Since before the turn of the twentieth century, ocean swimmers have
had aspirations of "Swimming the Light." The route chosen by these
early adventurers, and dreamers, went from the bridges in
Charlestown to the Boston Light, on Little Brewster Island, in the
outer Boston Harbor, a distance of twelve miles. In 1907, a Boston
Light Swim Race was inaugurated. Of the twenty-seven swimmers who
dove in at the Warren Bridge in Charlestown that year, not one
succeeded in touching the shore of Little Brewster Island. The very
first known, and documented, swimmer to succeed in reaching Boston
Light from Charlestown was Alois Anderle, in the Boston Light Swim
Race of 1909. Anderle was 40 years old and a native of Austria,
then living in New York City. His time was 5 hours, 40 minutes.
Once other swimmers learned from Anderle's success that this
marathon swim was possible, others followed with successful swims
to Boston Light. Even though victory became more common after 1909,
however, most of the contestants still failed to stay the whole
course. In fact, of 435 starters of the Boston Light Swim Races
between 1907 and 1941, 363 failed to reach the Light, most defeated
by the cold and choppy water, and the seemingly endless distance
involved. This book covers the Boston Light Swim Races for the
years 1907 through 1941. After the race in 1941, the event was shut
down for the duration of the war. Even though World War Two ended
in 1945, the swim was not restarted until 1976, when Boston
marathon swimmer, Jim Doty, took it upon himself to reorganize it.
The Boston Light Swim Race continues, alive and well, to the
present day. The percentage of contestants finishing the grind
nowadays is much higher than that of the early era. This may be
attributed to several factors, not the least of which is the
shortening of the course to eight miles. Other factors may include:
a greater knowledge of tides, currents and other conditions; the
evolution of more efficient swimming styles and strokes. The swim
is considered an excellent test for the aspiring English Channel
swimmer. The conditions of both swims are similar, with cold and
choppy water. The two main differences are the shorter distance,
and the scarcity of stinging jellyfish in the Boston swim.
Nevertheless, many swimmers have based their decision to make the
trip to England upon their experience in the Boston Light Swim.
Neither swim is a test for the faint of heart, and the simple
attempt at either one is, in itself, a significant measure of
success.
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