2017 English Channel swim

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Peaks to Portland Swim 2011

On Saturday July 16, 2011 the Peaks to Portland Swim (30th Anniversary)had a record breaking number of swimmers. Nearly 300 swimmers participated and 19 swimmers were in the no-wetsuit division. All participants finished the swim. Congratulations to all swimmers.  Again, the Cumerland County Portland YMCA did an exceptional job organizing this event. Almost all swimmers had a kayaker at their side for safety.  Some swimmers decided not to have a kayaker but there were several boats along the course if needed. Safety is priorty with this event. Every swimmer received a beautiful "30th Anniversary" Peaks to Portland medal to wear proudly around their neck as they crossed the finish line.  Also, one of the P2P organizers' Terry Swain was the designated "last" swimmer...she was smiling and looked strong as she crossed the finish line.  Great job, Terry!  The award ceremony recognized the top three swimmers for the non-wetsuit and wetsuit division. (The Y will be posting all swimmers' times soon). However, the remainder of the non-wetsuit competitors were ranked with the wetsuit division...hopefully next year the non-wetsuit swimmers will have their own ranking system.    Also, many swimmers broke the infamous "one hour" time...congratulations to all. And a special recognition of Yoko Aoshima who participated in her very first open water swim competition...three years ago, she did not know how to swim and she took swim lessons at the Y. She had a remarkable swim. Awesome job,Yoko!    It was exciting to see that many more "non-wetsuit" swimmers participated this year...water temp was 60-63 degrees.  The P2P had a record number of out-of-state swimmers who planned this swim around a vacation in the great state of Maine....hope you come back next year. Also, this year East End Beach had a record number of spectators to welcome all swimmers as they reached the finish line...it was a spectacular greeting for all swimmers to experience.  And finally, the P2P is not only a great swim event organized by the Y but it's a fundraiser to help with their swim programs. If you would like to make a donation, please contact the Cumberland County YMCA Portland branch.   Thank you

1 comment:

docshock said...

Pat, it was great meeting you and you did a great job at the swim Saturday. This is Ellen Shockro, from Stonington, Maine. I had seen your channel swimming webpage.
I already told my friend Lynn Kubasek about your Catalina swim in October. What date are you scheduled for? And I will see Beth Barnes when I get home - she is absolutely the best, put me in contact with some people here in Portland to try for a kayaker, but Terry at the Y came thru with a nice kayaker. I posted about the swim on dailynewsofopenwaterswimming.com today. I love your summary of the race, and it was a great experience.