While the internet has brought swimmers together for camaraderie and competition, dozens of open water swimming teams have been around for decades. SOWAT or the Shadow Cliffs Open Water Aquatics Team is celebrating its 30th year in 2011.

The group of open water swimmers in the San Francisco Bay area in northern California offers an online forum where swimmers can communicate with each about meeting up at their home venue and receive notifications on conditions of their lake where they swim Pleasanton, California (see map above).

The Waikiki Swim Club has been similarly going strong since 1971. It has been devoted to ocean swimming since 1971 and is Hawaii’s oldest organized club devoted to promoting safe and fun ocean swimming. Like its counterparts around the world, the club offers an abundance of knowledge, aloha and camaraderie for those interested in open water swimming.

Copyright © 2011 by Open Water Source