BERMUDA FOUR CORNERS CHALLENGE FAIR OR FOUL FOUR MILERS

Transcription

1 Without accepting risk, we miss the greatest of rewards. In every swim there is a risk of injury or death. Evaluate the risk of a swim and if you conclude that the reward of the experience outweighs the risk you are accepting, then cherish the experience and don t complain if anything goes wrong. Never confuse a bad outcome with a bad decision! The key to this ethos, and how it applies to open water swimming, is understanding when the risk is too significant only the individual can evaluate that for themselves.

2 Background: Bermuda is a fabulous place for open water swimming, and many swimmers, both locals and visitors, enjoy the beauty offered by the Atlantic. Throughout the year informal groups meet and do open water swims without safety boats, buoys or route markers. The swimmers make their own decisions regarding safety, and understand and accept the consequences of accident, injury or other adverse circumstances. Freedom from the need to coordinate the safety aspects, and willingness of the participants to accept the consequential risk, allows material flexibility in which locations can be swum, and creates wonderful opportunities to relish the exquisiteness of nature. There are a variety of more formal local events each year. A primary focus of those events is safety of the participants, and correspondingly these events generally require a sheltered location and material boat support. This results in most formal events being unable to take advantage of some of the more beautiful but also more exposed / less accessible locations around the island. Additionally, poor weather conditions can lead organizers to cancel, postpone, or modify swim routes to cater to safety interests of all participants. The Bermuda Four Corners Challenge has a different focus it will follow the approach of the informal swim groups, as opposed to the formal events which place a premium on organizers making safety decisions for the participants. It should be assumed that there will be no safety boats, buoys or route markers, though if circumstances and conditions permit, one or more of those may be available to aid the participants. The benefit of the simplicity is that it enables the event to use four distinct routes along very scenic, but less commonly swum, parts of the shoreline. The trade off to the beauty of the four routes is that each is far less accessible than a swim on an enclosed body of water. With no safety support the swimmers assume materially more risk than in safety focused, enclosed water events. The Bermuda Four Corners Challenge is made up of four separate swims (each a Fair or Foul Four Miler), around the NE, NW, SE, and SW parts of the island. Each Fair or Foul Four Miler represents an individual four mile course offering beautiful scenery but with materially more risk than a swim in an enclosed body of water. A swimmer completing all four of the Fair or Foul Four Milers will have completed the Bermuda Four Corners Challenge. Event History: The Fair or Foul Four Milers were first held in 2017, with 35 entrants, 19 of whom completed both swims (SW & NE) and are therefore on track to complete the full Bermuda Four Corners Challenge this year. We had wonderful water conditions, however there were a number of entrants who experienced Portuguese Man-of-War stings on the first day unfortunately we had a late and busy season for Man-of-Wars in For more info stay tuned to the in progress website for Bermuda Open Water Swimming (the event organizer) or events@bows.bm. For 2018, there will be a new division Strongman this division requires the swimmer to complete the swim while towing a log (100lb/45kg for males, 75lb/34kg for females). If you are coming from overseas and want to enter this division, but don t have your own personal log to use (or don t want to pay for overweight baggage!) then give us at least 30 day notice to prepare a custom log for you to use. Harness/ropes to be provided by the swimmer.

3 Bermuda Four Corners Event Details: Each year, two of the four Fair or Foul Four Miler routes will be swum. In odd years the SW and NE routes will be swum, and in even years the NW and SE routes will be swum. While weather and wind patterns can change from day to day, the pairing of the routes is intended to increase the likelihood that in years with strong winds, at least one of the routes should have some shelter from the prevailing winds. Regardless of weather conditions, each swim will occur at the designated date/time, with the onus on swimmers to evaluate their ability to handle the conditions. The swims will be held on consecutive days over a weekend. This is by design to allow overseas swimmers the option of selecting either of the two swims over the weekend, or doubling down with both and completing half of the Bermuda Four Corners Challenge in the weekend. The sea surface temperature on the date of the swims should be approximately 22 c / 72 f, hopefully warm enough for most participants, but also prior to peak boating season. Fair or Foul Four Milers - route description: Each route is a true open ocean swim and, as indicated by the Fair or Foul part of the name, the swim will occur regardless of weather or water conditions, and will not be modified in any way from the route detailed below. Each swimmer (or their guardian if they are under 21 years of age) should make the personal decision whether the conditions on the day are safe for the swimmer given their relative skill and experience. Any given year might have calm conditions (we d hope for lots of swimmers) or horrendously rough (it s conceivable that in some years there will be no swimmers willing to attempt the swim). Obviously being safe is important, but for this event the onus is on the swimmer (or their guardian if they are under 21 years of age) to make, and accept the consequences of, their own decision whether to swim. In poor conditions, it is almost guaranteed that there will be no safety boats, buoys or other markers along the route an important consideration for any potential participant. There will be orange marker buoy (possibly several) at the finish to help clarify the ultimate target. The four routes relative to the whole island of Bermuda are: NE Route NW Route SE Route SW Route

4 Due to the nature of the prevailing ocean currents and daily weather conditions, any given route may be very calm or extremely hazardous on event day. This should not be considered similar to events such as Tough Mudders, where progress towards the finish is almost always possible, and your team mates can give substantial assistance. Due to the possibility of difficult conditions and the water based nature of this event, the Fair or Foul Four Milers are far more arduous and it is always possible that a swimmer may be unable to make forward progress. Correspondingly, we anticipate completion of any single route, let alone the full Bermuda Four Corners Challenge to be materially more of an accomplishment than completing a Tough Mudder or similar type of event. In general a swimmer following a direct line will rarely be more than 200 metres from land, with the exception of the NW route, where the route can be more than 800 metres from land. Notwithstanding the proximity of land, at times each of the direct routes can be more than 1500 metres from accessible shoreline. With or without safety boats, buoys or route markers, should a swimmer encounter any difficulties anywhere on the route (but especially when more distant from accessible shoreline) the risk of injury or death is significantly increased versus a swim in an enclosed body of water with safety boats. Based on water conditions a swimmer may even elect to swim away from the direct route, such as further offshore so as to be outside the reefline (on some days that may offer higher swells, but less chop). Ultimately, each swimmer needs to evaluate the conditions and formulate their desired course, but should always remember to consider the risks of each route, and potential consequences, should they experience difficulties of any kind. With the potential for there being no boat support, swimmers may wish to consider wearing bright swim caps (a red Four Corners cap will be provided as part of your registration fee). A swimmer may elect to wear the Four Corners cap, or an alternate one of their choosing or is so inclined go without a cap, it s all up to you. Additionally, if a swimmer wishes to use a safety float to increase visibility (such as can be found at you are permitted to do so. To the best of our knowledge they are not available in Bermuda, so anyone wishing to use one should obtain it well in advance of the event date. Strongman competitors - feel free to paint your log in a bright colour! More specifics on the four routes (listed in the order in which they will be swum) are:

5 SW Route (odd years) Start at the shoreline at the east end of Stonehole Bay, head offshore and then, keeping Bermuda on your right shoulder, turn to the W staying to the south of all rocks, rounding High Point cliffs and turning to the NW, then keeping the buoy on your right shoulder and finish at the shoreline on the beach at Whale Bone Bay. Whale Bone Bay Stonehole Bay High Point NE Route (odd years) Start at the shoreline at Soldier Bay on Cooper s Island, head S offshore, rounding the end of Cooper s Island and turning to the N. The route keeps Bermuda on your left shoulder. Aim for St David s Head and follow the shore past St David s Head, then bear NW to Fort St Catherine s finishing at the shoreline at Gates Bay. Fort St Catherine s Gates Bay St David s Head Soldier Bay

6 NW Route (even years) Start at the shoreline at the middle of Somerset Long Bay, head offshore to the W looping clockwise around Daniel s Island, then bearing NE in a straight line to the tip of Dockyard, turning right 200 metres before the tip of Dockyard into Snorkel Park, finishing at the shoreline. Daniel s Island Somerset Long Bay Snorkel Park SE Route (even years) Start at the shoreline at the middle of Well Bay on Cooper s Island, bear SW out of the bay on a path to keep Green Rock and subsequently Bird Rock on your right shoulder. Keep following a SW direction, inside or outside of the reefline (your choice), finishing at the shoreline at the west end of John Smith s Bay. Green Rock Bird Rock Well Bay John Smith s Bay