Courtesy of Marine Mammal Science (Novel method for identifying individual cetaceans using facial features and symmetry: A test case using dolphins). On his latest and sixth crossing of the Catalina Channel, Hank Wise encountered cetaceans during his mainland-to-Catalina swim (i.e., a whale and dolphins) – a treat that many open water swimmers enjoy in the […]

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. I Found My Tribe is a book by Ruth Fitzmaurice, a mother of five children whose husband has ALS and can only communicate with his eyes. Ruth’s tribe include her children and her cold water swimming friends who gather at the cove in Greystones, Co. Wicklow in Ireland. It

Courtesy of Bruce Wigo, International Swimming Hall of Fame. In the November issue of Swimming World Magazine, Bruce Wigo wrote the following about swimming across the English Channel: “Legend has it that in 55 B.C., when Roman General Julius Caesar stood on a beach in Gaul, plotting his conquest of Britain, he looked across the

Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. Linda McGill completed the first and only circumnavigation swim around Hong Kong Island on May 23rd 1976 when she took 17 hours 6 minutes to start and finish in Repulse Bay as she swam in a counterclockwise course. 42 years later, Simon Holliday researched and replicated the 29-year-old Australian

Courtesy of Ingemar Macarine, Alona Tropical Beach Resort, Panglao, Philippines. Ingemar Macarine completed another successful unprecedented crossing in the Bohol Seas by swimming 17.8 km in 6 hours 43 minutes from Pamilacan Island in the Municipality of Baclayon to Barangay Bolod in the Municipality of Panglao, Bohol. “It was a tough swim because of the

Courtesy of Lifesaving Foundation, Ireland. The Lifesaving Foundation’s 15th Ireland Medal was presented to Brendan Donohoe in recognition of his 50 years of continuous active lifesaving service. In addition to his role as Chairperson of the Lifesaving Foundation, Donohoe is also President of the RLSS Ireland Branch. His award was given in recognition of his

WOWSA, Key West, Florida. Bill Welzien is closing in on his Century Swim around the 12.5-mile (20.1 km) Key West. On November 2nd, he completed circumnavigation #96, a 6 hour 11 minute swim with Jane Welzien as his escort kayaker. He explains, “This was an uncomfortable venture. It was an extra early start and the

Courtesy of WOWSA, Catalina Channel, California. Hank Wise of Long Beach, California has long been involved in pool and ocean swimming as he grew up on the shores of the Pacific Ocean and competed for Stanford University. He held the record for the Huntington Beach Pier Swim for over 21 years and was always a

Courtesy of WOWSA, San Pedro Channel, California. John York of Manhattan Beach, California and Samuel Neri of Mexico City share the title of the King of the Catalina Channel with six career crossings between Santa Catalina Island and the Southern California mainland in the Catalina Channel. They share the title of most Catalina Channel crossings