The majesty of the SCAR Swim Challenge is undeniable. Organizing the SCAR Swim Challenge in four different lakes in the Arizona desert is beyond incredible and a credit to Kent Nicholas and his entire crew of dedicated volunteers.

Leading the way was Chris Cook (45, UK, 45, MSF bio here) who finished in the fastest cumulative time of 16 hours 8 minutes to win his firs SCAR Buckle. 28-year-old Isabella Johnson was the fastest woman in 18 hours 13 minutes, followed by 43-year-old Jessica Deckard in 18 hours 32 minutes, 56-year-old Albie Ashbrook in 18 hours 35 minutes, and Linda Clarke (51, Ireland, MSF bio here) in 18 hours 43 minutes. It was a great battle from the first two days in Saguaro Lake and Canyon Lake to the last two days across Apache Lake and – Roosevelt Lake in the dark [see below].

2026 SCAR Swim Challenge Overall Results

1. Chris Cook, United Kingdom, 16:08:11.8
2. Christopher Allshouse, Ohio, USA, 17:44:04.8
3. Isabella Johnson, California, USA, 18:13:32.5
4. Jessica Deckard, Colorado, USA, 18:32:17.1
5. Stephen Robinson, United Kingdom, 18:34:21.5
6. Albie Ashbrook, New Jersey, USA<, 18:35:20.7
7. Linda Clarke, Ireland, 18:43:45.0
8. Manon Francois, France, 18:55:45.3
9. Amy Meskill, Connecticut, USA, 19:05:04.2
10. Christopher Calby, Connecticut, USA, 19:08:06.9
11. Bruce James, Alabama, USA, 19:38:22.1
12. Edie Hu, Hong Kong, 19:50:49.6
13. Philip Kilmartin, Ireland, 19:58:01.0
14. Kerston Corns, Arizona, USA, 20:34:32.1
15. Kathleen Leslie, Maryland, USA, 20:41:32.9
16. Kathy McCarty, Maryland, USA, 20:57:57.3
17. Sara Castellano, Colorado, USA, 21:16:52.6
18. Jessi Harewicz, Canada, 21:27:23.5
19. Madi Carioty, Arizona, USA, 22:05:20.9
20. Sophie Ryan Ireland, 23:15:44.5
21. Kiran Williams, Arizona, USA, 23:21:07.0
22. Noah Heilbrun, Oregon, USA, 24:33:35.3
Riley Quinlan, Arizona, USA, 3 swims
Martin Henriksen, Washington, USA, 3 swims
Valerie Bates, Tennessee, USA, 3 swims
Gerald George, Arizona, USA, 3 swims
James McDonald, Massachusetts, USA, 2 swims
Rachael Bartel, California, USA, 2 swims
Leslie Hamilton, New York, USA, 2 swims
Michelle Saul, Arizona, USA, 2 swims
Mike Healey, Oregon, USA, 2 swims
Tom Minnock, Pennsylvania, USA, 2 swims
Jason Heavens, Arizona, USA, 2 swims
Eric Durban, Washington, USA, 2 swims
Sara Barbera, Massachusetts, USA, 2 swims
Lars Durban, Washington, USA, 1 swim
Lillie Robinson, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Alexus Anderson, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Cassidy Kelly, Texas, USA, 1 swim
Deborah Gardner (backstroke), Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Marnie Whitley, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Elizabeth Sharpe, California, USA, 1 swim
Sean Hopper, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Andrew Schwaab (wetsuit), California, USA, 1 swim
Claire Russell, Colorado, USA, 1 swim
Tracy Knight, Indiana, USA, 1 swim
Mark Spratt, Iowa, USA, 1 swim
Avery Albright, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Brenna Wojtysiak, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Matthew Schollard, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Alec Offner, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Marti Henshaw, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Tom Linthicum, California, USA, 1 swim
Marcus Ramirez, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Brad Lundblad, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Deborah Gardner, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Scott Lanigan, Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Riley Quinlan (wetsuit 5:52:10), Arizona, USA, 1 swim
Elizabeth Sharpe (wetsuit), California, USA, 1 swim

For more information, visit www.scarswim.com.

© 2026 Daily News of Open Water Swimming

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