Nathaniel Waring swam a little over 10 miles (17K) from Tahiti to its sister island of Moorea in 4 hours and 57 minutes under near ideal conditions, breaking the existing record of Cédric Wane by 1 hour and 20 minutes set last year.

Swimming in out-of-the-way places is nothing new for the travel executive who has visited over 100 countries.

The Stanford University graduate maintained a strong, steady pace throughout the swim as he was escorted by a one-man canoe paddled by Matahi Brightwell and a Zodiac captained by Frank Murphy.

“I am tired,” said Nathaniel at the finish. “But I had no fears and the temperature was perfect.”

Copyright © 2010 by Steven Munatones