Key West 2008

Scott: You're right and wrong. There are 2 Swims Around Key West this year but they are on separate days: Friday June 20th and Saturday June 21st. As to the benefits of being sanctioned by the Coast Guard, that's simply a matter of filling out a 3 page application and sending it to the Coast Guard Marine Event Permit Coordinator who, unless it's really an out & out unsafe event, will rubber stamp it. The primary purpose of the permit is so that the Coast Guard knows what's going on & can alert other ship traffic in the area on race day. It doesn't necessarily enhance the safety of the event. The event on Friday the 20th is in its 32nd year (they're the ones who apparently don't have an official Coast Guard permit but they've got over 3 decades of experience in putting on the event; and in 2006/2007 the race director opted to do a personal swim around Key West once each month for a year - now that's some personal experience). Their website is www.southernmostrunners.com/.../IS-Press-2007.htm The event on Saturday the 21st is the sanctioned one and I'm not sure how many years they've been doing it. Their website is www.fkccswimaroundkeywest.com/ Hope this helps. An educated consumer....... Gary

For all of you following this thread, I would lean towards the opinion of Suzie & Gregg who have actually done the event rather than me who is sitting out here on the left coast. I was just trying to clarify the difference between the two events - I can only conclude that in this case experience (in putting on the event all those years) doesn't necessarily result in the better event.Thanks Greg & Suzie for weighing in with your personal experience. Gary

Scott, Gary gave a lot of good info. that I can expand on. I swam in the 2007 31st Annual Swim Around Key West. It is run by Bill Welzien. It is true that he swam every month for a year leading up to the race. What was surprising was that he also swam in the race. The race was very poorly organized (maybe because the RD was in the water competing and not running the race). The Coast Guard called off the race due to weather, but Bill Welzien ignored them and completed the event even though everyone else listened to the Coast Guard and exited the water. I don't know much about the FKCC event. They have the permit from the Coast Guard, it is sanctioned by USA Swimming and Masters Swimming and it is insured. The money raise goes to help the Key West Community College. The money raised from Bill Welzien's swim (32nd SAKW) goes to Bill Welzien (specifially his ministry). I would reccomend the FKCC swim. The 12.5 swim is a good one (warm and a lot to look at under the water). Plus, Key West is a great place when the swim is over. Greg

Thanks Gary for the reply. Good point about the tried and true.

Scott- the difference between the two races is that the FKCC one is sanctioned through Masters swimming- that means it has safety boats, officials, and follows the rules stated in the Masters rule book. I swam in the FKCC one last year on a relay. They were very professional in all the situations that occurred last year. I'm looking forward to swimming the event solo this year. Hope to see you there. Susie

12.5 miles around Key West is a long way to go especially when the weather is rough. We were unlucky last year to have some rough seas in the early portion of the swim and many swimmers had to stop because therir kayakers couldn't handle the waves even though the FKCC race was well supported with plenty of boats, kayakers, and the US Coast Guard. I personally made it nine miles before the coast guard stopped the race. I was very disappointed to find out in the following days that the coast guard decided to stop the race because the other swimmers in the other swim around the island were swimming with out escorts boats. When the coast guard tried to reach the officials of the the other race and couldn't because the Preacher Man was competing and they were unable to tell which swimmers were in which race the coast guard had enough and for the safety of everyone stopped the race. This information came from Coasties that were on the water that are personal friends. So basically if you want to have a good time and a safe time do the FKCC swim around Key West. Plus the money goes into youth swimming not some preachers back pocket. Sorry if I seem jaded but one man ruined a great day for a lot of people. Oh

Jsinge25's post brings 2 important safety considerations to mind for any long swim of this type: 1) never swim without a pilot escort and 2) make sure the pilot has some form of communication device with him/her such as a marine radio in case of emergency. Safe swimming to all!

Thanks all for the helpful comments and suggestions. Sanctioned race it is. Thanks Again