Congratulations on participating in the 2017 Karma Resorts Rottnest Channel Swim and Champions of the Channel – as swimmers, paddlers, skippers or support crew! It takes all of us to make this Swim the special and iconic event that it is.
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts on the 27th Rottnest Channel Swim! We certainly acknowledge that this was a deceptively challenging crossing for many, although so far we have received a lot of positive feedback about this year's event and we look forward to reviewing the results of the post event surveys. Feedback from participants (both the good and the constructive) is vital for the continued enhancement of the event.
The proportion of swimmers safely completing the crossing has long been a key measure of success for race organisers. This year, 95% of swimmers who started at Cottesloe successfully finished the event. The last three years have been 99% (2016), 93% (2015) and 99% (2014). While 99% is a great result, we will be speaking with those who didn't finish to learn why and assess whether we can help in mitigating this.
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Started |
Finished |
Solo |
272 |
229 |
Duo |
177 (354) |
171 (342) |
Team |
443 (1,772) |
424 (1,696) |
CotC |
43 (59) |
40 (56) |
Total Boats |
913 |
860 |
Total Swimmers |
2,457 |
2,323 |
Medicals
Event day saw 13 swimmers treated by on-water medical support and taken back to Fremantle, with only one known case resulting in hospitalisation. Hypothermia and sea sickness were again the main cause for many of these.
Our critical incident, which led to hospitalisation, was caused by Swimming Induced Pulmonary Edema – SIPE, among one of our solo swimmers. Thankfully she has made a speedy recovery and hopes to tackle this challenge again in the near future.
There were 61 swimmers who received medical support on the island. 30 of these were treated for hypothermia, which was a 25% increase from last year (24 in 2016), 90% of which were solo swimmers. There was also a significant increase in nausea & vomiting cases (10 compared to 4 in 2016).
Providing education surrounding the warning signs and treatment of hypothermia will continue to be a priority for future briefings, along with pulmonary edema.
Rule Breaches
The RCSA will continue to have a 'soft touch' with rule breaches where safety is not compromised. Warnings will continue to be given and further action only taken where absolutely necessary. In the event of a breach that compromises the safety of swimmers, paddlers, or other boats, we will continue to have a stronger response.
It should be noted that we regard a team to include swimmers, your paddler, and your skipper. A safety breach by any can mean a significant penalty being applied to all.
This year there was one safety breach that led to a disqualification.
Swimmer and paddler go beyond the 1500m mark without their support boat: Officials were requested to assist in finding a support boat's swimmer and paddler. The swimmer and paddler were then considered 'missing'. We spent in excess of two hours trying to make contact with the skipper, swimmers and emergency contacts via marine radio and telephone. The key rule breach was simply that the swimmer and paddler had not stopped at the 1500m icon vessel – the furthest a swimmer and paddler can go if not coupled with their support boat. For this breach, the team was disqualified. The committee did not impose further penalties on the swimmers.
D.N.F.'s (Did Not Finish)
The feedback we've had from the swimming community this year, post swim, has indicated that the average finish times in the water was between 60 and 90 minutes longer than the 2016 swim. Beautiful weather established a false perception among many swimmers and their skippers, that we were going to have a fast and smooth crossing like that in 2016. This was far from the reality with murky conditions until the 16 / 17 km mark and a very strong southerly current pushing many swimmers well off course. This caused anticipated swim times to blow out and is a good reminder that training is paramount.
Boats not involved on Event Day
We had some incidences with boats not involved in the swim, potentially compromising the safety of our fleet. Of note, the Race Director exited a solo scuba diver anchored in the swim channel, with no-one on board nor on watch, at the 17.75 km mark. He had no idea a thousand swimmers and their support crews were descending towards him, so imagine his surprise when we gave his flippers a tug 12 metres underwater and suggested he surface and move to an alternate dive spot!
Thank you
Our aim is to ensure all swimmers reach the island safely and that takes a lot of effort and co-operation. Thanks to everyone for contributing to the success and safety of our event!
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