Going the distance
Steve Bedilion admits to doing “crazy” things. He races bikes. He runs marathons. He competes in triathlons.
Most recently, the McMurray resident attempted to swim across Lake Erie. As of April 2024, 18 people have accomplished the feat.
Technically, Bedilion covered the 24-mile distance. However, failure to correctly calculate wind and current kept him from reaching the shore.
“It was a good day. At no point did I not think I wasn’t going to make it,” he said.
After nearly 15 hours in the water, Bedilion was approaching 40,000 yards. According to his calculations, he estimated 2,000 yards remained.
“I knew I was getting close because I saw the lights on the shore, but I made a mistake,” he said. “The wind was a factor and I was not swimming a perfect line because I was fighting the current. I was consistently pushed off course and re-correcting so that added three extra miles to the distance.”
Bedilion felt obligated to discontinue his quest. Had he persisted he would have reached the shores of Canada well after midnight. There were family and friends to consider as well as the support team that kayaked alongside him.
“I was confident I would have finished, but there were other people to think about and therefore not possible to continue,” he said. “I am happy with the effort. Overall, I had a great day.”
Bedilion began his swim at 7 a.m. on July 26. In chunks of 500 yards, he set out attempting to maintain an 8- to 10-minute pace, but his splits were 12 minutes. It wasn’t until when he caught a friendly slipstream during his last leg of the journey that he reached that target.
“I just pushed through,” Bedilion said.
When asked if he will make another attempt, he said, “One and done,” and then reconsidered. “Maybe? It’s a lot to ask other people to waste a weekend to be involved in my personal records,” he said.
“I am content in knowing I swam the distance. I was happy with the effort. I was not disappointed.”
Bedilion is saddened that his competitive season is coming to a close. The summer months are the culmination of his months-long training and competitions.
Bedilion races for the Freddie Fu Cycling Team, which supported him in his Erie endeavor. He has participated in world championships for off-roading cycling and has competed in a couple of Iron Man triathlon events.
Last year, he flew into Colorado and biked and raced at the U.S. championships, which covered 100 miles through the Rockies. It is not unusual for Bedilion to take a training ride on his bike from home to the airport or ride the ridges throughout scenic Washington County.
Because he lives in Peters Township and works in Carnegie, he stops at the Upper St. Clair recreation center to swim 3,000 yards five days a week.
“My therapy time is swimming. If I have nothing going on or have stuff to do at work, I use it to think through projects.
“Bike racing is my No. 1 thing, though. I enjoy running and swimming, but I am balancing them out right now.”
While he is thinking about his next endeavor for 2025, Bedilion is balancing his family life. He is married to wife Stephanie, a Lone Pine native and Washington High School graduate. The couple have two children, Cooper, 16, and Madison, 13.
At 45, Bedilion is always looking for different things to do but has currently settled on being a handyman.
“I have to be an adult now,” he conceded with a laugh. “Back to normal. Back to the mundane. Fixing leaky pipes and focusing on the house,” he added.
“I get pretty bored though, so I’ll start thinking about next year. I usually do one big thing every year. I get one big event in my head,” he said.
Erie was in Bedilion’s head for 2024. Will it be again in 2025?
“I’m not going to say no to anything,” he replied.