Santa Barbara Observer Training - June 11

Solo marathon swims often take place many miles out to sea, with few witnesses. The integrity of such a sport depends on the officials (Observers) who document each attempted swim and verify that our strict rules are followed and each swimmer remains safe.

If you have attempted, completed or supported a marathon swim, please consider becoming an observer. We could certainly use your help and you are compensated for your time and efforts.

This year, Observer Training will be held in Santa Barbara on Saturday, June 11th at the Cabrillo Bathhouse on East Beach. The training is jointly sponsored by the CCSF and SBCSA, and will be held from 8am to 1pm.

Cabrillo Bath House at East Beach
1118 East Cabrillo Blvd
Santa Barbara CA 93101

Breakfast will be served in the morning. If interested in becoming an official observer, please RSVP to Dave Van Mouwerik as space is limited.

Directions

Directions from south: north on 101; Cabrillo Blvd exit on left; Turn left onto E. Cabrillo Blvd. and after 1 mile destination will be on left.

Directions from north: South on 101 to Milpas exit; right on S. Milpas to E. Cabrillo Blvd.; Turn left and after 100 yards the destination is on your right.

Alternative Training Dates

May 21 at the home of Julie & Dave Bender in San Pedro (Los Angeles). CPR certification will be offered for observers who need to renew their CPR training and review AED-First Aid procedures. Register with Paula Selby of the CCSF.

June 18 at the home of Carol Sing in Spring Valley (San Diego). CPR/AED session will be offered if enough interest. Register with Paula Selby of the CCSF, who will provide further details to registrants including times and addresses for the Los Angeles and San Diego sessions.

New Lifetime Member

The SBCSA welcomes our newest lifetime member, Daniel Anhua Fung of Hawthorne, California. With the addition of Daniel, the SBCSA is now 50 lifetime members strong! We are grateful to Daniel and all our lifetime members who generously support the SBCSA and marathon swimming.

Should you have an interest becoming an SBCSA lifetime member, please complete our lifetime member form.

MSF Tracks: A Global GPS Track Database

MSF Tracks is a global repository of open-water swimming GPS tracks. This new web app was developed by SBCSA board member Evan Morrison and announced by the Marathon Swimmers Federation earlier this month.

The database already contains 134 GPS tracks from around the world - primarily 10km and longer, but with a few interesting shorter swims thrown in the mix. The SBCSA is a proud contributor to this effort - 32 of our successful channel swims over the past 3 years can be viewed in the database.

Check it out at tracks.marathonswimmers.org

Scott Zornig swims around Coronado Island!

(Scott is too humble to put this in the newsletter himself, so Evan did it for him!)

Our fearless leader Scott Zornig circum-swam Coronado Island in San Diego this past weekend. This is a 12-statute mile swim. Observed by Cherie Edborg and video-documented by Lynn Kubasek (both SBCSA board members), Scott completed the swim in 4 hours, 30 minutes, 59 seconds. This is the 5th fastest known time for this route, and the fastest for anyone over 40!

Here is a video by Lynn Kubasek:

Way to go, Scott!