Drift swim
From Openwaterpedia
noun - A drift swim is a multi-day type of stage swim in which the open water swimmer(s) - either assisted with fins, hand paddles, swim snorkel, and wetsuit or unassisted - continue to progress towards their goal while they swim in multi-hour segments that are alternated with periods where they sleep, rest, and eat on board their escort boat.
Contents
Bodies of Water
Drift swims are usually held down rivers or across seas or oceans.
Notable Drift Swims
- 1937: Charles Zibelman of the USA completed a 233 km drift swim down the Hudson River from a dock in Albany, New York to the 129th Street ferry dock in Manhattan Island at the age of 46. The drift swim took 148 hours as he finished at 9 pm on 29 August 1937 while never leaving the water, losing 12 kg (26 lbs). The swim drew considerable media coverage at the time and was covered by the New York Times and Life Magazine, 13 September 1937 issue.
- 2018: Benoit Lecomte of France attempted a transpacific stage swim from Choshi, Japan on 5 June 2018 to San Francisco, California across the Pacific Ocean called The Swim. After 160 days and 1,524 nautical miles of swimming (2,822 km), The Swim was aborted due to escort boat damage.
- 2024: *Between 17-19 June 2024, Ross Edgley swam 510 km in a drift swim along the Yukon River in western Canada non-stop for 54 hours 45 minutes, wearing a 7 mm wetsuit with observers Ger Kennedy, Chris Morgan, and Thomas Kofler and a support crew in 3 escort boats.
Ben Lecomte's Drift Swim Across the Pacific
The Swim by Ben Lecomte was a drift swim where he resumed his swim each morning. He was supported by a team of five aboard a 50-foot catamaran.
