Lake Tahoe Triple Crown: James Savage, 14, Youngest to Cross Lake in Open Water Swim

Photo Courtesy: Jillian Savage

James Savage has become the youngest person to swim the entire length of Lake Tahoe.

The lake which is on the California-Nevada border is 21.3 miles long and the 14-year-old Savage crossed the lake on Aug. 1, completing three parts, known as the Lake Tahoe Triple Crown, according to an ABC7 report.

The boy from Los Banos completed the crossing in about 12 hours. He had already swam the other two legs of the Lake Tahoe Triple Crown, including the true width, length and Vikingsholm, that traverses the southern portion of the lake. Each are more than 10 miles long.

The crossing started in South Lake Tahoe, California, and ended in the Nevada town of Incline Village.

“I had no doubts whatsoever,” mother Jillian Savage told the Tahoe Daily Tribune. “He’s been swimming almost every day, six, seven days a week since he was 8. With open water, it’s just what he does. But mentally, even though it takes a whole bunch of us to make the swim possible, he’s really out there by himself.”

Photo Courtesy: Jillian Savage

Savage swam the “true width” of the lake last year at age 13, the youngest to do so. He also swam the 10-mile Vikingsholm route that traverses the southern portion of Lake Tahoe, known for its pine tree-lined beaches and ski resorts.

It is not the only place he enjoys swimming. At age 8, he swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco in the San Francisco Bay, according to the report. That was his first open water goal.

James Savage said he enjoys swimming but pools are “all the same.”

Safety precautions were taken with the Lake Tahoe Marathon Swim Federation leading the trip with a boat alongside Savage. His mother kayaked the trip also alongside him, the Tahoe Daily Tribune report stated.

He plans on doing more swims like this in the future.

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