The annual CUC 800 metres swim is a firm fixture on the open water calendar after 23 years and on Saturday there were two unusual things about the event; it happened two weeks after the original date because of bad weather and for the first time in the history of Cayman’s 800m sea swims the course ran south rather than north, from Public Beach and ending at Governor’s Beach.
The weather was glorious and welcoming enough for the 87 dedicated swimmers who took to the water. Geoff Butler was the predictable winner in 9 minutes 33 seconds, followed by Alex McCallum (9.36) and Elliot Vernon third (10.25). Then came Geoff’s little brother Simon (10.28) and Alex’s younger sibling, Iain (10.31). The first female to finish was Coral Tomascik (10.44) sixth overall, followed by Bethany Cleaver in eighth place and Isabella Tognazzo, tenth.
CUC head honcho Richard Hew swam, placing 36th and presented medals and trophies to the age group winners. He claimed to have beaten his daughter Lauren, 12, but stats show she finished 18th so short of sabotage or Lauren having a very bad day, it looks like dad will always be left in her slipstream from now on.
The Governor Duncan Taylor was in three events over the weekend. He ran the Breeze two miler on Saturday morning, then did this swim before swimming in the team triathlon on Sunday for OK Man which they won. Bet he slept well after all that!
The great appeal of the sea swims is that participants from across the ages join in. Youngest swimmers were Lachlin Lambert, five, and Marisa Poole, six, who finished 83rd and 78th overall. At the other age range, Herb Cohen at 77 was the most senior competitor, finishing 80th.
There were plenty of parents out there showing their kids they’ve still got it too, including young mums Tessa McLean and Monica Watler who have five children between them. Juggling busy working lives and family commitments, they deserve praise for finding the time and energy to do these swims.
The next sea swim on the CIASA Open Water Calendar is the Pirates Week 5K Sea Swim, on Saturday, 12 November.
Results can be viewed on www.caymanactive.com.
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