I am always intrigued by open water swimmers who generally lead very interesting lives on dryland as well as their adventures and challenges in open bodies of water.

Ron Collins is one such swimmer with unique interests and extraordinary talents.

In the open water, the 61-year-old Collins was the first person to swim across Tampa Bay, Florida in 1998. Later, he served as the long-time race director and founder of the 37 km Tampa Bay Marathon Swim. Together with his wife Rebecca Collins, he co-founded the Swim Across America Tampa Bay and the Open Water Boot Camp in Clearwater, Florida. He also founded Distance Matters and completed the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming and Grand Slam of Open Water Swimming (English Channel + Catalina Channel + Manhattan Island Marathon Swim (or 20 Bridges Swim) + Tampa Bay Marathon Swim.

But Collins also plays the taiko drums, often performing with a broad range of Japanese percussion instruments. 

For more information about Ron Collins’ work in this field, visit his Instagram page at TampaTaiko here.

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