A marathon swim is considered to be any swim over 10K (6 miles). I completed my first 10K in September, The Little Red Lighthouse Swim (72nd Street Boat Basin in Manhattan to 207th Street). I swam it in an awesome time and felt really good afterwards, so I decided that this was the year to really start to go for my longer swimming goals.
My first marathon swim will be Stage 6 of the 8 Bridges Swim. 8 Bridges is an event put on by my swim team CIBBOWS (Coney Island Brighton Beach Open Water Swimmers). The swim strings together the Rip Van Winkle, Kingston-Rhinecliff, Mid-Hudson, Newburgh-Beacon, Bear Mountain, Tappan Zee, George Washington, and Verrazano Narrows Bridges (Credit: 8 Bridges).
My stage is Stage 6: The Tappan Zee Bridge to the George Washington Bridge. I selected this stage for a few reasons:
1. When I was 10, my mom took me to an awesome science enrichment program (aka nerd camp) sponsored by Johns Hopkins at the Maritime Aquarium in Connecticut. We went over the Tappan Zee Bridge on our way there, and I was completely mesmerized! It is the widest area of the Hudson River, and therefore, one of the most scenic.
2. In terms of distance, it is close to the Ederle Swim (15 miles compared to 17.5)
3. It is the easiest stage to to get to, and offers a great tidal assist
4. My first apartment in Manhattan was right by the GW in Washington Heights. It is also awesome to end up right where my longer distance swimming career really began, since the LRL Swim ends about a mile north of the GW.
Coach Bonnie will be in a kayak right next to me, and Francis will be on a safety support vessel. I also know many of the swimmers in this leg, so there will be no shortage of safety and emotional support on this one!
Stage 6 Info
Stage 6 Map
It is going to be a challenge, but I like to think of a great line from "A League of Their Own" when I contemplate this distance: 'If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great."
Hold Fast,
Laura
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