Overall champion Matt O'Grady and women's winner Sinead FitzGibbon both praised the calm conditions on the bay as well as the Ocean Rescue squad for running a well-organized race.

Amagansett - Matt O'Grady peeked over his shoulder one last time and could not only appreciate the beautiful scenery at Napeague Bay on a bright Sunday morning but also that after his two-mile expedition at the East Hampton Volunteer Ocean Rescue Open Water Swim Challenge he could take the final few hundred feet at a leisurely pace. A year ago, O'Grady was pushed to the finish line; this year, he was on his own.

O'Grady, 48, blazed his way to his second straight victory in as many years in the two-mile event, recording a time of 42 minutes, 8 seconds. O'Grady lives in New York City but has spent many weekends in Sag Harbor dating back to his childhood. He and women's winner, Sinead FitzGibbon, also of Sag Harbor, credited a peach pie they both devoured prior to the race as the "breakfast of champions." In addition to their early-morning fare, both lauded the coordination of the event and the summery environs.

"Ocean Rescue does a great job setting this up," O'Grady said. "I hope more people come out. The conditions were perfect - there was no chop, I didn't see any jellyfish - there's nothing more that I could ask for."

Race enrollment climbed from just over 70 swimmers at last year's inaugural event to 98 spread across three distances - two miles, one mile and one half-mile. All proceeds for the challenge went to the East Hampton Junior Lifeguard program and the East Hampton Volunteer Ocean Rescue Squad.

Overall winner Matt O'Grady (left), women's first place finisher Sinead FitzGibbon of Sag Harbor (center), and Andrey Trigubovich (right), the first swimmer out of the water, winning the half-mile event by nearly three minutes.

FitzGibbon, who won the open water race at Kirk Beach and Ditch Plains in Montauk last month, was the first woman to complete the two-mile course once again, this in the tamer conditions at Fresh Pond with a time of 47:09. FitzGibbon, who took second overall behind O'Grady, said that she enjoyed the bay race as well as last month's ocean-based challenge.

"It's less intimidating for beginner swimmers which means it's more inclusive to have a bigger turnout," she said. "It's incredibly well organized. There's almost one lifeguard for every swimmer, and it's just as beautiful (as the ocean race)."

The one-mile participants set out due east, swimming parallel to the shore before taking it out toward the second buoy in Napeague Bay.

Tom McGlade, who finished second to O'Grady last year in the two-mile, cruised to a win in the one-mile. McGlade, a New York City fireman who spends time in Amagansett, came across in 22 minutes, 32 seconds, to take first place. He was chased by second-place Liam Gilroy (24:40) and then Thomas Brierley (3rd; 36:24), Lindsay Moore (4th; 36:28) and Brianne Sullivan (5th; 37:27).

Bill O'Donnell rounds a buoy and heads out for his second lap of the two-mile swim.

Andrey Trigubovich, who hails from Russia and is lifeguarding in East Hampton for the summer, was the first swimmer of any to march up the beach. Trigubovich won the half-mile race by nearly three minutes with a time of 11 minutes, 25 seconds. Kaitlin Krause was second overall and the first woman across, logging a time of 14:15. Kate Northrup finished third in 15:40. Rounding out the top five were Mahalia Hensler (16:27) and Sophia Taylor (16:31).

John Ryan, Sr. and Jr. started the junior program 15 years ago and have built the enrollment up to more than 200 kids. The Ocean Rescue Squad, consisting of roughly 50 East Enders, is an on-call unit of lifeguards who work in conjunction with the police and fire departments to respond to 9-1-1 calls. Between the two groups, the Ryans sent roughly 35 lifeguards to Manhattan Beach, CA, last week for the United States Lifeguarding Association National Championship.