St. John Beach-to-Beach Power Swim

The post race food and beer (yum!) are on the same beach as the finish, just a short walk down. Bring some cash with you since the food isn't included and yes, there is plenty for those who are with you there as well. People are watching the others come into the finish. Once everyone is in (I believe there's a cutoff) they'll announce the winners and hand out awards (maybe around 1-ish). From what I remember, there's a 1-3 overall in men/women in each distance and then the 1st place in the two age group brackets also get an award. There's a huge board they manually post the winners as they come in. Last year each award was a nice, blown glass creation made by locals. There was parking available, but it was limited. One of our guys had his wife take the car. She dropped us off at the beginning of the race and piddled around a while before heading to the finish where she parked nearby. It was a short walk. There were also plenty of taxis running back and forth between the parking or the ferry area and the race finish. There isnt' much info on the site (I commented on that last year) and they said they sent emails but I don't think I ever got them. In any case, there's plenty of room and space for your cheering section to enjoy the beachside and play in the water while you're finishing. Good luck this weekend and have a great time! I'm so excited for you! You're going to have a amazing experience. Remember to keep swimming and not pull a Dory (from Finding Nemo) and get distracted by all the beautiful scenery under the water. Just relax as soon as you get off the plane and enjoy the ride! Let me know how you do!

Hey Mermaid!! Channel Dory (Finding Nemo) and "Just swim!" Have a great time and try not to be too distracted by the beauty you're "flying" over. Good luck!

Yay! I figured out who you two were and it looks like you both did pretty well! Congratulations! Courtney/Mermaid got first in her AG for her race. Woo hoo! John, you are in a tough, tough division, but you still had a lot of people behind you. Looks like there was a pack of y'all that finished within seconds of each other. Must've been fun. Did you have a great time or what? Go enjoy a few rum-filled painkillers!

Hi, flystorms! I forgot to pack my racing suit and was so mad at myself (4 tankinis in my bag...but no racing suit!). I couldn't find anything suitable (hehe) besides a rash guard that I bought on St. John (which I had to wear with my sports bra), and it really chafed me up, even with bodyglide. It was kind of hard to not think of how much it hurt every time I took a stroke. But otherwise, yes, it was awesome! I saw a couple of stingrays out there :) The water was beautiful, but actually much rougher than I expected at some points. The race was the last full day of my trip so I couldn't do the recovery boat thing the next day (which I guess is a new thing this year.) I'm curious how that was. I'm hoping I can make it down again within the next couple of years for the race. Such a great experience! All of the volunteers and other participants were so nice. And the after-party was fun too - as we were walking down to it, there was a flash mob going on to "Happy" :) Hope to meet you there one of these years! Thanks for your tips and encouragement. Take care! Courtney