Courtesy of Susan Simmons, British Columbia, Canada.
The Spirit Orcas are a group of developmentally disabled athletes who challenged themselves by swimming in the open water. Between July 1st and August 16th, Susan Simmons, the Spirit Orcas, and Jasmine Kremer swam over 80 km from Brentwood Bay to Colwood Waterfront Park in British Columbia, Canada in order to raise funds for COVID-19 Relief.
Simmons, who was nominated for the 2020 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year, reported, “Dubbed The Great Big Swim, this incredible group of athletes braved big waves, strong currents and waters as cool as 9°C – all for the love of their community. I continually in awe of these athletes. They have so many challenges in their day-to-day lives, and then to take on this – wow, just WOW.
The Spirit Orcas include Cheyenne Furlong-Goos (aka Chey or Cheybee), Drew Sabourin (aka Drewsie), Lidia White (aka Lidster), Aly White (aka Flipper), Ben Vanlierop (aka Benny), Dixon McGowan (aka Dixonator), Meliah Motchman (aka Madame Butterfly) and Maria Sharock (aka Pizza).”
They talked about The Great Big Swim on today’s WOWSA Live with Steven Munatones:
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