Seal Beach : Rough-Water Swim Will Be Held Today

Hundreds of swimmers will brave ocean waters today during the 24th Annual Rough Water Swim.

Swimmers will compete in 10-mile, three-mile and one-mile events that will be held off Seal Beach. The events, beginning at 6 a.m., will last until 1 p.m.

Spectators can watch the events, sponsored by the Seal Beach Swim Club, from the pier or from the beach.

Event planner Rocky Gentner said 59 men and 19 women registered to compete in the 10-mile swim between the Huntington Beach and Seal Beach piers. Last year’s winner, Steven Munatones, 25, completed the course in just under 3 hours and 20 minutes. He is among the competitors this year and hopes to hold on to his title, he said.

Each distance swimmer will be accompanied by a paddler, Gentner said, to make sure help is available if needed. Additional Seal Beach lifeguards will also be on hand during the race to assist swimmers who experience hypothermia during the race, city officials said.

Fifty-five male and 25 female swimmers registered for the three-mile race. Gentner said the number of competitors in the mile swim had not be determined because many swimmers were expected to register today.

Gentner said several races will be held for younger swimmers. There will be a 200-yard swim for competitors 8 and under, a 400-yard swim for 9- and 10-year-olds, an 800-yard swim for 11- and 12-year-olds and a 1,200-yard swim for 13- and 14-year-olds.

This year the city has agreed to prohibit fishing along Seal Beach Pier throughout the swimming events. Gentner said that in previous years fisherman have tried to snag swimmers with fishing hooks and dropped fishing weights on them as they passed beneath the structure.

“Can you imagine someone swimming 10 miles and being at the point of near hallucination and then have somebody try and gaff them with a hook?” Gentner said.