Atlantic City around the island swim 2021

ruthruth New Jersey, USAMember

A whole field of DNF's--literally every person and relay (myself included--I made it 15 miles, and bailed at the last beach at 9:54 into the 10 hour cutoff). The race directors completely boofed the tides, and had us swim against the tides the whole way. A shame. I hope they learn some lessons and how to read a tide chart and bring it back next year--it's a great, iconic swim, and it'd be a shame to lose it (again).

https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/around-the-island-swim-halted-with-no-finishers-after-10-plus-hours/article_c644bfc4-f321-11eb-b513-6f8e6cefa178.html

orcaericswimfreeordieIronMikeJustSwimdpm50gregoc

Comments

  • Very unplesant situation!
    Next year be better!
    Good luck and health

    ruth
  • miklcctmiklcct London, United KingdomMem​ber
    edited August 2021

    @ruth said:
    A whole field of DNF's--literally every person and relay (myself included--I made it 15 miles, and bailed at the last beach at 9:54 into the 10 hour cutoff). The race directors completely boofed the tides, and had us swim against the tides the whole way. A shame. I hope they learn some lessons and how to read a tide chart and bring it back next year--it's a great, iconic swim, and it'd be a shame to lose it (again).

    https://pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/local/around-the-island-swim-halted-with-no-finishers-after-10-plus-hours/article_c644bfc4-f321-11eb-b513-6f8e6cefa178.html

    The link throws HTTP error 451:

    451: Unavailable due to legal reasons
    We recognize you are attempting to access this website from a country belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA) including the EU which enforces the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and therefore access cannot be granted at this time. For any issues, contact SubscriberServices@pressofac.com or call 1-877-773-7724 or 1-609-272-1010.

    I'm definitely NOT in an EU/EEA country!!!!! What does the article say?

  • ruthruth New Jersey, USAMember

    @miklcct said:
    I'm definitely NOT in an EU/EEA country!!!!! What does the article say?

    ATLANTIC CITY — Competitors in the 55th Around the Island Swim ran into difficult ocean conditions Sunday, and the race couldn't come to a typical conclusion.

    The rules of the 22.75-mile race around Absecon Island called for a 10-hour time limit, and no swimmers in the clockwise race were at the North Jackson Avenue cutoff point at that time.

    "We ended the race after 10 hours, 25 minutes, and there were no finishers," said race director Karen Bown at the Atlantic City Boathouse race headquarters near the Albany Avenue Bridge. "We don't know if there will be any (official winners). A lot of people had different reasons for not finishing in the 10-hour limit. Some just said it wasn't their day.

    "This race was two years in the works because it wasn't held last year due to the pandemic. We had a team working tirelessly to make it successful. We had a lot of people working to have it be safe. This breaks my heart."

    When Bown, race referee Ray Paden, assistant race director Sari Carroll and a few other officials stopped the race, Seth Baetzold, of River Falls, Wisconsin, was in the lead in the intracoastal waters of Ventnor Heights. Two others from among the original 11 individual swimmers — John Zeigler, of Pennsylvania, and Greg O'Connor, of Natick, Massachusetts — were still going.

    The race had five relay teams consisting of two to five swimmers each, and none finished the course either. The Ringoes (Craig Hubert and Oleg Chebotarev) were near Baetzold and leading two other relays (two relay teams had dropped out).

    Eight of the individual competitors decided not continue (the earliest after 3 hours, 15 minutes and the last at 9 hours, 54 minutes). A swimmer who had not reached the intracoastal waters of Longport by the 10-hour limit was pulled from the race.

    Baetzold and the team of Hubert and Chebotarev were about 3 miles from the end when the race was stopped.

    "The waves were really rough in the ocean, and they pulled me almost to the beach," said Baetzold, 26. "It was frustrating. I was leading, but I expected to do it faster. It took a lot of energy out of me. I swam out further in the ocean to not get pulled to the beach.

    "Next year (in the summer), I intend to swim the English Channel, but hopefully I'll come back here."

    Peden said that on a good day all the swimmers would have finished within the time limit.

    "The conditions were as challenging as the last 20 times this race was held," said Peden. "We have no control over the weather, and it was a major factor. The tide and currents weren't favorable, the way they've been in past years. This race has always been considered one of the most challenging events in the country. I expect next year there will be a larger draw (lineup) than in years past because people have a tendency to challenge themselves."

    Race spokesperson Justin Peticolas said he was extremely proud of every swimmer and rower (the swimmers were each accompanied by doubles crews, for safety reasons).

    Robin Taylor, a member of the race committee, talked about how much the direction of the wind made everything difficult.

    Bob Kerrigan, a race adviser, worked diligently for hours, along with Bown, Peden and Carroll as they got phone calls and reports on the progress.

    "I'm disappointed, and more disappointed for the swimmers," Kerrigan. "I wish we had had a finisher."

    The race got a good start after 7 a.m. at the boathouse, which was also set to be the finish line. The guest starter was Marilyn Bell DiLascio, who swam the first Around The Island Swim in 1954 and was the first woman to finish the race. The 5-foot DiLascio, then a Canadian, was 16 at the time.

    "I was the seventh finisher and the first woman (in 1954)," said DiLascio, now a resident of Hudson Valley, New York. "It was a nice day. We started and finished at Steel Pier and we went to Longport first (clockwise).

    "It was easier to swim it than to be the starter. You had to be on your toes, and there was a lot of synchronizing."

    IronMike
  • running2farrunning2far ChicagoNew Member

    "The rules of the 22.75-mile race around Absecon Island called for a 10-hour time limit, and no swimmers in the clockwise race were at the North Jackson Avenue cutoff point at that time."

    That seems like a very aggressive time cutoff. Can only assume they thought the tide would be in your favor. That's a lot of work by swimmers to have ended by a Race Dir error.

    miklcctgregoc
  • emkhowleyemkhowley Boston, MACharter Member

    If any of the swimmers who got shut out by poor tidal/current planning want to go around Absecon Island as a solo, I can highly recommend Capt. Stu Rosen of the Metamorphosis to support you. He guided my swim around the island in May 2019, and while we, too, had wind and waves and weather, he nailed the tide timing so perfectly, it was uncanny. Thus, this slow swimmer was able to complete the loop in about 13.5 hours.

    Capt. Rosen's contact info:
    https://metjourneys.com
    Metamorphosis Boat Charters LLC
    609-225-3023 info@metjourneys.com

    He has a gorgeous boat that's well-suited for this kind of swim. And he's very communicative and an awesome support. I can't recommend him enough!

    More details about my swim here: https://marathonswimmers.org/swims/2019/howley-absecon/

    I hope the RDs learn from this for future years. It's really great that they're trying to revive the tradition, and I don't want to criticize another race director(s) who's doing their best to provide a great swim to the community. But in my opinion, the 10-hour cut off is severe, and if you don't have the tides timed just right, it's impossible for all but the most elite of the pros to complete the lap in that time period, especially if weather conditions do what they tend to do and deteriorate.

    miklcctjendutruthswimfreeordieIronMikeJustSwimthelittlemerwookiedpm50rosemarymintKari33

    Stop me if you've heard this one...
    A grasshopper walks into a bar...
    https://elainekhowley.com/

  • ruthruth New Jersey, USAMember

    @running2far said:
    That seems like a very aggressive time cutoff. Can only assume they thought the tide would be in your favor. That's a lot of work by swimmers to have ended by a Race Dir error.

    They reduced the cutoff time--it had been 11 hours when I registered, and it was cut to 10 by the time of the pre-race zoom briefing a few weeks before the swim. They told us not to worry though, that the tides would be favorable and we should all be able to make it under the cutoff :neutral:

    orcaericgregoc
  • @ruth said:

    @running2far said:
    That seems like a very aggressive time cutoff. Can only assume they thought the tide would be in your favor. That's a lot of work by swimmers to have ended by a Race Dir error.

    They reduced the cutoff time--it had been 11 hours when I registered, and it was cut to 10 by the time of the pre-race zoom briefing a few weeks before the swim. They told us not to worry though, that the tides would be favorable and we should all be able to make it under the cutoff :neutral:

    I too registered under the pretext that the cutoff time was 11 hours.

    Furthermore, the topic of the start time based upon the tide time was brought up in the zoom meeting that I attended prior to the swim. The consensus among several swimmers on that call with knowledge of the local tides was that no one had a chance of finishing given the stated start time.

    The race representative present on the zoom meeting stated that the information would be reviewed and considered. We then received an email stating that the start time would remain as previously posted in the schedule.

    I've been a member of this forum for many years and this is the first time that I have felt inclined to express my views on a topic.

    In my estimation the timing of the start was not researched adequately by the race committee.

    I'm not saying that these swims should be a cakewalk but the results of Sunday's swim should be a strong indication that more consideration should be given to the timing of the start.

    ruthJustSwimswimrn62gregocKari33
  • dpm50dpm50 PA, U.S.Senior Member

    Ouch! I feel for all the swimmers! Sounds brutal!

    I had a fleeting thought to join w some friends for a relay, but it didn't pan out. Can't say I regret it.

    Good recoveries to all!

  • Kari33Kari33 PennsylvaniaNew Member

    @emkhowley said:
    If any of the swimmers who got shut out by poor tidal/current planning want to go around Absecon Island as a solo, I can highly recommend Capt. Stu Rosen of the Metamorphosis to support you. He guided my swim around the island in May 2019, and while we, too, had wind and waves and weather, he nailed the tide timing so perfectly, it was uncanny. Thus, this slow swimmer was able to complete the loop in about 13.5 hours.

    Capt. Rosen's contact info:
    https://metjourneys.com
    Metamorphosis Boat Charters LLC
    609-225-3023 info@metjourneys.com

    He has a gorgeous boat that's well-suited for this kind of swim. And he's very communicative and an awesome support. I can't recommend him enough!

    More details about my swim here: https://marathonswimmers.org/swims/2019/howley-absecon/

    I hope the RDs learn from this for future years. It's really great that they're trying to revive the tradition, and I don't want to criticize another race director(s) who's doing their best to provide a great swim to the community. But in my opinion, the 10-hour cut off is severe, and if you don't have the tides timed just right, it's impossible for all but the most elite of the pros to complete the lap in that time period, especially if weather conditions do what they tend to do and deteriorate.

    Fantastic information. Thank you.

    I absolutely love the picture of you swimming by Lucy- what a keeper!

  • swimmer25kswimmer25k Charter Member

    I swam it as a pro back in 1995 and 1996. We started at the Flying Cloud restaurant by the Brigantine bridge and headed to the ocean. The 1995 tide sucked us through Longport jetty like we were on rails. 1996 was a different story and it took a while just to get to the ocean. With the tides on our side in 95; I took second in about 7:30. I got out in 96 with a blown shoulder.

    An 11 hour cutoff time seems tough. I wonder if the directors took the incoming tide into consideration thinking that it would be an insurmountable task for a later swimmer to get through.

    It was the toughest swim I ever did. A torn rotator cuff is my proof. The tear started there in 95 and blew apart there in 96.

    evmoMLambyrlm
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