Completing a triangular course in the open ocean – especially in the middle of the Pacific Ocean – is technically challenging and flat-out tough. The surface chop was relentless, the cross-currents were constant, the anxiety about the varied marine life was

Harry Huffaker was the first swimmer to dream of completing the Maui Nui Swim between the islands of Maui, Moloka’i, and Lāna’i in the state of Hawaii.

First Attempt by Harry Huffaker

At the age of 50 in 1989, Dr. Huffaker attempted the first solo non-stop swim between Mau’i,  Lāna’i  and  Moloka’i, but he was pulled after 31 hours and 56 km when it was clear the cross currents became too difficult on his last leg.

First Success by Becca Mann

30 years later, he helped plan the next attempt at the 63.9 km Maui Nui Swim – by an ambitious Becca Mann. The 22-year-old USA National Swim Team star – on her first true ocean marathon swim – pioneered the first successful attempt in 20 hours 53 minutes.

Most Recent Success by Ted Lomicka

Dr. Steve Minaglia (52, USA, MSF bio here), the Hawaiian Channel Swimming Association Honorary Secretary, reported on the first male to complete the famed Maui Nui Swim. He said, “Ted Lomicka (56, USA, MSF bio here) swam a heavily nuanced route based on years of [my] experience running the 3-day Maui Nui Swim with tandem swim groups and swimming 46 crosses in these waters. Years ago, [Hawaii channel veteran] Mike Spalding (76, USA, MSF bio here) and I agreed that swimming the ʻAuʻau, Pailolo, and Kalohi Channel in that order is the best.

Captains Andy Joca and Phil Kibby escorted Lomicka on his Maui Nui Swim in 23 hours 47 minutes, starting at 3:23 pm on February 21st and finishing at 3:10 pm the next day. He swam the 14.1 km ‘Auau Channel first in 5 hours 54 minutes from the Old Club Lanai on Lāna’i to Ka’anapali Beach on Maui; the 13.5 km Pailolo Channel second in 9 hours 48 minutes from Ka’anapali Beach on Maui to Kamalō on Moloka’i, and the 14.9 km Kalohi Channel third in 8 hours 0 minutes from Kamalō on Moloka’i Island to Shipwreck Beach on Lāna’i.

On his last leg heading to Shipwreck Beach, there was a pod of humpback whales.

Lomicka explained his perspective, “I believe that ordinary people can do extraordinary things if they have the right mindset. In order to put yourself in the right mindset for any endurance event, it’s really important to tell yourself that you’re safe, you’re protected, and you’re surrounded by people who care for you.

First, I dedicate this Triple Maui Nui Swim success to the memory of Harry Huffaker.

Second, I share the celebration of this achievement with Becca Mann. How do you honor truly inspirational swimmers like Harry and Becca? You follow their lead.

Third, and most important, I give humble thanks to my stellar team of crew members and advisors who helped make this unlikely quest come to fruition. Seen in that light, this is their success, more so then mine (all I did was swim, non-stop for 24 hours). My crew handled all of the exceptionally channeling logistics so that I could solely focus on swimming, consecutively, the three Maui Nui channels of Au’au, Pailolo, and Kalohi.

The best moment of the Triple Maui Nui swim was when Michelle Simmons, my crew member and observer, shouted to me from the boat, ‘Hey, Ted, only a 10K to go. You do those all the time.’

The encounter I was so fortunate to have with the 12-foot baby humpback whale swimming 8 feet immediately below me in the Kalohi Channel, the swim from Molokai to Lani) was among the most profound experiences I have ever had with marine life of any kind. The adult humpback whales, exceptionally closely to me in proximity, trusted me with their baby as he slowed to my speed and curiously looked up at me. We had five separate encounters lasting around 2 minutes each. That blissful memory underscores the surprisingly ubiquitous spiritual connections found in these Hawaiian waters.

As I have said to my good friend and prolific Hawaii channel swimmer Terri Dietz, anyone can invite you to a party, but only a true friend invites you to a harrowing, life-affirming adventure and calls it fun. That’s the very way in which I look back on this 36-mile, 24 hour and 47 minute swimming adventure and sincerely call it fun.

In the darkest point of this swim, when I emerged from the cold water on the island of Molokai, I questioned my need to swim to Lanai, and contemplated merely a double crossing, instead of the triple crossing. Anticipating this, Captain Andy Joca helped better frame my decision: ‘Think how you feel now. Then think how much better you will feel for the rest of your life when you complete the Triple Maui Nui.’ In that moment, I realized that this swim was not just about me, it was also about my crew who had sacrificed so much time and effort for me so that could do this swim. The best way I had to show my appreciation for them would be for me to swim the third and final channel. Leaping into the water from my calf-deep wading position, I give one strong butterfly stroke to escape the shallows, then I invite my all-day-long freestyle stroke with renewed passion. I will finish this swim.“

Future Attempts

Dr. Minaglia predicted, “Now given Ted’s accomplishment and more expertise and established knowledge, the opportunities for more swimmers to take on this challenge is readily available. We have and can expect greatness from Captains Andy Joca and Phil Kibby. Both of these guys bring incredible expertise to the table as well as attention to safety.

Ted managed to see all the beauty of those channels all at once – a rarity – and during whale season.“

For more information, visit www.mauinuiswim.com.

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