Teens face high swells during Catalina Channel Relay 2015

Six Ramona teenagers completed a 21-mile relay swim from Catalina Island to Long Beach, making them the second six-person team of males under 20 to complete that swim. High swells deprived them of the record.

Bryan Larson, Quintin LaRosa, Ethan Blackburn, Jacob Powers, Spencer Schwegler and Trevor White completed the relay challenge in 8:55.24. The swimmers advanced in one-hour increments before the next relay participant took over.

“Really happy with our time,” Larson said.

No six-person team of males under 20 had completed that swim until July 17, when the first group took 8:04. That time thus became the boys under-20 record.

The ocean in that area averages swells of 2 feet. The Ramona group experienced average swells of 6 feet.

“It was really hard,” Larson said.

The Ramona swimmers thus took 50 minutes more than the recordholders.

“I’m not really upset about not getting it,” Larson said. “Our conditions compared to other kids were triple the average.”

A fishing boat directed swimmers to the proper destination, and the captain of the boat had the authority to call off the effort if conditions were too dangerous.

“We’re lucky that they didn’t cancel it, because on the way out there it was really bad,” Larson said.

Although the determination was that competent swimmers being observed were not in danger of drowning, two of the boys were stung by jellyfish.

The relay challenge had existed before the team in July became the first successful male teenagers.

Larson, a 17-year-old Ramona High School senior, learned about it in January. A member of Ramona High School’s swim team, Larson also participates in the Ramona Swim Team club program. Jolyn Yanez coaches both.

The relay effort was through the Ramona Swim Team entity, and Larson and Yanez put together a team of six swimmers.

The team began training in May and trained two to three times a week at La Jolla Cove. Most of the training sessions were three miles, and some were four miles. The Saturday practices began about 7 a.m., and afternoon sessions were between 3 and 8.

The boat took the swimmers to Catalina on Aug. 3. The first swimmer went into the water at midnight, so the relay squad had to adjust to swimming in the ocean in the middle of the night.

“I think a lot of us adapted to it well,” Larson said.

Four volunteers in a kayak joined them. The Ramona team also included two alternates: Jocelyn Schwegler and Jacob Pradels. Although neither of the alternates were needed to replace a planned swimmer, Schwegler swam with Larson and Pradels swam with LaRosa to help push the challenge swimmers.

Although the conditions denied the Ramona swimmers the record, they earned the distinction of being the second group of males under 20 to complete the relay challenge.

“That’s pretty cool, too. That’s something to be proud of,” Larson said.

The group does not plan a second attempt at the record. “I don’t think we’ll try again,” Larson said. “I think we all had a good time, that day was good fun, but I don’t think we’re going to go for it again.”