Swimming

In August 2016 I swam the Marilyn Bell route across Lake Ontario, ratified by Solo Swims Ontario with swim master Shaun Chisholm. Marathon swimmer and adventurer Madhu Nagaraja led our fantastic team on the water. The swim was part of our ongoing efforts to raise funds and awareness for our Great Lakes. With GLOW: Great Lakes Open Water adventures, we promote and pursue adventures in our home waters and around the world.

On 12 August 2019, after an unsuccessful attempt the previous summer, I crossed the English Channel from Abbot's Cliff to Cap Gris Nez in 12 hours and 2 minutes, supported by my brother Andrew King, escorted by Simon Ellis and Marilyn Critchley piloting High Hopes, with CS&PF observer Graham Proctor.

On 28 September 2021, I managed to fumble my way across the Catalina Channel under the watchful eyes of CCSF observers Jodi DiLasco and Qing Li and kayakers Barbara Schumacher and Patricio Libenson, supported by Drs. Juan Gabriel Acosta and Isabella Jaramille, and escorted by David Harvey and the crew of Pacific Star.

On 16 April 2023, I became the first Canadian man to swim across the Cook Strait between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. (The first Canadian across was my friend and mentor Marilyn Korzekwa, who completed the crossing in March 2016). My time, pending official ratification, was 7 hours, 33 minutes, 28 seconds. The swim was observed by Corey Fairbairn of Cook Strait Swim, and I was supported on the water by my friend and WLU faculty colleague Dr. Christine Neill. There were dolphins!

Also in the 2023 season I have a neap tide booked in September for the North Channel.

Here are my swims at the Marathon Swimmers Federation database, LongSwimsDB.