Andy Walberer Crosses The Molokai Channel At Night
J. Andrew Walberer, PhD completed a 42 km crossing of the Molokai Channel under the escort of Michael Twigg-Smith . The captain reported, " He started at Papohohako Beach on Molokai Island at 5:58 pm last night and finished this morning at 8:47 am at Alan Davis Beach on Oahu ." Walberer, a father of four and a lifelong pool swimmer, admits, “ I enjoy pursuing personal goals outside of work, particularly planning, training, and pursuing athletic challenges " - which include two night-time swims: a 23.3-mile Chicago Skyline Swim in Lake Michigan and a 32.3 km crossing of the Catalina Channel in 9 hours 43 minutes. His choice of sports matches his own assessment of his physical tools, “ I think I’m designed for distance swimming, full of slow twitch muscles ." Like many others, the pandemic and closing of pools was the catalyst for him to get into marathon swimming. “ I’d been a pool swimmer most of my life. During the COVID-19 shutdown in 2020, a grou...