Myrtle Huddleston

Myrtle Huddleston was an American open water swimmer who learned how to swim late in life and then continued on to a remarkable marathon swimming career.

1926

Huddleston learned how to swim at the age of 30 in 1926.

1927

• On 15 January 1927, she entered the Wrigley Ocean Marathon Swim across the Catalina Channel from Isthmus Cove on Santa Catalina Island to [[San Pedro on the Southern California mainland, but did not finish lasting 7 hours at the age of 31.
• Within a month, she became the third person in history to swim across the Catalina Channel. Her 20+ mile swim from Avalon Beach on Santa Catalina Island to San Pedro on the California mainland took 20 hours 42 minutes on 5 February 1927.

1928

Huddleston, a member of the 24-hour club, won an ocean swimming championship at Del Ray Beach, Florida in 1928 when she swam for 31 hours 18 minutes. She also swam non-stop for 50 hours 10 minutes on 21 May 1928 in a Chicago pool, breaking the world record by 4 hours 10 minutes of Otto Kemmerich of Germany. Her swim was observed by 12 officials for which she won US$5,000.

1929

She attempted an English Channel swim that lasted 21 hours in 1929. Video can be seen here at British Pathé.

1931

• At the age of 34, she swam 22 hours 53 minutes, winning US$700 on 24 August 1931 for becoming the first person to swim across the width of Lake Tahoe, a distance of 10.48 miles (16.9 km) from Deadman's Point in Nevada to Tahoe City.
• She became the world’s champion female endurance swimmer by 1931 when her marathon swim in a Coney Island pool lasted 60 hours 2 minutes. She later set the women’s world endurance record by staying afloat for 87 hours 48 minutes on 21 April 1931.

2013

She is the namesake of a Myrtle Huddleston Honorary Swim scheduled for 17 August 2013, organized by Karen Rogers.

External links

• Myriad Musings While Marathoning
• Racing For Half A Million Dollars Across The Catalina Channel
• Pauline Jackson Paved The Way Across Channels And Lakes
• Swimmers on the shore before the start of the Wrigley Ocean Marathon at Isthmus Cove, Santa Catalina Island, 1927
• Vicki Keith Talks About Doing The Impossible On WOWSA Live
• English Channel Attempt by Myrtle Huddleston
• Myrtle Huddleston Honorary Swim website
• Time Magazine article
• Myrtle Huddleston's Swim
• Mark Twain on Myrtle Huddleston
• Catalina Channel Swimming Federation
• Myrtle Huddleston Honorary Swim Facebook page
• 50 Hour 10 Minute Non-Stop Swim
• Learning How To Swim At 30 - The Magic Of Myrtle
• 24-hour Club…Swimming All Day And Night
• Midnight Ties Between Myrtle Huddleston, Wayne Strach
• Updated 24-Hour Club
• 24-hour Club…Swimming All Day And Night
• Swimming For More Than 24 Hours
• Marathon Swimmers Federation bio
• Open Water Swimming Heroes In The 20th Century