Dana Selles

Dana Selles is an open water swimmer living in the United States who was born in Bogota, Colombia. She is member of Beyond Avalon, a 12-person relay team that attempted an unprecedented 76-mile (122 km) ocean swim from Santa Catalina Island to La Jolla Cove, California near San Diego on 22-24 August 2014.

Beyond Avalon

Beyond Avalon was a charity swim to raise awareness and funds for the Warrior Foundation~Freedom Station and nominated for the 2014 WOWSA Awards' World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year. In 2014, the relay traversed 40 miles under the direction of captains Nick Jeffery and Terry Hirt until the swimmers were stopped by repeated shark encounters.

"The crossing of the Catalina Channel is 20.2-mile mixture of currents, tides, winds, and marine life that cuts straight across from Santa Catalina Island to the nearest point on the mainland. But that was not enough for Beyond Avalon, a team of 11 San Diego-based swimmers under the guidance of pilots Nick Jeffery and Terry Hirt. They created a unique spin on a traditional channel crossing. They aimed to cut a tangent from Santa Catalina Island to San Diego, a distance of 122 km (76 miles). Far out from the California shoreline, there was plenty of marine life to deal with. But as the team raised awareness and funds for the Warrior Foundation – Freedom Station, the team also encountered not one, not two, but several sharks far, far from shore. For their creativity to design and attempt a unique spin on a traditional channel crossing, for their efforts to swim without disturbing the naturally scary denizens of the deep, for their vow to attempt another crossing after this year’s attempt was cut short at 64 km (40 miles), Beyond Avalon with Dan Henry, Dave Speier, William Miller, Steve Miller, Lee Grove, Dana Selles, Mark Zambon, Penny Nagel, Chris Gibson, Jon Rodley, Jonathan Hands, Nick Jeffery and Terry Hirt is a worthy nominee for the 2014 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year."