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Man Finishes Long Swim To Detroit Hauling Bricks

GROSSE POINTE (WWJ/AP) - A long-distance swimmer who calls himself "The Shark" has finished a 22-mile swim in Lake St. Clair near the Michigan-Canada border.

Jim Dreyer had been hauling two dinghies since Monday bearing 334 bricks weighing more than 2,000 pounds. By Wednesday morning, however, he only was hauling one for the swim's final stretch after the second broke loose in rough waters and drifted away.

He finished late Wednesday morning at Detroit's Belle Isle, nearly 51 hours after starting Monday.

The Shark Comes Ashore
Jim Dreyer comes ashore at Bell Isle. (credit: Mike Campbell/WWJ)

WWJ Newsradio 950's Mike Campbell reported Dreyer, who was greeted at shore by a cheering crowd, asked if anybody needed bricks.

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While he was checked out by medics, Dreyer spoke with reporters on the beach.

"What I really wanted to show was that, even though there's a lot of financial pain in the state of Michigan — and nobody's felt more pain than the city of Detroit — we don't have to sink with the weight of our burdens,"

Dreyer admitted, it wasn't an easy trek.

" ... Two, three-foot waves during the day; three to four-foot waves at night," Dreyer said. "That's not a lot for a customary swim; you know, it's not a very big wave. But, when you're pulling a ton of bricks into the whitecaps, it's a big wave."

Commemorative bricks, including ones that make Dreyer's journey, are being sold to help fund a Habitat for Humanity building project in the state of Michigan. For more information on the Cornerstone Strength Swim Campaign, click here.

Dreyer had expected to finish Tuesday after about 30 hours, but he said the waves slowed him down a bit.

Dreyer has made direct crossings of the five Great Lakes. On Wednesday, he said he's ready for his next challenge.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report).

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