A 61-year-old man from Alberta is in the Okanagan trying to set a World Open Water Swimming Association record for the longest unassisted continuous open water swim.
To set that record, Wayne Strach is hoping to swim 135 kilometres in Okanagan Lake, a feat he estimates will take him over 50 hours.
“Last year, when I did my English Channel swim, I felt I still had a little bit of gas in the tank to carry on. This will answer my personal question of how far can I swim,” said Strach before he started his swim Monday morning.
Because the swim is unassisted he also isn’t wearing a wet suit.
“This is a nonstop swim. I can’t have anything that provides flotation, nor be fed on anything that provides flotation, nor be drafted by a boat,” he said.
This isn’t the first record attempt in Okanagan Lake this summer.
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In July, an American man, Adam Ellenstein, swam from Vernon to Penticton in 43 hours.
That swim was 105 kilometres.
WATCH: Okanagan Lake world record attempt
“He did a great swim. We’ve been in communication a little bit with each other,” said Strach of Ellenstein’s accomplishment.
However, where Ellenstein donned a wet suit and was looking to be the fastest person to swim the lake, Strach’s record attempt is all about distance.
WATCH: Alberta man looks to set new open water swimming record in B.C.
Strach started outside of Vernon Monday morning and once he makes it to Penticton he is expected to backtrack to Naramata to make up the needed distance.
If all goes as planned, he will arrive in Penticton on Wednesday after more than two days of continuous swimming.
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