MARATHONS THE ULTIMATE CHALLENGE
1. IRISH (NORTH) CHANNEL Diffi culty: Location: Channel between Ireland and Scotland. Distance: 30km (18.5mi) Hazards: Considered to be the most diffi cult channel swim in the world, with the water temperature 54˚F (12˚C), days are overcast and there is tremendous diffi culty in accurately predicting weather and water conditions. Swimmers face large pods of jellyfi sh if conditions are calm. Window of opportunity: July to September. Outcome: Most of the at empts have been abandoned due to diffi cult conditions, jellyfi sh stings and hypothermia. Additional information: Swim crossings are governed by the rules set by the Irish Long Distance Swimming Association. First at empt was made in 1924 and the fi rst success was 1947.
If there is a sport that marathon swimming most resembles, it would be mountaineering. Both sports require discipline of the highest order and long hours spent training under harsh conditions. In each, the concept of teamwork is important – swimmers rely on their support crew and coach for survival in the same way as mountaineers have to trust each other. Participants in these two endurance activities experience nature in the most tactile ways. One is enveloped in water, surrounded by marine life and progressing through a changing environment in nothing but swimwear, the other is pit ing his wits against some of the highest, coldest, bleakest places on earth. Swimmers oſt en come out of a marathon swim exhausted beyond comprehension, punished into submission by the elements. Yet when they see other swimmers they share smiles, looks, nods, winks, hugs, and handshakes that speak volumes about their mutual respect for each other. Similarly, mountaineers cross borders and cultures to form
profound friendships. Like their swimming cousins, they share experiences that are diffi cult to endure or explain. Both mountaineers and swimmers are at racted to arduous challenges, striving to push themselves beyond what others think possible. In the mountaineering community there are Seven Summits –
Kilimanjaro, Denali, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Carstensz Pyramid, Vinson and Everest – which are the highest mountains in each of the seven continents. In the 1980s, the idea of climbing all of them was fi rst suggested as a top mountaineering challenge, and this has been completed by 200 people to date. The swimming community’s equivalent of the Seven Summits – sea crossings known as the Ocean’s Seven – has never been completed, however. Many people have swum one of them, a few
SEVEN
There are seven swims so punishing that most of us will never attempt one of them, but the world's best are competing to be first to swim them all. Steven Munatones reports…
Photo © Thomas Pekin 24
3. CATALINA CHANNEL Diffi culty: Location: Channel between Santa Catalina Island and Los Angeles, California. Distance: 33.7km (21 miles). Shortest point-to-point course is from Santa Catalina Island to the San Pedro Peninsula on the California coast. Hazards: Cold water (especially near the coast), strong currents, potential for strong winds, marine life, including migrating whales and large pods of dolphins. Window of opportunity: June to September. Outcome: A deep-water channel that is comparable to the English Channel in terms of water conditions, diffi culty, distance and the physical and mental challenges to the swimmer, although the water temperature is a bit warmer (16-18°C). Success rates also similar. Additional information: First successful swim was in January 1927 when Canadian George Young won $25,000 in the Wrigley Ocean Marathon Swim in 15 hours and 44 minutes.
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