Ross Youngman and Francisco Aguirre - Viña del Mar coast

Playa La Boca to Playa Caleta Abarca
14.7 km (9.1 miles)
5 hours, 53 minutes on 27 February 2024
Observed and documented by Paul Orellana + Julieta Núñez
Contents
- Swimmer
- Support Personnel
- Swim Parameters
- Swim Data & GPS
- Observer Log
- Swimmer Statements
- Photos
- Video
- Media
Swimmers
Name | Gender | Age | Nationality | Resides |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ross Youngman | male | 62 | Australian | Sydney, NSW |
Francisco Javier Aguirre Barros | male | 44 | Chilean | Santiago |
Support Personnel
- Raquel Videla - feeder
- Marcos Alvarez Antinao - boat skipper
Observer
Paul Orellana
Head Lifeguard, French Stadium Swimming Club, (Club de Natacion, Stade Francais) Santiago, Chile
Julieta Núñez
Highly experienced, Co-Founder Patagonia Swim www.patagoniaswim.com and marathon swimmer and organizer of swims across Lake Titicaca, Bolivia, Beagle Channel, Argentina/Chile and Magellan Strait, Chile. Has swum Magellan Strait and Beagle Channels multiple times, plus many other open water swims of 15-20 kilometres.
Escort Vessel
Name | Type | Port |
---|---|---|
Mr Gato | traditional Chilean fishing motor-boat | Caleta San Pedro, Concón, Chile |
- | jet-ski | Life Saving Centre, Concón, Chile |
Swim Parameters
- Category: Solo, nonstop, unassisted.
- Rules: MSF Rules of Marathon Swimming, without exception or modification.
- Equipment used: RY: Textile swimsuit (Funky Trunks), cap, goggles. FA: Textile swimsuit (Speedo), cap, goggles.
Route Definition
- Body of Water: Pacific Ocean
- Route Type: one-way
- Start Location: Playa La Boca, Concón (-32.9195, -71.5131)
- Finish Location: Playa Caleta Abarca, Viña del Mar (-33.0229, -71.5696)
- Minimum Route Distance: 14.7 km (9.1 miles) (map)
Swim Data
- Start: 27 February 2024, 08:19:00 (Chile Summer Time, America/Santiago, UTC-3).
- Finish: 27 February 2024, 14:12:15
- Elapsed: 5 hours, 53 minutes, 15 seconds.
Summary of Conditions
Feature | Min | Max |
---|---|---|
Water Temp (C) | 17.8 | 19.8 |
Air Temp (C) | 14 | 24 |
Wind (kph) | 2 | 13 |
GPS Track
Trackpoint frequency: 10 minutes. Download raw data (CSV).
Speed Plot
Nutrition: See observer log.
Observer Log
Swimmer Statements
by Ross Youngman
What inspired you to do this swim?
I had been looking for a 15km Ocean Swim in Chile, under marathon swimming rules, on the coast near Santiago and there weren’t any. I wanted to establish a track that could be used for a future swim event. I initially looked at Pupudo to Cachagua, but after talking to people at the FullMar Swimming Club in Viña del Mar and Julieta Nunez, (Patagonia Swim), who lives in Concón and works at the local fishing port, I settled on Concón to Viña del Mar 60km south of where I was originally looking. This stretch of coast around Viña del Mar/Valapraiso, Chile’s second biggest city with close to a million people, offers good infrastructure and accessibility.
Describe how you planned for the swim.
I partnered up on the swim planning with a local Chilean marathon swimmer based in Santiago, Francisco Aguirre, who was in training for Manhattan and Catalina later in 2024 and was looking for some longer training swims. He knew Julieta Nunez (Patagonia Swim) from swims in Lake Titicaca and the Straits of Magellan. We needed permission from the Chilean Navy (Chile’s Coast Guard equivalent) to do the swim which was quite a bureaucratic process and Francisco was key to maneuvering through this process. Initially they gave us permission to swim in wetsuits towing buoys, but after more discussion they gave us permission to do the swim without these, as long as we had evacuation plans, ambulances on standby, would not stray more than 500m from the coast, had a jet-ski, paramedic, loud-speaker and boat. They indicated they would be turning up before the swim to inspect everything but thankfully they didn’t.
Initially we received permission to do the swim on Monday 5^th^ February but on Friday 2^nd^ February devastating bush-fires destroyed large parts of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar, with many houses destroyed and tragically over 130 dead, so understandably permission for the swim was withdrawn. We then decided to do the swim in support of the bush-fire victims. Ultimately, we received permission again for Monday 26^th^ February but then due to ocean conditions the swim was delayed again by the Navy, before finally occurring on Tuesday 27^th^ February.
How did the swim go, generally? Did you face any unanticipated challenges?
Ultimately the swim went very well, with no major issues. There was a strong head-current encountered with 4 kilometers to go to Playa Caleta Abarca, which slowed us down but in summary the swim went to plan.
by Francisco Aguirre
What inspired you to do this swim?
Ross Youngman contacted me about a 15km Ocean Swim in Chile he was trying to organise under marathon swimming rules. I was interested in doing the swim as well as I am in training for Catalina and Manhattan. As a local Chilean resident I helped him get the swim organized as I know Julieta Nunez, (Patagonia Swim), who could help us with the Navy permissions and to get a support boat.
Describe how you planned for the swim.
I took the lead on getting the Chilean Navy Permissions and organizing the boat and life-savers (Jet-Ski) working with Julieta Nunez who I knew from swims in Lake Titicaca and the Straits of Magellan. We ultimately go the correct permission from the Chilean Navy to do the swim “unassisted” under the International Rules of Marathon Swimming. In Chile generally swimmers use tow-buoys and wetsuits so this required some explaining. Finally, they gave us permission to do the swim without these, as long as we had evacuation plans, ambulances on standby, would not stray more than 500m from the coast, had a jet-ski, paramedic, loud-speaker and boat.
Initially we received permission to do the swim on Monday 5^th^ February but on Friday 2^nd^ February devastating bush-fires destroyed large parts of Valparaiso and Viña del Mar and permission for the swim was withdrawn. We then decided to do the swim in support of the bush-fire victims. Ultimately, we received permission again for Monday 26^th^ February but then due to ocean conditions the swim was delayed again by the Navy, before finally occurring on Tuesday 27^th^ February.
How did the swim go, generally? Did you face any unanticipated challenges?
The swim went very well, although I was getting quite cold towards the end when we were swimming into a strong current which slowed us down.
Photos
Click to enlarge.