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The Portland Bridge Swim will be on July 9, 2023. Registration is open now and will close at 5:00 PM on July 2, 2023.

We are proud to be hosting the 2023 USMS Ultramarathon Distance National Championship race!

Things to know before you register:

• Solo swimmers will need to be full members of USMS to compete; relay swimmers can still purchase a one-event USMS membership.
• Get your qualifying swim done before you register!  Solo swimmers must complete a 5000 m/5500 yd  swim in 1:40 or less within the last 3 years. Relay swimmers must complete a 1500 m/1650 yd swim in 35 minutes or less within the last 3 years.  Pool or still-water open water (not current-assisted) swims will be accepted. Have your swim time and location ready when you enter.
• If you are a solo swimmer coming from out of the area, you can request a volunteer local escort when you register.

Access registration here.

Congratulations to all our 2022 swimmers, it was so wonderful to have you back! We hope you had as much fun as we did.

Final results are here:

2022 Overall

2022 Relay

2022 Women Overall

2022 Men Overall

2022 Women No Wetsuit

2022 Men No Wetsuit

2022 Women Wetsuit

2022 Men Wetsuit

… We hope to see you next year, when we will again be hosting the USMS National Championship Ultramarathon Distance event.

 

 

Have you ever wondered how finish times are impacted by river conditions?

Lord Root Beer*, the Portland Bridge Swim statistician, decided to explore that question for a school assignment. He found a strong correlation between finish times and the amount of time that swimmers faced an incoming tide. The data for solo swimmers without wetsuits are:

2011
Fastest time 4:19:10
Average time 5:26:06
Duration of incoming tide 3 hours, 42 minutes

2012
Fastest time 3:49:14
Average time 4:53:47
Duration of incoming tide 37 minutes

2013
Fastest time 4:11:09
Average time 5:05:31
Duration of incoming tide 1 hours, 32 minutes

2014 No finishers, race canceled

2015
Fastest time 3:37:20 (Eddie Switaj, current race record)
Average time 5:01:51
Duration of incoming tide 2 hours, 14 minutes

2016
Fastest time 4:16:44
Average time 5:13:42
Duration of incoming tide 3 hours, 7 minutes

2017
Fastest time 3:48:33
Average time 4:59:00
Duration of incoming tide 0 hours, 0 minutes

2018
Fastest time 3:58:04
Average time 5:29:13
Duration of incoming tide 3 hours, 26 minutes

Lord Root Beer predicts that this year, with 2 hours 49 minutes against the tide, the average race time should be around 5 hours, 11 minutes. Let’s see how we do!

*Not his real name