Christchurch woman's Foveaux Strait swim believed to be fastest ever
Monday, 1 February 2016
When Chloe Harris arrived on the Bluff coastline on Monday afternoon she was shivering and unable to say a word.
Harris, the former swimming protege of the late SBS Bank boss Wayne Evans, had just become the eighth person to swim across Foveaux Strait - one of New Zealand's most treacherous bodies of water.
She even managed to outdo her mentor, with Harris' unofficial time of 8hr 30min meaning she is believed to be the fastest ever to achieve the feat.
Although Harris had been training for more than nine months, Evans was the real inspiration behind her swim from Stewart Island to Bluff.
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Originally from Suffolk in the United Kingdom, Harris lived in Invercargill for four years, during which time she swam with Evans at Splash Palace.
Evans, who died in January, was the last person to swim across Foveaux Strait when he swam about 34km 'on a whim' in 2013.
'He was probably one of the hardest workers out there, hardest trainers,' Harris said.
'He was pretty much the person you wanted to emulate.'
Chloe's father Graham Harris described Evans as 'motivational'.
In 2012, Harris and her family moved to Christchurch, where she is now a member of the North Beach Surf Club.
Harris believes she is the fourth woman to swim between the two islands, but the first to start her journey on Stewart Island.
During her swim, Harris was supported by her family and former Oreti Beach Surf Lifesaving Club team-mates.
Harris said it was Bluff skipper Peter Leask and his oyster boat that made the swim possible.
Satellite data would confirm her official time, but it was believed Harris had completed the swim 10 minutes faster than record-holder Todd Utteridge in 1985.
Sister-in-law Laura Harris said Chloe had been training for the swim under the guidance of her dad Graham.
'She is a swimmer though. She's very into coastguard and lifesaving,' Laura said.
Chloe originally began the attempt with a friend, but he had to pull out 16.4km in due to a shoulder injury.
PREVIOUS FOVEAUX STRAIT SWIMS
John van Leeuwen: February 7, 1963 - 13hr 36min
Meda McKenzie: March 20, 1979 - 14hr
Belinda Shields: March 24, 1984 - 9hr 53min
Michael Quinlivan: February 13, 1985 - 9hr 41min
Sandra Blewett: February 11, 1988 - 12hr 5min
Todd Utteridge: February 15, 1989 - 8hr 40min
Wayne Evans: February 9, 2013 - 9hr 20min