COEUR d'ALENE - As the sun rose over the mountains Sunday, swimmers prepared for the only open water swimming race that crosses Lake Coeur d'Alene.

The fourth annual Coeur d'Alene Crossing attracted swimming enthusiasts from around the world to the Lake City. From countries as far as Switzerland, swimmers of all ages and skill levels took to the water for a 2.4-mile swim from Gozzer Ranch at Arrow Point to the Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course.

The field of competitors featured a longtime Coeur d'Alene resident who is battling muscular dystrophy. Retired teacher Jan Whitcomb rode the boat over to Arrow Point with the other competitors, though she made the trek in her wheelchair. Whitcomb is living with MS, but she did not let it hold her back from competing in the Crossing.

"I have MS and my legs don't work," Whitcomb said. "But I still swim, it's my one thing I can still do."

Whitcomb said she really couldn't do this without her three children; she said they are her everything. She said that this year was her 30th class reunion, so she wanted to mark the year with something big. Her kids have supported her quest.

"So I thought, 'I am doing a trifecta,'" Whitcomb said. "I did the Omi swim at Sanders, the Long Bridge swim in Sandpoint and now this."

Whitcomb didn't expect to come in any place but last. She said there was a good chance she would be pulled out of the water due to the event's cut-off time. She still got off the boat at Gozzer ready to swim the distance and finish.

The boat was full of people ready to take to the water, most in wetsuits, with many from the Coeur d'Alene Area Swim Team (CAST). The team comprises a wide range of ages and is one of the organizations for which the race raises funds.

Christopher Hartman, 14, of Twin Lakes, took Idaho to the national Zero Robotics championship just three days ago. His team from Stem Charter Academy placed second, but for the swim he was hoping to just beat his time from last year's Crossing. Christopher's mother, Mary, said that he has been like a fish since the day he was born.

"He loves open water," Mary said. "He thinks it may be his forte in life."

Hartman said she would be proud of her son no matter how he did in the race, however she was very proud Sunday when shaved nearly eight minutes from his time last year.

Since the Crossing began it has grown from 160 competitors the first year to 275 this year. The event has also put $60,000 back into the community according to CDA Crossing board member Steve Rozier.

"It's the only day of the year that you can close the lake and get people to swim across it," Rozier said. "That's what keeps it growing so we can help Union Gospel Mission, CAST and NIC Athletics."

Whitcomb was the first of the swimmers to enter the water, and she was able to start the swim ahead of the others. Whitcomb was followed by a kayaker, and the two led the start of the race in open water.

Soon the field caught Whitcomb and steadily they swam toward the world famous Floating Green at The Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course.

The race course was lined with buoys, kayaks, boats and volunteers. The swimmers made their way across the lake, with each stroke taking them a few more feet of the 2.4 mile journey.

A boat from the Lake Coeur d'Alene Cruises traveled next to the swimmers. The boat held a couple hundred spectators, most of them family and friends of competitors.

Laurie and Arnie Deus of Coeur d'Alene watched for their daughter from the boat. The Deus' daughter Erin Yeck was taking part in her third Crossing, she also completed Ironman CDA this summer. Yeck's dad Arnie trained with her for Ironman, training every mile of cycling and running. However, Yeck's dad couldn't train during any swimming because he had never learned how to swim. Deus currently takes swimming lessons and said he may join Yeck in the Crossing next year.

The boat reached the dock moments before the swimmers approached the finish on the beach. Yeck was among the first finishers, as her parents and husband Greg waited to congratulate her.

Yeck came from the water excited and glad to be done with the long swim.

"It's such an incredible feat," Yeck said, as she looked out to the distance she swam. "I just did that, wow."

Yeck said she couldn't have done it without her support system of family, and she credits her mom for being her driving force. Yeck also recognizes the task Whitcomb was facing, as she was expected to spend over 3 hours in the water.

"It' so humbling to be able to share a sport with so many different abilities and ages," Yeck said. "You never know where someone is in their journey, we all come with some sort of story."

"She (Whitcomb) is amazing," Yeck said. "If you can make it through some of the challenges life throws at you, it makes something like this easy."

Whitcomb may not call the 2.4 mile swim easy, but she did seem to swim it with ease. However, she almost was pulled from the water at the race cutoff.

Time had run out; it was the three-hour mark and a volunteer on a Jet Ski instructed Whitcomb that her race was over and she needed to board a boat. Whitcomb said she was in tears and through those tears asked to please be allowed to finish the swim. She was told that she had to climb aboard a boat that was pulling up to retrieve her. That's when the sheriff's boat arrived and heard Whitcomb explaining that she had no use of her legs and wouldn't be able to crawl onto the boat. Whitcomb said an officer aboard the boat asked if she was Jan, when she said yes they told her to keep on swimming. The volunteers all cheered her on and apologized for holding her up during the swim. Whitcomb, a mother of three, a woman with MS, swam 2.4 mile across Lake Coeur d'Alene in just over three hours.

"What I love about swimming is I am not handicapped underwater," Whitcomb said. "When I swim, I am normal."

The top male finisher was Kalen Darling of Spokane, and the top female was Sakai McCoy of Spokane. For complete results, visit www.cdacrossing.com.