2 women attempt to swim from Marblehead to Scituate to qualify for Ireland marathon swims

Two women attempted an 18-mile open-water swim from Marblehead to Scituate, entering the water at Deveraux Beach shortly before 6:30 a.m. They aimed to reach Minot Beach and qualify for marathon swims in Ireland later in the summer. Irish qualification requires spending six to eight hours in water temperatures between 55 and 57 degrees Fahrenheit. Because California waters are typically warmer, they traveled to Massachusetts to train with the Massachusetts Open Water Swimming Association. Early conditions were calm, but wind and choppy water later caused the swim to stop short. The effort still met a key goal: qualifying for the Irish races.

"To qualify for the Irish races, swimmers must spend between six and eight hours in water temperatures ranging from 55 to 57 degrees Fahrenheit, Fairman said. Because California waters are typically warmer, Fairman and Roberts traveled across the country to train in Massachusetts in partnership with the Massachusetts Open Water Swimming Association."

"The Deveraux Beach to Minot Beach swim with Abby and Sarah is special because it is truly open-ocean swimming, with chilly waters and various sea creature encounters with the swimmers being 10-plus miles off shore,"

"For the first several hours Tuesday, the swimmers had "pretty much ideal conditions," with no wind and "flat water," Roberts said. But, around the four-hour mark, conditions shifted dramatically."

"It's fun to go try something new, something that hasn't been done before," Abigail Fairman, one of the swimmers, said. "That's part of the joy of this sport.""

Read at Boston.com