Channel Master

September 24, 2007 7:59 AM
ANGEL PACHECO, NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

Kevin Murphy set out swimming from Santa Cruz Island about midnight Saturday with the goal of making it across the Santa Barbara Channel. About 17 1/2 hours later, he wearily walked onto shore near the Santa Barbara Lighthouse, and then turned around with his arms raised in victory to face the channel he had just conquered.

Kevin Murphy leaves the water on the beach between Mesa Lane and the Lighthouse on
Sunday after swimming across the Channel. MICHAEL MORIATIS / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS

Mr. Murphy, 58, of London, is known as the "King of the English Channel" because he has crossed it 34 times. He said swimming across the Santa Barbara Channel was a challenge he had been wanting to accomplish.

He traveled about 24 statute miles Sunday without the aid of a wet suit or breathing apparatus, accompanied and monitored by members of the Santa Barbara Channel Swimming Association -- which works to sanction channel crossings -- traveling by boat and kayak.
Despite stormy weather forcing him to put the swim on hold for a day and although he had a some trouble keeping his balance after stepping out of the waves at around 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Mr. Murphy said he was very pleased with the accomplishment.

MICHAEL MORIATIS / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS

"I'm a bit disappointed I was as slow as I was," Mr. Murphy said. "The main thing is that I got here."

Mr. Murphy was most concerned about the distance of the swim, but in the back of his mind, he was also worried about sharks. At one point, he saw what he described as gray figures swimming below him. "I was spooked slightly," he said. Mr. Murphy also saw and heard several dolphins throughout the day.

He was not allowed to make physical contact with any of the people traveling with him, including his wife, Jane. Because she is familiar with his swimming style, she monitored him to make sure he was OK to continue.

Periodically, the escort boat would throw Mr. Murphy what he described as a plastic beaker that was filled with a carbohydrate drink. He was given the drink every hour for the first three hours, and every half hour after that.

The experience was not entirely new to Mr. Murphy, who first swam the English Channel -- a 21-statute-mile route that can be more like 25 miles because of tide deviation -- at 19. Three times he has crossed the English Channel and back in one outing, without rest. To prepare for his trip across the Santa Barbara Channel, Mr. Murphy did shorter swims in Ireland and Norway.

"I've been building up to it all summer," he said.

The temperature of the water was about 60 degrees when he started out overnight, and raised slightly throughout the day."It was OK. I was starting to get a bit cold."

Although Mr. Murphy was not happy with his time, and said he experienced a lot of physical pain during the trip, he thought the accomplishment proves one thing: "If you're determined, you can succeed."