By Andrea Meador
David Robbins had an interesting Father’s Day present — swimming the Chesapeake Bay with his daughter, Christiana.
Although they struggled to fight the currents of the rough bay waters, both said the experience ultimately left an imprint on their minds, learning much about each other and about tests of perseverance.
David, a two-time iron man and a pilot for Mountain State University, said that while he had done some intense tests of endurance in the triathlons, this was the farthest he had swum in one event.
“I actually suggested the swim to Christiana,” he said. “She was on the swim team a while back and I bugged her to do the local swim. Eventually she tried and had a good time. That’s where it began.
“I bugged her to do a local swim. Eventually she tried and had a good time. She started doing more and liked it even more.”
The Chesapeake Bay Swim, which took place June 7, is an annual fundraiser for the Maryland chapter of the March of Dimes. It was started by Brian Earley, who swam solo in June 1982 in memory of his father, who had died the previous year.
Around 600 people swim the 4.4-mile span from the shores of Sandy Point State Park to the beach of Kent Island. The requirements, according to the Chesapeake Bay Swim’s Web site, include “a major commitment to proper training and open water experience,” along with submitted documentation of a recent open water swim or a completed 3-mile pool swim in under two hours.
“It’s hard to get into the Chesapeake Bay Swim,” David said. “You’re put into this lottery and you have to be an experienced swimmer to even qualify. It’s a 4.4-mile swim.”
Not only was getting into the event hard, but the team had eight months of training to go through as well. Every week, David and Christiana would go to the YMCA and swim around 3 miles each time in about an hour.
“It was hard at first because I was in school and I was applying to colleges,” Christiana said. “I had a lot to get done, but I had to make it all work. I’ve learned to push myself even when it doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere.”
When it came time to actually swim the bay, both Christiana and David admitted that with all their training, they still weren’t ready.
“We had trained so hard and thought we were ready — until we jumped into the bay,” David said with a laugh.
Christiana said there were times when the swim was scary.
“I remember how hard it was,” she said. “You were literally swimming against the currents, which caused it to take longer than it should have. At times it was scary because the current pushes so hard and it pushes you in the direction underneath the bridge.”
Although she started the swim before her father, Christiana said there was quite a surprise near the end of the race. David said at first he wasn’t sure it was her until it finally hit him.
“She kicked me in the face on accident when I caught up to her,” David said with a laugh. “Both of us ended up crossing the finish line together, which was amazing.”
The swim took the team three hours to complete and Christiana says they were exhausted after crossing the finish line.
“We looked horrible after it was all said and done,” Christiana said. “We looked panicked and exhausted, but it was completely worth it.”
Christiana said she learned a lot about herself and her father through this “epic” swim.
“My dad is my best friend and I’ve learned how he takes risks and challenges and pushes beyond the limits to do the improbable,” she said. “This is something both of us can look back on when things get rough and know that we can get through it.”
David says he has learned to persevere and to not always take the easy way out.
“It would have been easy for us to throw our hands in the air and have a boat come and take us back to shore,” he said. “Both of us stuck with it.”
Looking back, David says the experience was “amazing” and that he feels blessed to have had the opportunity.
“Not only was getting the opportunity to swim in this race an amazing time, but spending the time with her was great, too,” he said. “Finishing together was amazing. It was as good of a Father’s Day gift as you could ever get.”
