Group Marathon Swim from Laguna Beach to Catalina Island
On Saturday, August 8th, Hale, his daughter Faith, 18; Patsee Ober, 65; Lynn Kubasek, 57; Roddy Teeple, 50; and Brett Rose, 51, became the first group ever to cross the channel between Santa Catalina Island and Laguna Beach in a marathon swim that took them 19:44:09 to complete.
With that record, he and his daughter also became the first father-daughter duo to do the Catalina-Laguna Beach swim. Faith Hale, a Laguna Beach lifeguard, became the first female lifeguard to make the swim.
The six Laguna Beach swimmers were followed by three kayakers and a 48-foot-long dive boat that carried food, water and offered swimmers a place to rest between legs of the marathon.
Swimmers only got snacks and rest during their relay legs. Any other assistance would disqualify the record. The actual distance was 33.5 miles end to end; with currents, wind and drifts, that distance became greater. The feat was recorded by Dan Simonelli with the Catalina Channel Swimming Federation.
Rose was the first to splash into the water just north of Avalon at Long Point Beach at 7:09 p.m. Friday. Tom Hale and Rose swam four legs of the marathon relay. The others each swam three legs.
Tom Hale said he selected his team because each member is a strong swimmer. There were stinging jelly fish, strong currents and the knowledge of recent shark sightings. The swimmers knew sharks were a possibility but didn’t worry about them.
“You don’t get a second bite at the apple,” Hale said. “With record shark sightings, I knew the stakes were high, but I knew everyone here would perform. They are strong-minded swimmers. We knew if even one person freaks out, it blows the whole swim.“
Hale, who moved to Laguna Beach from Arizona in 2004, said he has long had his sights set on conquering a swim no one else has done before.
“I’ve been staring at the channel since 2004 and thought how awesome it would be to swim across it,” he said. “Now, we can actually say we did it. We will have that record forever and ever.”
Hale said it was especially rewarding to have Faith with him on the adventure. He taught her to swim in the ocean when she was 4 years old. Since then, the duo have competed in other open-water swims nationally.
“Hopefully, she’ll apply that same effort throughout her life,” he said.
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