Lake Michigan Swimmer to Have fun 250th Anniversary by Towing 250 Cannonballs
To commemorate America’s 250th birthday with the development of a memorial honoring U.S. Fight Veterans, Jim “The Shark” Dreyer plans to tow 250 cannonballs whereas swimming 22 miles from offshore in Lake Michigan to the coastal city of Whitehall, Michigan. The cannonballs will likely be used to construct the U.S. 250th Fight Veterans Memorial in Whitehall.
The swim is deliberate to begin on August 7, 2026, with Dreyer arriving at Whitehall’s Goodrich Park in the course of the White Lake Space Maritime Competition. The precise date of the swim and arrival in Whitehall will likely be depending on climate and lake situations. Dreyer could also be tracked in near-real-time from the occasion webpage throughout his journey.
“I don’t see how we will have fun 250 years of freedom with out additionally honoring those that fought to win and protect that freedom,” Dreyer mentioned. “That’s what this swim and memorial are all about.”
“Cannonballs signify the burden of conflict skilled by our troops in fight and likewise symbolize the burden many Veterans proceed to endure after returning to civilian life.”
“Twenty-two miles was chosen for the space, as 22 is the quantity most related to the estimated variety of Veterans who die by suicide day by day on account of post-traumatic stress.”
The 6-pound cannonballs delivered in Dreyer’s swim are paying homage to the cannonball mostly used in the course of the American Revolution in 1776.
Dreyer will pull 249 cannonballs in two dinghies and can carry one cannonball on his again for his late father, CPL Jack Dreyer, a World Battle II Fight Veteran who served within the U.S. Military Air Corps within the European theater.
The full weight of the cannonballs Dreyer plans to tow is 1,500 kilos.
The U.S. 250th Fight Veterans Memorial will likely be funded by means of the sale of the cannonballs Dreyer tows within the swim. Any surplus from the sale of cannonballs is deliberate to be distributed in assist of White Lake Space Veterans organizations.
“Cannonballs mounted on this one-of-a-kind U.S. 250th memorial could also be bought to perpetually honor family members who sacrificed to serve our nation in fight,” Dreyer mentioned. “Donors will obtain a photograph file of their mounted cannonball and accompanying plaque, which is numbered so they could simply find it when visiting the memorial. Donors can also submit a photograph and write a tribute to their honoree for memorial guests to view when scanning a QR code.”
