James Fitzpatrick

Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association board members Jim Fitzpatrick, Scott Zornig, Lynn Kubasek, Cherie Edborg, Theo Schmeeckle, Jane Cairns, Dave Van Mouwerik, Evan Morrison and Rob Dumouchel

James Fitzpatrick with fellow Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association board members Jane Cairns, Dean White, Evan Morrison, Dave Van Mouwerik, Lynn Kubasek, Scott Zornig and Dale Mercker

James Fitzpatrick is an American open water swimmer from Laguna Niguel, California. A member of the board of directors of the Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association, he is the one of the oldest successful swimmers of the English Channel with two channels of the Oceans Seven completed. As a member of the Half Century Club, the 50-year-old crossed from England and France in 14 hours 32 minutes in 2005. He completed the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim on 23 June 2012 and the Catalina Channel on 1 October 2008 in 14 hours 59 minutes to become the 51st person to join the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming. He will also compete in the 2014 S.C.A.R. Swim Challenge in Arizona.

Fitzpatrick was an All-American high school swimmer from San Jose, California who also played water polo for UCLA from 1973-1978. He was swam 761,000 yards or 432 miles in 29 days in 2000. In 2002, he was a member of a relay which recorded the first swim (60 miles) from San Clemente Island to San Clemente. He and was the first person to swim from Catalina Island to Orange County in 2008. Jim has completed fresh water swims across Lake Pend Oreille in Idaho (15 miles in 9 hours 12 minutes in 2009) and across Lake Tahoe in California.

The Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association was nominated for the 2013 World Open Water Swimming Offering of the Year for its far-forward thinking about the sport of marathon swimming.

Catalina Channel Half Century Club

1. Jim Clifford (USA), 62 years 11 months, CM in 9:49 on 28 September 2014
2. Bob West (USA), 62, CM in 15:49 in 1998
3. Gary Greenwood (USA), 62, CM in 13:08 in 2004
4. Pat Gallant-Charette (USA), 60, CM in 14:11 in 2011
5. Mo Siegel (USA), 60, CM in 13:08 in 2011
6. Scott Lautman (USA), 60 CM in 12:09 in 2013
7. Bob Needham (USA), 58, CM in 13:10 in 2011
8. Tom Hecker (USA), 57, CM in 10:45 in 2009
9. Richard Knepper (USA), 56, MC in 11:56 in 2005
10. Barbara Held (USA), 56, CM in 9:36 in 2010
11. Mark Smitherman (USA), 56, CM in 11:52 in 2014
12. Carol Sing (USA), 55, CM in 10:38 in 1997
13. Bill Hoehn (USA), 55, CM in 12:57 in 2005
14. Kevin Murphy (Great Britain), 54, CM in 15:23 in 2003
15. Roger Finch (South Africa), 54, CM in 9:45:02 in 2012
16. Dave Van Mouwerik (USA), 54, CM in 12:09:07 in 2012
17. Ned Denison (Ireland), 54, CM 8:50:04 in 2012
18. Peter Tanham (Australia), 54, CM in 10:07 in 2014
19. Anthony McCarley (USA), 54, CM in 13:00.3 in 2014
20. Nick Almos-Lau (Mexico), 53, CM in 12:40 in 1999
21. James Fitzpatrick (USA), 53, CM in 14:59 in 2008 (to Newport Beach)
22. Jim McConica (USA), 53, CM in 10:19 in 2004
23. Douglas McConnell (USA), 53, CM in 12:41:13 in 2012
24. David Cooper (USA), 52, CM in 13:19 in 2005
25. Dan Richards (USA), 52, CM in 10:10 2008
26. Chris Burke (USA), 52, CM in 11:22 in 2014
27. Alan Bell (USA), 51, CM in 9:28 in 2001
28. Chris Palfrey (Australia), 51, CM in 10:30 in 2009
29. Lynn Kubasek (USA), 51, CM in 15:53 in 2009
30. Daniel Robinson (USA), 51, CM in 9:57 in 2008
31. Ron Collins (USA), 51, CM in 10:05 on 10 September 2013
32. Antonio Argüelles (Mexico), 50, CM in 10:25 in 2009
33. William Newbern (USA), 50, CM in 12:48 in 2005
34. Ray Meltvedt (USA), 50, CM in 15:25 in 2010
35. Suzie Dods (USA), 50, MC in 18:36 in 2010
36. Dale Petranech (USA), 50, CM in 13:28 in 1985
37. John Hill (USA), 50, CM in 19:15 in 1985
38. Frank Reynolds (USA), 50, CM in 10:34 in 1987
39. Jim Barber (USA), 50, CM in 8:43 in 2010
40. Sue Free (USA), 50, CM in 11:23 in 2012
41. Bridgette Hobart Janeczko (USA), 50, CM 11:27:16 in 2012
42. Hendrik Meerman (USA), CM, 50, 12:48:30 in 2012
43. Scott Tapley (USA), MC, 50, 17:43:12 in 2014

External links

• Finishing Strongly In The Second Half Of Life
• Catalina Channel Swimming Federation website
• The Oldest Men and Women in the Sea
• Oldies But Goodies In The Open Water
• NYC Swim bio
• Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming
• Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association
• Cindy Walsh Joins Triple Crown Of Open Water Swimming
• Are You DRIVEN?
• Playing It Safe In The Maui Channel And Elsewhere
• Thomas W. Kofler Becomes Italy's First Triple Crowner
• Catalina Channel Swimming Federation
• Open Water Swimming
• Marathon Swimming
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• Pleasure, Pain, Passion And Purpose Of Marathon Swimming
• Swimming A Two-fer Across Lake Pend Oreille
• Where Women Dominate
• Toes In The Water
• Triple Crowners Showcase Their Fountain Of Youth - Age of Triple Crowners
• The Legacy Of Emilio Casanueva