A full day with a pilot boat

A private escort boat and captain for 8 hours on San Francisco Bay. $2,800 for the boat ($350 an hour), not per swimmer, with up to 6 aboard.

What 8 hours is for

Eight hours covers most of a day, long enough to rehearse your pacing and your crew's feed routine while the current changes under you. An 8-hour swim starts early. Plan the date on /jumptime before you write.

What the pilot boat does on a training swim

Holds station beside or behind you, never in front, for the whole swim.
Feeds: your coach or crew hands feeds from the boat on the schedule you set, so you can rehearse your feed plan in cold water.
Coach or observer aboard: official observers are welcome, and a coach, crew and family fit within the 6 aboard.
Traffic and weather: Captain Molly watches ship traffic on AIS and radar and makes the call on fog, wind, chop and smoky air.
Thermal recovery: the heated cabin is for warming up after you get out, or for anyone aboard who gets cold during the swim.
Kayaker: available at extra cost; ask for the price.

Miss Molly is a 27-foot Shamrock Mackinaw 270 with a heated cabin and a private bathroom, radar, a FLIR thermal camera, AIS and an EPIRB. Captain Molly holds a U.S. Coast Guard Master license (100 GRT, Near Coastal) with a Radar Observer endorsement, and is trained in First Aid and CPR.

How to book a marathon training swim

These swims are quoted, not booked straight from the calendar. Send Captain Molly your plan with the Ask Molly button: the date you have in mind, your target event, your recent long swims and cold-water experience, your feed plan and who will be aboard. She replies in writing within 24 hours. Use /jumptime to see how the current runs on your date.

Up to 6 aboard in any mix, per boat, not per swimmer. Payment is in full when the swim is confirmed. Cancellation is free up to 7 days before; if Captain Molly cancels for weather, you get a full refund or a new date.

Other blocks: 4 hours, 6 hours, 8 hours. For a set route, see the Bridge to Bridge 10k or the swim around Angel Island, and read the guide to open-water swim support on San Francisco Bay.

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