austin when I got a message from a friend in London saying, “how’s that amazing kid off Quindalup?” Apparently it’s big news in the UK.

And after a few weeks where the news cycle in Perth has felt relentlessly heavy, we desperately needed Austin — a reminder of the light.

A young man with a name straight out of a Roald Dahl masterpiece, and the heart of a lion.

While most of us were complaining about the Fremantle Doctor and the heat last Friday, Austin was facing a life-and-death situation.

He, his mum Joanne and younger siblings Beau and Grace, who are 12 and eight, were swept out to sea while kayaking and paddle boarding in Geographe Bay.

Stranded offshore in rough conditions, Austin did what his desperate mum asked, striking out for shore on his own to seek help, leaving them behind.

He swam four kilometres in the open ocean. Anyone reading this who has Ironman experience is nodding along, thinking, ‘Wow, good effort’.

To put that in perspective, that’s 80 laps of the 50m pool at Beatty Park — except Austin did it in rough seas, against a rolling swell. I’ll be honest with you, I gave it a crack this week in the flat, heated water of the pool, and I could only belt out 30 laps.

When you’re out there in the deep blue, especially off our coast, your mind goes to dark places, doesn’t it? I don’t care who you are; you’re hearing the Jaws theme music.

But Austin? He had a different soundtrack. He told reporters he kept himself going by thinking of happy things, including Thomas The Tank Engine.

I bet his mantra was simple: “Little engines can do big things”. My generation would’ve lent on The Little Engine That Could, arm over arm, repeating that timeless refrain: “I think I can, I think I can”.

It’s a signature motif that I believe many of my marathon-running mates use when they hit the wall at the 30km mark. That or “if it’s going to be, it’s up to me”.

Austin Appelbee certainly found out what he was made of. He’s one tough cookie. Not many 13-year-olds, or adults for that matter, would ever be tested like this.

And while Austin was battling the currents, his mum, Joanne, was 14km offshore, tethered to Beau and Grace. They clung to paddleboards for 10 hours, drifting in the looming darkness. Joanne later spoke of praying to her late mother in Ireland, whispering to the sky: “Mum, if you can hear me, just light that holy candle for me”.

Someone was listening.

Meanwhile, her eldest son had defied the odds by making it all the way to shore, and most kids would have collapsed the moment their feet touched the sand. Not Austin. After four hours in the water, he ran another 2km back to his hotel to find his mum’s phone. When he got through to emergency services, he gave the clear instructions they needed: “I need helicopters, I need planes, I need boats. My family’s out at sea.”

The sheer grit is staggering. He was eventually fed by some kind ladies on the beach before passing out, later waking up in Busselton Hospital. But even then, the weight of the world was on his young shoulders. Before he knew they were safe, he was plagued by a guilt no child should carry, thinking: “I wasn’t fast enough”.

Austin, mate, you were plenty fast. You were a miracle. Our man Appelbee is a different strength of iron.

I hope someone makes a movie about all this. I can see the screenplay now: we’ve got the rugged West Aussie coastline, the lurking shadows beneath the surface, and a hero with the perfect name. Cast Cameron Crovetti (from The Boys) as Austin, and you’ve got a hit. It’s a story about how a regular WA kid became a bona fide hero.

I can just imagine the scene on Monday morning when Austin rolled into school in a wheelchair, probably trying to play it down, while every kid and teacher in the place looked on in awe. What a tale to tell.

In a world that often feels a bit fractured, Austin Appelbee has restored a bit of faith in humanity for a lot of us. He showed us that “grit” isn’t just a buzzword used by footy coaches; it’s a tangible, powerful force that can sometimes overcome the impossible.

Bravo, you little champion. You’re a reminder to all of us that no matter how big the ocean or how dark the night, the “little engines” among us are capable of truly massive things.

Next time I’m struggling through my laps at the local pool, I know exactly who I’ll be thinking of.