Zornig Successful Crossing Channel

Scott Zornig of Rancho Santa Margarita became the 89th person to swim the channel between Santa Catalina Island and Point Vincente on Palos Verdes Peninsula when he made the trip Monday morning.

Zornig, 40, finished the 20.4-mile swim in 10 hours 8 minutes. The first man to make the crossing was George Young in 1927. Official records are kept by the Catalina Channel Swimming Federation.

Ten people have attempted the crossing this year and only one person besides Zornig was successful. Because the season for safe attempts has nearly ended, Zornig is likely the last man this decade to swim the channel.

Conditions were perfect for Zornig, who left Diver’s Cove on Catalina at 11 p.m. Sunday. The seas were calm, the water temperature 64 degrees. But Zornig, who never had swum more than 10 miles in one stretch, tired after six or seven hours.

He finally reached land just after 9 a.m. Large waves slammed him into the rocky shore and he broke some ribs. He also suffered from a mild case of hypothermia, but said he was fine after a 45-minute shower and some hot tea.