Remembering Bradford Sturtevant

Brad Sturtevant passed away on October 20, 2000, after battling pancreatic cancer for several months. Brad was a longtime swimming enthusiast, swimming for Yale as an undergraduate, class of 1955, and was an outstanding ocean swimmer over the years. Brad was the H.W. Liepmann Professor of Aeronautics at Caltech, having spent his entire professional career there. His field was Fluid Dynamics, which also was the name of one of his Maui Channel Swimming teams. His specialty in recent years was the study of shock waves and non-steady gas dynamics, which he interpreted in the most imaginative ways possible, with applications ranging over noise control in motorcycle exhausts, volcanic eruptions, and the treatment of kidney stones with shock waves.

The family has asked that donations been sent in Brad's memory to the "Sturtevant Memorial", to the attention of Kay Paul, Caltech Development Office, MS 105-40, Pasadena, CA 91125. The funds will be used by the athletic department to construct a large, outdoor whirlpool bath (jacuzzi).

We are planning to have a Brad Sturtevant memorial swim.

Ellen remembers that William Damm , Burt Kanner and he celebrated each five year birthday by doing things like: on Brad's 50th birthday they swam 50 50s on the 50; for his 55th birthday, they swam 55 55s on the 55, and so on. The swims always had to be exactly on the birthday. Bill Damm kept records of every swim workout they did over about 20 years.