Open Water Swimming News & Views

The 2023 SCAR Swim Challenge was another grand success.   The brainchild of visionary Kent Nicholas  [shown below] had won the 2022 World Open Water Swimming Event of the Year and had attracted a multi-faceted, multi-talented group of prolific marathon swimmers and their escort kayakers from around the world.  Triple Crowners , Ice Milers , and swimmers who have set records and pioneered swims gathered in the warm desert of Arizona to compete in the 4-day, 4-lake SCAR stage swim . The event consists of four lake crossings, from dam to dam in Saguaro Lake , Canyon Lake , Apache Lake , and finally a night swim in Roosevelt Lake .  The four lakes were created through a series of dams that created the reservoirs along the Salt River  that flows through the State of Arizona. Nicholas wrote on the SCAR Facebook page , “ If we could dial in a perfect day at Saguaro, this was it. From water temp to air temp to low wind – it was good day to be at S.  Michael ...

  Melissa Housmyer , a Zallevo Brand Representative and SCAR swimmer, is a sponsor this week's SCAR 2023 event. Housmyer believes Zallevo's Drench is the best nutrition available, " Drench is the optimal mineral hydration geared for performance, energy, and cellular hydration ." Kjersti Coté , Director of Zallevo Labs, explains above. The brand name, Zallevo , is derived from the Latin words "Allevo" and "Zenith" which have a combined meaning of: * The time in one’s life of greatest power and success. * To elevate, to rise up, to uplift and enhance. * To elevate people to their highest potential. For more information, visit here .

Swimming Canada reported that Eric Brown and Emma Finlin won the Canadian Open Water Swimming Trials that were held on Grand Cayman in the warm waters of the Cayman Islands. Brown, representing Pointe-Claire Swim Club, won the men’s 10 km race at Governors Beach, upsetting a former World Championship medalist Eric Hedlin . Finlin won the women’s race with Abby Dunford finishing second. The top two males and females earned spots to represent Canada at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships to be held in Fukuoka, Japan. Third-place finishers Benjamin Cote and Bailey O'Regan also earned trips to the World Championships to compete in the 5 km event. Brown, who had already earned a spot on the Canadian national pool team, sprinted the last 700 meters to edge Hedlin by 2.5 seconds in 1 hour 55 minutes 24.7 seconds. “ At the end, I know I also have the speed so I could just come home. It kind of all went to plan ,” said Brown, the 400m, 800m and 1500m champion at the recent Cana...

  Pablo Fernández Álvarez swam a total cumulative distance of 104.3 kilometers over a 24-hour period in an Endless Pool in Madrid. The 43-year-old Spanish swimmer and entrepreneur swam between 11:00:22 am on April 19th and 20th. The entirety of Pablo’s swim, including hourly rest and feeding breaks, was recorded and livecast on YouTube (see above). The swim was organized by Libertad Silva and Venus Aguillón and supported by observers Jorge Gómez, Emilio Carrasco, Pablo García, Daniel Olmos, and Juan Fran. After the 24-hour Guinness World Record swim, Silva reported that Pablo was doing well as confirmed by a physician who checked his vital signs. " Surprisingly enough, he was at 77 heartbeats/minute like if he hadn't been swimming for 24 hours ."

Paul Georgescu was selected as the 2021 WOWSA Awards winner as the 2021 World Open Water Swimming Man of the Year . He will attempt crossings of Strait of Gibraltar , Tsugaru Channel , and Bristol Channel this summer. This will enable him to achieve the Original Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming . He has already completed four Oceans Seven channels: *35 km crossing of the North Channel between Northern Ireland and Scotland in 11 hours 7 minutes *33.5 km English Channel in 13 hours 36 minutes *32.3 km crossing of the Catalina Channel in 9 hours 8 minutes *42 km crossing of the Molokai Channel from Molokai Island to Oahu in 13 hours 6 minutes

Shelley Taylor-Smith reported on Andy Donaldson's journey around the world in his pursuit of the Oceans Seven . " Update on our Aussie Scottish Perth City Swimming Club swimmer is that he is doing well [and was] taken to hospital for assessment. Smart thinking when you consider, he had the flu last week, he started his Molokai Channel [crossing] 30 hours after landing in Hawaii, swam 15 hours 50 minutes in 25.2°C water, experienced sea sickness for four hours, and then swimming into beach to finish, Andy swallowed a jellyfish. He couldn’t swallow properly when he got back on the boat after completing his solo swim...he had had an allergic reaction. So [he was given an] epinephrine injection, an IV drip, and an antihistamine injection. It is a delight to mentor and an absolute delight to see and hear the growth physically mentally emotionally and spiritually with each [of his Oceans Seven swims ." Bill Goding reported his official time as confirmed by esco...

The Weather Channel's latest on-camera talent and marathon swimmer Bruckner Chase is now wanted by the Police and Fire Departments in Melbourne, Florida. The departments have placed Chase's WAVE SAFE stickers on their official vehicles as a way to promote ocean awareness and safety. As warmer temperatures roll around throughout the United States, Chase will be seen more and more often on The Weather Channel as its Ocean Expert: TWC Ocean Safety America's Weekend HQ 4-9-23 from Bruckner Chase on Vimeo . The Weather Channel Ocean Safety Weekend Recharge 4-9-23 from Bruckner Chase on Vimeo .

Kelly-Ann Jenkins is a homeowner’s insurance and personal injury attorney in St. Petersburg, Florida. In her official bio she writes about her hobbies simply and succinctly, " In her free time, Kelly-Ann enjoys traveling, running, and triathlons ." That may be one of the most understated and modest descriptions of an extreme athlete that we have ever read. Jenkins grew up and went to law school in Florida, interning on the Sixth Judicial Circuit, the Fifth District Court of Appeals, and the State Attorney’s Office in Clearwater. Upon graduation, she joined a large firm in Tampa, where she litigated, deposed witnesses, and tried. Today, she works with her husband at Jenkins Law P.L. in St. Petersburg. Although she grew up as a competitive swimmer, Jenkins ran her first marathon in law school. She swore, " I will never do that again ." She moved on compete in several half Ironmans and one full Ironman Triathlon. She again swore, " I will never do ...