A License To Swim And Share
Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. Pedro Ordenes of Water World Swim is an icon in the San Francisco Bay open water swimming community.
The renowned cold water swimmer, coach and prolific open water swim organizer has a deep passion for the sport. Besides organizing local open water swims, weekly workouts and clinics, he will soon lead a pod of 19 swimmers to the Galapagos Islands, 926 km west of continental Ecuador.
Among his many cold water accomplishments, Ordenes swam the Strait of Magellan in 1999 in 39°F with 35 mph winds and 3-5 feet swells against 12-14 knot currents. He also regularly does Alcatraz Island crossings and completed a double crossing of the Beagle Channel between Chile and Argentina.
He tells of his inner drive that came from his father who always dreamed of swimming to Alcatraz when he first visited San Francisco in 1960. So completing his father’s dream is one way of continuing the Ordenes legacy.
It is a lifelong legacy of sharing and swimming in the open water that is rare and impressive.
Copyright © 2015 by World Open Water Swimming Association
Southern California native, born 1962, is the creator of the WOWSA Awards, Oceans Seven, Openwaterpedia, Citrus Corps, World Open Water Swimming Association, Daily News of Open Water Swimming, Global Open Water Swimming Conference. He is Chief Executive Officer of KAATSU Global and KAATSU Research Institute. Inductee in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Swimmer, Class of 2001) and Ice Swimming Hall of Fame (Honor Contributor - Media, Class of 2019), recipient of the International Swimming Hall of Fame's Poseidon Award (2016), International Swimming Hall of Fame's Irving Davids-Captain Roger Wheeler Memorial Award (2010), USA Swimming's Glen S. Hummer Award (2007, 2010) and Harvard University's John B. Imrie Award (1984). Served on the FINA Technical Open Water Swimming Committee and as Technical Delegate with the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games, and 9-time USA Swimming coaching staff. Note: WOWSA only recommends products or services used or recommended by the community. WOWSA does not receive compensation for links or products mentioned on this site or in blog posts. If it does, it will be indicated clearly on that specific post. See WOWSA's privacy policy for more information.
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