The 3.5 Mile Swim Across the St. Johns
Dock & Boat Times for Meeting the Athletes and Crew
Expedition#5 June 7th
Dock & Boat Times for Meeting the Athletes and Crew
Expedition#5 June 7th
8:30 Course Orientation Cruise from Doctors Lake Marina - We will boat across the St. Johns to provide the swimmers a course orientation. We will follow the course to County Dock, home of Mandarin Museum and Historical Society. We will cross back to Fleming island Marina by 9:45 to prepare to launch the swimmers. (The boat will launch in front of Dock Holiday’s Boat Rentals) Stop by and meet the team!
9:45 Fleming Island Marina – The swimmers will prepare for the 3.5 mile swim expedition. (Outermost dock)
10:15 Fleming Island Marina – The swimmers begin their journey across the currents of the St. Johns. Great photo op. The boat will spot them across the river. Stop by and see them off! (Outermost dock)
12:00 County Dock Mandarin - Approximate arrival time. 15 minute opportunity to congratulate the swimmers and interview immediately after their swim. We will head back to Doctors Lake Marina shortly thereafter. (County Dock Road). Meet us there to congratulate the swimmers on their swim across the river.
1:00 Doctors Lake Marina – We complete our journey here. Another opportunity to speak with the crew and swimmers.
Jim's love for the St. Johns River can be found in his company name. While standing on the County Dock by the Mandarin Museum and Historical Society, he watched the mullet jumping through the air. At that moment, he christened his company JumpingFish, and promised himself he would someday swim the width of the St. Johns and land at this very spot.
With his love for the St. Johns River, he is using this event to bring awareness to the St Johns and the St. Johns Riverkeeper organization. After months of training, Jim is ready to embark on this journey with a solid team and support crew and some of Jacksonville's greatest athletes. Jim enjoys Sunday open water swims with the Duval Ocean Swimmers group.
Coach Colin Hardy began developing his coaching approach from a unique vantage point: in his high school pool. As a swimmer on his school’s team, he paid close attention to how he and the other swimmers were coached, and he made some important decisions about how he’d coach his future team.
“I noticed that coaches paid attention to only the best, strongest swimmers,” said Colin. “That made me want to design a program where every swimmer feels like part of the team.”
Coach Hardy’s current Piranhas team includes middle school and high school students, as well as Masters swimmers in their twenties, forties, and fifties. A few team members are open-water swimmers, an experience vastly different from traditional in-pool swim meets. Working with Coach Hardy has helped them improve their swim times and form.
In addition to being a JumpingFish coach, an ASCA 2 Level coach and a USA Swimming registered coach, Hardy is a certified Lifeguard Instructor, Water Safety Instructor, and a Pool Operator.
As a child, she fished with her dad in the river off of Heckscher Drive, and shrimped in the Ortega River. As an adult, she overlooked the St. Johns from her office window in Riverside, and she raised twin daughters alongside Black Creek in Middleburg.
These days, when she's not volunteering as the SASJ captain, she enjoys photographing and painting scenes of life near the water, some of which you can purchase from the Riverside Arts Market Art Gallery.
Luis Etchenique was educated as an economist. After many years from the corporate world, he retired and found the true meaning of his life in his second career as a professional Firefighter/Marine Rescue Swimmer in St. Johns County, where he started as a volunteer in 1995.
Originally from San Sebastian, Spain, Luis lives in South Ponte Vedra Beach, with his wife Gabrielle and daughter Nikki. An avid tennis player and swimmer, Luis is a regular during our Sunday open water swims with the Duval Ocean Swimmers group.
Luis' open water experience includes Sharkfest (Alcatraz), the Swim Around Key West, and the Ed Gaw Amelia Island Open Water Challenge, as well as several solo swim expeditions. His long-range goals include swimming the Maui Channel and the Strait of Gibraltar.
Diego De Los Rios was a competitive pool swimmer for most of his swimming career. Several years ago, Diego decided to to take to the waves and has won numerous open water competitions around the state of Florida. Diego swims Sunday mornings with the Duval Ocean Swimmers group.
"I love the challenge of the sea, and look forward to any race where I can meet the best swimmers and see how I stack up against them."
"I swim the St Johns with Jim because I love the challenge, and I believe we need to raise awareness of our river."
Incidentally, "De Los Rios" means "of the Rivers"... an appropriate name for our resident fish.
Jim says, "Diego has been my inspiration. He believes in me, and helped guide me to this experience."
Samantha Valverde has been swimming for 12 years. She's mother to 3-year-old daughter Claire Dassier, and wife to Brian Walcutt.
Diego De Los Rios was a competitive pool swimmer for most of his swimming career. Several years ago, Diego decided to to take to the waves and has won numerous open water competitions around the state of Florida. Diego swims Sunday mornings with the Duval Ocean Swimmers group."I love the challenge of the sea, and look forward to any race where I can meet the best swimmers and see how I stack up against them."
"I swim the St Johns with Jim because I love the challenge, and I believe we need to raise awareness of our river."
Incidentally, "De Los Rios" means "of the Rivers"... an appropriate name for our resident fish.
Jim says, "Diego has been my inspiration. He believes in me, and helped guide me to this experience."
Samantha Valverde has been swimming for 12 years. She's mother to 3-year-old daughter Claire Dassier, and wife to Brian Walcutt.
"This time last year, I had a goal to swim the English Channel in 2014; however, due to some setbacks, my goal had become very distant, and I'd begun to give up."
"Just as I reached my breaking point, I found an advertisement for the swim across the St. Johns River. I didn't know if it was open to anyone or if it had already passed, but I had an overwhelming desire to find out."
"I called Jim and learned that there was a spot open for me to embark on this expedition with them. All at once, I wanted my goals back. Knowing that this swims help bring awareness for the St. Johns River makes it that much more fulfilling."
Katie Bombly calls herself "an endurance junkie" who accepts challenges in the sport of triathlon, ultramarathon running, and open water swimming.
Recently graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Nursing, she spends most of her time in search of, and training for, the ultimate athletic challenges.
"Conquering this open water swim expedition while raising awareness for maintaining a healthy and clean river is an amazing combination of love for the sport of swimming and love for our environment," says Katie.
A Northeast Florida native, Candice Davis was raised with an appreciation of the natural world around her.
A Northeast Florida native, Candice Davis was raised with an appreciation of the natural world around her.
Growing up alongside Black Creek with her twin sister and myriad cats and dogs, Candice now resides in Avondale near Fishweir Creek with Jim Alabiso, four felines, and several tanks full of freshwater and saltwater fish.
Candice makes her living as a writer, editor, and training designer. She provides content development and administrative support for JumpingFish Coaching, and navigation, communications, and swim support for Jim and the JumpingFish team.
In her spare time, Candice enjoys SCUBA, creating art, and exploring Jacksonville's parks, beaches, and waterways.
