Hundreds challenge themselves in Kelowna’s Across the Lake Swim

Swimmers look from nan h2o and tally onto nan sandy formation successful celebration, having conscionable completed nan 2.1-kilometre feat of swimming crossed Okanagan Lake.

“I deliberation it’s conscionable benignant of a bucket-list point that group really bask and really want to do,” said Kari Baranieski, arena relations head of Saturday morning’s Across nan Lake Swim Challenge.

The first swimmers took disconnected from nan Old Ferry Docks successful West Kelowna astatine 7:50 a.m. From past on, much groups were fixed nan chance to participate successful nan swim.

Sandra Arthur from West Kelowna completed nan aquatics successful 38 minutes and 40 seconds.

“It went great. There was a spot of a current, location was a existent astir nan past 800 metres,” said Arther, who is besides a Swim Squad ambassador for nan Across nan Lake Swim.

The Swim Across nan Lake Challenge attracts group of each ages who are looking to push themselves to nan limit, including 84-year-old Aldert Dykstra, who completed nan aquatics successful 45 minutes and 12 seconds. Dykstra says that he has completed aggregate swims and diversion challenges complete nan years and wants to beryllium a bully illustration for others.

“I want to show that moreover aged group tin do it,” Dykstra said.

Challenging herself for nan first time, Sage Cowan completed her Across nan Lake Swim successful 37 minutes and 51 seconds and says she’s this year’s situation won’t beryllium her last.

“I was a competitory swimmer for 18 years, truthful this is successful my wheelhouse,” she said.

“The first half I conscionable stayed strong. Then, erstwhile I deed what I thought was nan mediate point… I picked up my kick.”

Every twelvemonth group recreation from crossed Canada and from extracurricular our borders to participate pinch 1,100 different swimmers. For locals, however, this is simply a treasured tradition.

Nicole Kraft from West Kelowna has taken portion successful 12 Swim Across nan Lakes events and this twelvemonth completed nan people successful 36 minutes.

“It’s a awesome challenge, it’s a bully logic to get my butt successful nan excavation to get a small training and I get to spot each my swimming friends that I only spot astatine swimming friends who I only spot astatine this swimming event,” Kraft said.

This is nan 76th yearly Across nan Lake Swim successful Kelowna and nan arena has now expanded to different cities successful nan Okanagan. The adjacent arena takes spot Aug. 3 successful Peachland wherever swimmers tin situation themselves to aquatics from nan statement to Rattlesnake Island and backmost again.