other options for open water swims?

Sorry you didn't get in the lottery. I couldn't enter the lottery because the date doesn't work for me, so I'm doing the Potomac River Swim. Got some nice friendly emails from Cheryl Wagner, the race director - she let me in even though my longest official open water swim was a slow 2 miles. It looks like it will be a really nice swim. Another option is the Swim for Life. I haven't done this one, but heard good things about it here. They have 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 mile swims. www.swimdcac.org/.../swim4life.html

Hi The Swim for Life is a lot of fun. Great food afterwards. The Bridge to Bridge swim in AC NJ is 1.3 or 2.6 miles. www.lmsports.com has some NJ races, but most are only 1 mile races. Swimmy :)

A friend and I did not get picked in the Chesapeake Bay Swim lottery. We now need a new plan. Can anyone suggest other east coast events that are 3 or more miles in length? thanks I was wondering if anyone would mention this... Saw your handle and figured the bay got you down. I wonder how many people entered the lottery. Hopefully in the coming years, the organizers will find alternate ways of getting more participants. I would be interested in hearing the reasons behing why they can't get a 3rd wave in there. Surely there is more than enough interest to fill it. Anyways... Check out the following link. Our team webmaster Cheryl keeps this site very up to date. I would say there is a heavier focus on the Mid-Atlantic region, but that is East Coast :-). www.terrapinmasters.org/upcoming-open-water.htm She also runs the Potomac River 7.5 Mile swim, which is across the mouth of the Potomac (artemis.crosslink.net/.../pr2007i.htm).

Mashpee super swim 5k June 23 Mashpee, Cape Cod Fran Schnarr 10k national championship July 14 Huntington, Long Island Little Red Lighthouse August 25 5.85 miles NYC Lake George 6k July 1 Lake George, NY other stuff will be listed in the months to come

I was wondering if anyone would mention this... Saw your handle and figured the bay got you down. I wonder how many people entered the lottery. Hopefully in the coming years, the organizers will find alternate ways of getting more participants. I would be interested in hearing the reasons behing why they can't get a 3rd wave in there. Surely there is more than enough interest to fill it. . hey i'm in! did it in 05. 1:54 no wetsuit

I know a girl who did the Chesapeake Bay swim a couple of times now.. The reason for no 3rd wave are that the US coast Guard issues a permit for the swim. For swimmers safety the Bay is closed at the bridge by the Coast Guard for a couple hours only. No ships or boats may pass. Baltimore Md is a major port and thats why its closed a couple hours only. The swim is limited to 600 swimmers as a result and has become very popular , its 4.3 miles across that bay. The Potomac River swim is gaining popularity but its a small group probably less then 30 swimmers. I think each swimmer has to have a kayaker escort them because its about 7 miles across where the swim is. Atlantic City N.J. has a swim. So does Manhatten NY. Theres a swim in Delaware at Rehobeth Beach . Ft Lauderdale FL. has one too. Tampa Fl. has a 24 mile swim on Apr 21th across Tampa Bay, its scantioned by LMSC for USMS, you must have a "powered" escort boat for this swim and a extra kayaker is usefull and suggested.Of course that loonger then the English channel swim and almost as long as the Santa Catalina swim. You will find similiar rules for all long swims for the safety of the swimmer. If you can travel go to San Fransisco Ca this summer and try the Alcatraz swims. There are quite a few of them and a Alcartraz challenge that goes round the island then back to Frisco. Its about a 3 mile swim. See http://www.waterworldswim.com for details . Http://www.oceanswims.com also hase a lot of ocean swim info, its a site down under but covers a lot of territory.

have you looked on the USMS site? many events are listed www.usms.org/.../ldcalendar.php

A friend and I did not get picked in the Chesapeake Bay Swim lottery. We now need a new plan. Can anyone suggest other east coast events that are 3 or more miles in length? thanks BUMMER! As for other options, the 10K open water championships are in Huntington, NY in July. I've never done this swim before, but plan to this year. Also, there's a swim across Lake Champlain (NY to Vermont) in August I think that's around 8 miles. Again, I've never done it, but heard good things about it and plan to try it this year. The Potomac River Swim is another excellent choice. You'll need to have your own kayaker, but I believe that they can help you find one if you need one. I did it last year, but unfortunately weather conditions prevented us from doing the swim. Cheryl does an awesome job organizing the logistics. There were about 30 people registered last year and the pre-event dinner and post-event picnic are fabulous. artemis.crosslink.net/.../pr2007i.htm

Little Red Lighthouse swim - I did it when it was still 7.8 miles and it was a BLAST. Must be really, really comfortable in the open water/waves, however. -LBJ although, the swim is now 5.85 miles, the directors are intent in keeping the duration of the this race about the same as when it was 7.8 miles.

Swim For Life (1,2,3,4,5 mile events, Chestertown, MD. ) The week after the Bay. Pretty course, good food, tough currents in spots. Race across the Potomac - 7.5 miles. The only two times that I have entered it, they have had to have to cancel due to weather and hold a swim in the near by lake. SO if you see me entered, skip it, since I seem to bring the bad weather. Lake Champlain 8 mile (Burlington, VT)- Fun. Less of a race than a "tourist swim." Still worth it. Can be hard to get a boat, although race organizers will often help. Boston Light Swim (Boston) - 8.5 miles - COLD (usually very low 60's or less) and no wetsuit wussies allowed. Great race. Hard to get a boat & it will cost you. Bridge-to-Bridge 5k (AC NJ)- Great race, great course. If you are feeling flush with cash, I suppose that you could do the 12 mile race around Key West or "that Dam Swim" in Alabama. Haven't done either of them, but would like to. Little Red Lighthouse swim - I did it when it was still 7.8 miles and it was a BLAST. Must be really, really comfortable in the open water/waves, however. -LBJ