Chattanooga Open Water Swimmers participants get used to the water and adjust their goggles before starting their Tennessee River swim. They begin under the Market Street Bridge.
Photo by Gary Petty“Up the creek without a paddle” usually means one is in trouble. However, “up a river without a paddle” is exactly where members of the Chattanooga Open Water Swimmers want to be.
Late every Wednesday afternoon, COWS participants gather under the Market Street Bridge in downtown Chattanooga and swim up and down the Tennessee River. The “long” swimmers go just under two miles; the others go about a mile.
The rules to join are simple: You have to be at least 18 years old and able to swim at least one mile, said Karah Nazor Friberg, one of the coordinators of the group.
“Everybody is welcome to come as long as they have some sort of competitive swimming background,” she added.
She and Adam Deimling started the group in March 2010. Deimling served as a pilot, in his kayak, while Friberg swam before other swimmers started to join.