26 miles of open ocean waters +
15 plus hours of swimming in the pitch black of night +
Swimming a channel only a few humans have ever crossed =
A LOT of Life Shotz.

“Some people live but they’re not really living.”– Bruce Gordon

It takes a man full of determination, strength and passion to fulfill his lifelong dreams. Bruce Gordon is that kind of guy. He’s been training to swim the Moloka’i Channel, one of the Oceans Seven. Our 21TEN family is proud to be sponsoring him every stroke of the way.

He’ll face quite a few obstacles, including unpredictable tides and harmful jellyfish, man o’ wars and all of the elements of open waters.

“The distance (26 miles) is less of a concern to me than the mental aspect,” he says. “I’m out there swimming for hours, in the dark, and I absolutely cannot let my fears get to me. Failure is not an option.”

So what inspired him to tackle such an amazing feat?

“When I was 12 years old my sister’s boyfriend completed this swim. I remember being in awe of it- and just wanting to somehow achieve the goal as well. It stuck with me all these years. Life gets in the way sometimes but you can always return to your dreams. I read Richard Brooke’s book, Mach II With Your Hair on Fire and it gave me the vision I needed to make this a reality.”

Bruce lands in Hawaii tonight and, weather permitting, he’ll start his journey Sunday night and walk out of the water Monday after the 26-mile swim.

Bruce has some serious rules:

He cannot touch the boat or anyone.

He may tread water, but receive no assistance from anyone on his team.

To eat every 20 minutes and make sure Life Shotz is in his system at all times.

Why Life Shotz? Bruce simply loves it. He tried it a couple years ago when he was on a bike ride with another athlete- a common friend of our CVO, Richard Brooke. Bruce forgot his water bottle and his friend encouraged him to try the water- mixed with Life Shotz. He loved it so much he wrote to Richard to see how he could order more.

The rest is history! “The reason I love it so much is that it does something that I call ‘Active Recovery,’” Bruce says. “I really believe it helps your body recover faster while you’re working out, at least I can feel a difference. I couldn’t do this without Life Shotz.”

He also has a serious support team in Hawaii to help him, and they will be decked out in Life Shotz gear. Bruce created his dream team of Chris Kincaid, Mark Rigg, Mike Field, Jim Beaton, JOSS, and Dale Hope. All of these men are specially chosen for their talents or their extensive knowledge of the area. “I grew up with these guys and greatly respect them. They’re all pretty much world-class athletes!” says Bruce.

Not only will Bruce achieve his childhood dream with this swim, but his efforts will benefit the Fisher House Foundation, a charity that helps military families to stay close to a loved one during hospitalization for an illness, disease or injury. Bruce is taking donations here.

Our 21TEN family is proud to be supporting such an amazing and incredible person. Raise your glass of Life Shotz to Bruce while following him on our Facebook page. We’ll post updates on his progress and you can do your part by posting your support. Let’s hear it!

Cheers,
Melissa