Let's rewind for a second to 2009. Al and I had just moved from the East Coast to California. I typed quot;open water San Franciscoquot; into a google search because I had never been shy of jumping into open water and wanted somebody to show me more. I expected all the ocean swimmers to be in Half Moon Bay, but was astounded that a most-thriving community of open water swimmers practices their sport and pleasure right off of Aquatic Park near Fisherman's Wharf. Many marathon swimmers aspiring to swim the English Channel come to practice their 6+ hour swims with no wetsuit. In fact you hardly swing a dead cat without hitting someone who has already SWUM the Channel... and you'd never know, they are so humble about it.br/ My first few forays into the world of swimming at Aquatic Park left indelible and bright impressions! I began to sketch them at home in Photoshop. The sea life was remarkable. And so were the tourists who were dazzled by our courage, looking on from the top of Muni Pier.