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SPRINGFIELD — If pool swimming is drag racing, then open-water swimming is NASCAR with the bumping and drafting that goes with it.

Catholic Central High School graduate and former Indiana University swimmer John Kevin Koehler has the engine to compete in both.

Koehler was part of the winning team at the 32nd annual Trans Tahoe Relay on Saturday, July 19, in Lake Tahoe, Nev. His five-man team, RCP Tiburon, finished the 11.5-mile race in three hours and 10 minutes — five minutes faster than the previous course record.

The race started at Sand Harbor Beach in Nevada and finished across the lake at Skylandia Beach in Lake Forest, Calif.

"It's a lot longer. There's a lot of strategy. The fastest guy doesn't always win," said Koehler, comparing the race to his normal indoor events. "It's more about using your intelligence and pacing yourself and drafting off people. It gets real physical at times."

Koehler swam two 30-minute legs. He started the race and built a 400-meter lead over the closest of the 154 swimmers behind him. He then swam one of the final legs in the 65-degree water.

Koehler was coming off a disappointing finish in the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials. Now he's preparing for the U.S. Open, which will be held July 29-Aug. 2 in Minneapolis.

Koehler said he's just starting to get into open-water swimming, and this race was a good boost for his confidence.

"I didn't swim so well at the relays, and it was nice to do well at something," he said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0351 or djablonski@coxohio.com.