Happy reading, and don't forget to scroll down to the bottom of the page for photos sent in by other swimmers and support crew on how they have managed their own swims. Have suggestions, photos or videos from your own experiences you'd like to share here to help this resource grow and evolve? Let's chat, send me an email! wildbigswim@gmail.com​​
15.1 Order of authority on the water
Always remember this: the crew's objective is to help the swimmer have a safe successful swim, and that means both using every tool at their disposal to keep the swimmer happy and moving forward AND recognizing when the swimmer is in trouble and making an objective decision to remove them if they are no longer safe. A successful swim isn't always one where the swimmer gets to finish the entire distance, although that always starts off as the ultimate goal. It might not be possible for the swimmer to finish for any number of reasons, and instead success could look like the swimmer doing their longest distance ever, getting to experience entirely new things they can learn from, or having the courage to even start in the first place.
​
​Here's the order of authority on the water when it comes to deciding if a swim needs to be ended early:
​​
1. Boat pilot
The boat pilot has full authority over the boat once the swim starts, including cancelling the swim if necessary for any reason, which can include dangerous weather or boat problems, and if they feel the swimmer is no longer safe or if the crew are not skilled in their ability to keep the swimmer safe. The boat pilot would normally have a conversation with the crew chief and other crew members in making the decision where circumstances permit this (e.g. the situation is not an emergency), who can then try to advocate on the swimmer's behalf if they can think of solutions that could be tried first - but once the boat pilot makes a firm final decision to cancel the swim, the swim is over and done.​​
​
2. Official observer
The official observer has full authority to cancel the swim if they witness any official rule of the swim not being adhered to.​
3. Crew chief
The crew chief has full authority amongst the crew to cancel the swim if they feel it’s necessary to do so, this would likely be based on the swimmer's safety and well-being, as the crew would be most familiar with the swimmer's health and any medical conditions, typical behaviours on a swim such as urination frequency and stroke rate, planned feeds and medications, etc. The crew chief should consult with the other crew members before cancelling the swim to see if they can propose solutions to be tried first, the boat pilot and observer if they feel it's necessary or even helpful, and the swimmer as well provided circumstances permit this (eg, the situation is not an emergency).​​
​
4. Swimmer
The swimmer can pull themselves and cancel the swim at any time, they may recognize they don't feel well enough or that they aren't making enough forward progress to be able to ever finish the swim. Usually a swimmer will express their desire to exit the water and then touch some part of the boat, thereby breaking the “no contact” rule and effectively ending the swim.​​​
​​
Now...hopefully NONE of that happens, but at least you know how things could play out. There's no easy way to answer the question of how to know when a swim needs to end early, but a simple approach could be to keep the following at front of mind:
(a) Is the swimmer safe, and (b) if the swimmer is indeed safe, are they able to keep making forward progress?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​
15.2 Crew and swimmer should have "the talk"
​​​It's a tough position for the crew to be in, their instincts will be to help the swimmer stay in the water but they also have to use their best judgement if things start going badly. It's a good idea for the crew and swimmer to have "the talk" before the swim starts, so that at least the issue is out in the open early on and hopefully lessens frustration in the moment on the water.
​​​
-
What are the swimmer's hard lines that would cause them to exit on their own? [ie, injury, no forward progress]​
-
What will the crew be monitoring for and what hard lines would they need to impose? [ie, not feeding, no urination]​
-
To what extent could the crew advocate if the boat pilot or observer raise concerns? [ie, swimmer safety, forward progress]
-
If the swimmer slows down but is doing fine, how long is everyone willing to stay on the boat for? [then plan for the extreme]​
-
If there's no conceivable way for the swimmer to finish the swim, do they want to be told or left to keep swimming?
-
Who will deliver the message to the swimmer if the decision to end the swim is being contemplated or has been made?​​
​
Another good thing to discuss during "the talk" is trust and the fact that the swimmer will not know everything that's happening on the boat, they have to trust that their crew is giving them direction or making decisions on something because there is a good reason for it. For example, if the boat pilot or observer raises a concern about the swimmer and maybe even provides a firm cut-off or ultimatum, the crew are going to start trying to mitigate or resolve that concern - hopefully they've already noted the same issue though and are already on it. But the swimmer may not realize that trouble is brewing, they might start making assumptions, maybe even getting frustrated, but they don't actually know. The swimmer has to trust that there's a reason for any direction the crew is giving them, and will probably have to wait until after the swim is done for a full debrief on what was going on. That can be really hard at the time, especially for the unknowing swimmer, but it's just how this stuff works.
​
Whew this is a heavy topic, so here's a few gentle sunrise pics of the Northumberland Strait in New Brunswick, Canada (where I live and swim) for you to enjoy and relax to before we keep going...​​​​​​​​​​​​​
15.3 Working and escalating an issue on the water
Here's one way you can approach issues that come up that could result in an unsafe situation for the swimmer, and if so would signal an eventual early end to the swim if the issue isn't resolved. Let's say your swimmer keeps handing back their feed bottle without having consumed much feed, maybe they have an upset stomach, are sick of the taste, or are tired and just don't wanna anymore. But they need fuel, electrolytes and fluids to keep moving forward safely, so the crew need to start working the issue:
​
-
As you notice the issue and concern starts to creep in, you can wait for a feed stop and ask the swimmer what's going on ["You don't seem to be feeding as much, tell me what's going on in your body!"]
​​
-
Once the swimmer explains what's happening with them, you can offer proactive solutions that can help the swimmer but also signal that, hey we need to solve this problem. In this example, you can offer other fuel sources they might be more willing to take ["Want me to throw you a gel and water instead?"] or simply attach other fuel sources to the feed line on the next feed in addition to their bottle and when the swimmer stops, shout out or have a message written on the whiteboard ["Try a gel!"]
​
-
If the swimmer isn't getting the point that there's an issue mounting or they still can't comply with your gentle direction, you can step it up by overtly signalling your concern and asking them to take action ["We're starting to get worried that you're not taking in enough fuel, I need you to just take your time and drink as much of that feed as you can ok? You're doing so great!"] or even asking their input to make your point that a solution is needed ["I really need you to feed, what else can we try instead?"]. You may need to repeat alternating between proactive solutions and firmer direction a number of times, and if the issue doesn't resolve itself fully and return to normal, you may even be doing this for the rest of the swim.
​
-
If the swimmer still can't comply with firmer direction, you can put down a hard line, with a friendly smile of course [Throw the feed bottle back to the swimmer,"I'm going to need you to drink the rest of that feed before we can keep going. I'm sorry, I know, you're sick of it, but you're doing so great!"]​
​
-
If a hard line doesn't work, you can lay an early exit on the line, gentle but firm ["You're not taking in any fuel at this point, we feel it's becoming unsafe for you to continue, we have to try to get you feeding or we're going to have to pull you from the water."]. Be patient at this point, the swimmer may need to process that the situation has gotten to the point where they may be pulled and they may not have even realized it ["What can we do to help you"?] or they may need extra time to comply with your direction ["Good stuff, just take your time!"].
​
-
If the situation becomes unsafe for the swimmer and all possible options to solve the issue have been exhausted, you will have to require them to exit. ["I'm really sorry, you'll need exit the water and we're calling the swim."] They may be disappointed and not want to hear it just then, but be sure to tell them how proud you are and what an amazing job they've done.
The above scenario would play itself out over time and multiple feed stops, of course, and it's not possible to define here exactly where the line for early exit is because all situations and swimmers will be unique. Best thing to do is talk to other swimmers and crew who have experienced difficult or unsafe situations on their swims, and ask how they handled it and at what point they knew the swimmer needed to exit the water. During your pre-swim meeting or "the talk" with your swimmer, ask a lot of questions about their health, past issues and ability to resolve them, typical feeding, urination, and even vomiting habits. Ask all the questions...
Here's another pretty splendid sunrise of the Strait...