Even Better in 2012
Believe it: the 2012 Interior Savings Across The Lake Swim is getting even better!
"The opportunity for any member of our community to participate in an open water swim has been available since 1949 and continues to gain recognition and interest from many people including those not living in our city. I am very proud of all the hard work by the volunteers that continues to make this an outstanding event.” - Mayor Shepherd
Last year, we sold out the 2011 swim at 500 participants and had to turn numerous people away for safety reasons! So this year we are again capping the swim at 500 swimmers. To improve the busy start line, we will have 5 waves with a maximum of 100 swimmers each, while swimmers of similar abilities are grouped together.
With our expanded capacity, there will be at least 20 lifeguards on the water, and we are including a ferry ride to the start line in your registration fee! We will have about 80 tickets available for spectators who want a unique viewing point for the swim – on the houseboats beside the swimmers. It might look a little like Kokanee spawning out there, but without the bright red colors! We will again have a secure “gear corral” at the finish line where you can check in your stuff in your numbered race bag to pick up after your swim.
There will be even more treats in the race packages this year (we strive to have the best goodie bag around!), and more optional souvenirs available for purchase. Details can be found on the registration page closer to the race. And of course, the website is better than ever – don’t you think? (The next time you see Peter Rudd, say, “Great website, man”. He can build you one too, if you like!) The water temperature for Lake Okanagan is updated every day on the website as well as sent through Twitter (make sure you follow us on Twitter!). Please check out our new online race meeting presentation, made possible by Daryl Spencer. It will answer all FAQs and quickly get you up to speed on all the important details of registration and race day.
Timing by Race Headquarters. We are continuing our relationship with Race Headquarters to provide the results you are looking for fast and reliably (on the beach and online). We strive to continually put on a high quality and safe race so we decided to let the professionals do the timing again.
Get Prepared! We are encouraging newcomers to get involved with our event so please check out our “Preparing For The Swim” page. We have introduced a new and improved family rate to make the event affordable for families. We are also very excited to announce our continuing relationship with Aqua Sphere – Thank you for your support Pam and Ross! We are again offering a dedicated 6 week open water training program prior to our event, completely free to all those who have registered for our swim!! There will be more great prizes, including a brand new Aqua Sphere wetsuit!
And finally, with the success of last year’s swim, the ATLS Society has been able to reinvest all of our sponsorship funds (and more) back into local swim clubs. In support of our mandate, we want to contribute to these clubs as they build on their successes and help more people in our community become better open water swimmers. We see this as a win-win-win, for the ATLS, the swim clubs, and the community. Even our mayor loves our event!
For 2012, the ATLS Society has pledged to match any sponsorship funds and give away double that amount to local swim clubs at the end of the season!
