Alcatraz Death

Thanks for posting Gary. I'm sure that the last few weeks have been terrible for you with criticism from people who know nothing about open water swimming. In my experience (6 Alcatraz swims so far), you and the other race directors have done a fantastic job of making a challenging swim safe and enjoyable. Unfortunately, it is possible to die while swimming- even in a 25 yard pool. Hopefully this tragic death of a swimmer in the Alcatraz Challenge won't lead to future events being cancelled anytime conditions are less than ideal. Hang in there! I don't think any athletic event can be guaranteed safe. I think most of us know this when we sign up. I've been in marathons in which deaths have occurred, and for that matter, someone had a heart attack and died in a 5k run in which I participated. All of these races were very well organized, had EMT's available and water stations and all the safety precautions in place. Sometimes deaths have occurred in people apparently very fit. I also know that this is the race director's nightmare come true. I was in communication (for an article) with a swim race director who spoke of the constant worry race directors have about something going wrong safetywise, and the many levels of care taken to prevent such things from happening. Yet they sometimes still happen, despite every effort to the contrary. Fortunately, in the race I mention, everyone's either finished or dnf'd safely. I'm grateful for that, and the r.d. is exceedingly grateful. It's an immense responsibility, and not a single race director I've met doesn't take that to heart. Gemich, I'm very sorry this happened and, as mentioned eariler, my condolences and prayers also go to you as you try to sort out what took place. If I were the one to leave life during/after a race, I hope my family and friends would know that at least I went out doing something I loved. There's a saying that "if you never risk anything, you risk even more."

Thanks for posting Gary. I'm sure that the last few weeks have been terrible for you with criticism from people who know nothing about open water swimming. In my experience (6 Alcatraz swims so far), you and the other race directors have done a fantastic job of making a challenging swim safe and enjoyable. Unfortunately, it is possible to die while swimming- even in a 25 yard pool. Hopefully this tragic death of a swimmer in the Alcatraz Challenge won't lead to future events being cancelled anytime conditions are less than ideal. Hang in there! I don't think any athletic event can be guaranteed safe. I think most of us know this when we sign up. I've been in marathons in which deaths have occurred, and for that matter, someone had a heart attack and died in a 5k run in which I participated. All of these races were very well organized, had EMT's available and water stations and all the safety precautions in place. Sometimes deaths have occurred in people apparently very fit. I also know that this is the race director's nightmare come true. I was in communication (for an article) with a swim race director who spoke of the constant worry race directors have about something going wrong safetywise, and the many levels of care taken to prevent such things from happening. Yet they sometimes still happen, despite every effort to the contrary. Fortunately, in the race I mention, everyone's either finished or dnf'd safely. I'm grateful for that, and the r.d. is exceedingly grateful. It's an immense responsibility, and not a single race director I've met doesn't take that to heart. Gemich, I'm very sorry this happened and, as mentioned eariler, my condolences and prayers also go to you as you try to sort out what took place. If I were the one to leave life during/after a race, I hope my family and friends would know that at least I went out doing something I loved. There's a saying that "if you never risk anything, you risk even more."