Four indomitable Distance Warriors in the form of Bestey Kassen, Tammy Koppelberger, Sarah Landrum, and Jessi Gable all turned in spectacular performances recently as they competed in three separate distance events, the USMS One-Hour ePostal National Championship, the Postal Mile for Lung Cancer, and the SmartyPants Winter Fitness Challenge.
The USMS One-Hour ePostal is USMS’s oldest and most venerable long distance event. The objective is to swim as far as possible in one hour in any pool you choose that is 25 yards or longer. You had to complete it between January 1 and February 28.
The 2018 Postal Mile for Lung Cancer, dubbed the “Miracle Mile”, is a fundraiser sponsored by Tamalpais Aquatic Masters in San Rafael, CA, to help find a cure for lung cancer. Tammy entered it in honor of her father. It, too, ran between January 1 and February 28.
SmartyPants is the first edition of a USMS fundraiser to support the USMS Swimming Saves Lives Foundation. The event is a 30-minute swim, done in any manner desired, and it ran between February 15-28.
And now on to the glorious exploits of these TWIMChampions!
This past Saturday, Tammy (45-49) knocked down a personal best in the One-Hour Postal as she racked up 4415 yards! Her split time at the 1500 meter mark was a sensational 21:55:63! She entered that awesome split time in the Postal Mile for Lung Cancer.
In a display of distance power, Sarah Landrum (40-44) churned through a personal best 4395 yards in her One-Hour Postal swim! Literally within hours of the deadline, while many of us were getting ready for bed, Sarah began her swim. As Betsey put it, she was probably the last swimmer in the continental U.S. to compete!
Betsey Kassen (65-69) turned in her usual Animal performance in the Postal by blasting out 3945 yards on February 1st! Last year, Betsey landed in the top four in the country in this event, and there is no reason to think she won’t duplicate that feat this year. Way to go, Machine!
Last but not least, Jessie Gable covered 1580 meters in 30 minutes in the SmartyPants Fitness Challenge! Impressive enough under any circumstances but she did it by alternating between 50 Free and 50 Breast the whole way, never varying her split times by more than a second on free or breast! Unbelievable!
Congratulations, Ladies! The TWIM legacy lives on through you, and it’s not hard to see why TWIM South is the Distance Capital of all of TWIMdom!
