Amy Dantzler

Participants of the 2013 Kaiwi Channel Swim on Sandy Beach with event directors Jeff Kozlovich and Steve Haumschild. Photo courtesy of Kaia Hedlund

Start on Kepuhi Beach of the inaugural Kaiwi Channel Swim on Molokai Island in Hawaii

Amy Dantzler is a 62-year-old American pool and open water swimmer and paddleboarder from Los Angeles, California.

Open Water Swimming Highlights

• On 30 August 2026, she competed in the 51.5 km Catalina Classic paddleboard race from Two Harbors on Catalina Island to Manhattan Beach in Southern California at the age of 62.
  • She completed the 2024 Catalina Classic in 6 hours 26 minutes 13 seconds, placing 4th overall in the Women's Stock division. She set the record as the oldest woman to finish the race.
  • She completed the 2025 Catalina Classic in 7 hours 12 minutes 37 seconds, placing 6th in the Women's Stock division.
• On 7 August 2022, she finished 3rd in the 2-mile Dwight Crum Pier-to-Pier Swim between the Hermosa Beach Pier and the Manhattan Beach Pier in Southern California at the age of 58.
• She participated in the inaugural 45 km Kaiwi Channel Swim, an island-to-island channel crossing between Molokai and Oahu in Hawaii as well as other ocean swims like the Tiki Swim.
• She finished 13th overall and was the 3rd woman in the 6.5 km Samsung Bosphorus Cross Continental Swimming Race in Turkey on 22 July 2018.
• She completed a 32.3 km crossing of the Catalina Channel from Santa Catalina Island to the Southern California mainland in 9 hours 42 minutes 9 seconds with escort kayaker Barbara Schumacher, paddleboarder Wadley, crew chief Bryan Libit, pace swimmer Gregg Ogorzelec with observers Qing Li and Rebecca Nevitt aboard the Pacific Star.
• On 24 September 2020, she completed a 17.5 km circumnavigation swim around Anacapa Island in the California Channel Islands in a tandem swim with Jake Glick in 4 hours 52 minutes 50 seconds.
• On 9 September 2020, she completed a 17.5 km circumnavigation swim around Anacapa Island in the California Channel Islands in 4 hours 57 minutes 0 seconds.
• On 24 August 2021, she completed a 19.6 km crossing from Anacapa Island to the California mainland in 5 hours 55 minutes.

Participants in the 2013 Kaiwi Channel Swim

The Youngsters in 9 hours 56 minutes

• Terence Young
  
• Brian King
  
• Mitchell Degeus
  
• Jamison Grove
  
• Brittney Yim
  
• Erin Yamamoto
  

The Veterans in 9 hours 53 minutes escorted by Michael Twigg-Smith

• Karen Schmidt
  
• Amy Dantzler
  
• Brent Blackman
  
• Bill Ireland
  
• Bruce Thomas
  
• Dianne Gleason
  

External links

• Amy Dantzler Paddles In The Wake of Cindy Cleveland, Carol Sing and Grace Van Der Byl
• Ryan Bullock, Kelsey Cummings Are True to Form, Win Dwight Crum Pier-to-Pier Swim
• Dwight Crum Highlights The West Coast Open Water Scene
• The History and Future of the Kaiwi Channel Association
• Solo versus Relay Records in the Channels
• Amy Dantzler LongSwims database
• Open Water Swimming
• Great Relay LA Supports Trident Swim Foundation
• Crossings Continue In The Catalina Channel
• Ka'iwi Channel Swim, Ready For An Epic Undertaking
• Ka'iwi Channel Swim
• 28 or 45, Either Way Channel Of Bones Is Extremely Tough
• Aloha! Kaiwi Channel Swim Underway
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• Wikiwiki Swimming At The Inaugural Ka'iwi Channel Swim
• It Was SO VERY Close Throughout The Kaiwi Channel Swim
• 2013 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year Nominees
• Everything That Could Go So Wrong Went So Right
• Ka’iwi Channel Swim 2.0, Insanely Interesting
• The Warriors Were Women In The Tiki Swim
• The Magic Of The Tiki Swim
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• Open Water Swimming
• Oceans Seven, Team-Style
• Mike Twigg-Smith's Adventures Across The Ka'iwi Channel
• World Open Water Swimming Association
• Sun's Coming Up, Better Get In
• Challenging Channel Crossings With Michael Twigg-Smith
• Michael Twigg-Smith On Molokai Channel Crossings
• Travel Ninja Swims From Asia To Europe