Underbrink At It Again!
SAMI 2021 In The Books!
What happens when you combine TWIM and the United States Marine Corps? You get our beloved President, Dan Underbrink, known in aquatic legend simply as Dan The Man!
On 9/11/2021, DTM once again set courageously forth in the very early hours of the morn into the bracing waters of Lake Washington and heartened by a glorious sunrise, stroked long and serene to commence yet another circumnavigation and complete the 12th annual Swim Around Mercer Island, all 13.61 miles of it!
He was accompanied in kayak by Shannon Singer, another legendary figure of pool and pond, who chose to paddle this year rather than swim. And, of course, his ever-charming wife Mary, who also added her kayaking prowess to this year’s fun.
The SAMI emerged some 12 years back from the delightfully demented brain of Tom Elliott, the mild-mannered math teacher from Sammamish. DTM and Shannon were part of the original group of bold souls who first completed this daunting Odyssey, much like those vaunted heroes of old. Dan The Man kept this tradition alive for 10 years solo, which is a tribute to the Marines, to the TWIM spirit and frankly, also bespeaks an alarming level of insanity!
And now for the eyewitness account of our noble gladiator:
“I started before dawn from Enatai Beach, Bellevue, with my kayaker, Mary. Air temp about 56 F, water temp about 71 F.
I swam and she paddled across the East Channel and we met Shannon on the Mercer Island side at the boat launch below the East Channel Bridge. Shannon kayaked this year.
I had decided to begin the swim in a southward (clockwise) direction. Sunrise occurred at about the 1 mile point – beautiful! Slight breeze from the south kicked up a bit during about the first 4 miles. Also the sky clouded over. Stayed overcast or semi-overcast the rest of the day. Air temp maybe got up to about 72 F.
First food break was at about 3.5 miles – Clarke Beach – maybe 15 minutes. As I swam around the south end of the island, the breeze calmed somewhat and the water smoothed out, though with still a bit of current pushing us northward.
Second food break was at Groveland Beach (around 7.0 miles) just across from Seward Park. Spent perhaps 30 minutes there. Started the final push northward, which usually seems endless, but this year seemed just a leisurely swim.
Third food break was at a small landing (about 10 miles) close to the I-90 bridge – maybe 10 minutes Tied our kayak to the back of Shannon’s and Mary joined me swimming for about the next 1.5 miles or so. We swam under I-90 and around the NW corner of the island. About halfway across the north shore, Mary got back into the kayak and paddled the rest of the way. The East Channel Bridge appeared about 1.5 miles ahead and I drove toward the end with plenty of energy. Dropped Shannon off at the boat launch and swam back across the East Channel to Enatai.
13.61 miles. Total time including breaks was 9:45:27. A fun day and a great swim!
Saw lots of lakeshore new construction happening around the island, maybe 15 projects. Saw eagles flying, and lots of nature’s beauty.
Food intake: Liquid supplements, Epic meat bars, 2 bananas, 1 avocado, water. Have to say the avocado was a great new item in my nutrition intake. Sliced it all the way around lengthwise and put it in a Ziploc. When ready to eat, just twist it apart and eat it out of the shell with a spoon. Totally great nutritional support.”
Dan
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