Shades of Gertrude Ederle, the first woman to swim the English Channel at the age of 19. She did it in 1926 and it took her 14 hours and 34 minutes to complete her 21 mile swim and got the nickname, Queen of the Waves, according to the Association of Mature American Citizens [AMAC]. Sixteen year old Vera Rivard, who hails from Springfield, NH, was hindered by the tides when she made her channel crossing recently. But, although her route was 33 miles, Rivard beat Ederle’s time, clocking in at 14 hours and 10 minutes. She already circumnavigated the island of Manhattan, a swim of 28.5 miles, and now has her mind set on swimming the 20 miles from the coast of California to the island of Santa Catalina, garnering what is known as the “Triple Crown” of longdistance swimming.
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