A 7-year-old boy has become one of the youngest people to swim the cold, swift waters between Alcatraz Island and San Francisco, completing the 1.4-mile distance in 47 minutes.
No official records are kept for the feat, but Braxton Bilbrey could be the youngest ever to accomplish it.
Braxton, a second-grader from Glendale, Ariz., made the swim seven months after it was completed by 9-year-old Johnny Wilson of Hillsborough. Wilson swam the distance in just under two hours.
Braxton's coach, Joe Zemaitis, said Johnny's accomplishment was an inspiration for the Arizona youngster.
Braxton trained for the event by swimming two hours a day four times a week, Zemaitis said.
Zemaitis said Braxton is an average kid in terms of strength and physical stature.
"He's about 4 feet tall and weighs 65 pounds," Zemaitis said. "It's not that he's extremely large or super strong. But he has the determination and mental toughness to swim cold, dark, choppy water."
Braxton said his next ambition is to swim the English Channel.
Stacey Bilbrey, Braxton's mother accepted the idea of her son swimming from Alcatraz, when once he proved he was dedicated to his goal.
No comments:
Post a Comment