Maui Channel Relay, by Don Dasher

Set in paradise, this race is worth doing just because of where it is located. It is 10 miles between the Hawaiian Islands of Lanai and Maui. Well run by Ian Emberson, who hosts a Captain's meeting the night before and an awards banquet the night after. The race starts at 8 am at the Lanai Beach Club every Saturday before Labor Day. It is a six person relay in beautiful blue water with average temp around 80F. The format is each swimmer swims a 30 minute leg. After three hours (six legs), you keep the same rotation of swimmers but for 10 minute legs until your team finishes on Kaanapali Beach, Maui. The water is usually flat but can get rough depending on weather and wind. You are left to find your own teammates and boat (although Ian does assist teams that have difficulty with the latter) and it is pricey, but worth it at least once.

For the ambitious, Ian allows for ten soloist each year. A typical year will have around 50 teams and ten to fifteen soloist (Ian will allow extra soloists if there is demand and fewer teams than expected).

The start is a water start (~waste deep) and the end is a beach finish. There are a plethora of divisions with the OPEN division being the most hotly contested. Top three teams in each division get beach towels with extra towels going to divisions with the most teams. This is a very social event as the awards banquet is a swimmers' party.