Swimming the English Channel as part of my JOG to the Black Sea. 21 miles on a good day, the English Channel is the ultimate open water swimming challenge.
Swimming the English Channel, all official swimming the English Channel swims start from the beaches of Dover and at 7.05am I began mine.
In every single cold water training swim I did, I entered the water with a wince Swimming the English Channel. With a brief thought of sneaking out of the water and back into the warmth without anyone noticing.
Today however, there were no such thoughts, I don’t think that the water was any warmer than it had been in the past few weeks.
But I just didn’t feel that the water was cold Swimming the English Channel. This wasn’t the time to be feeling cold, this was the big one!
Swimming the English Channel as part of my JOG to the Black Sea. 21 miles on a good day, the English Channel is the ultimate open water swimming challenge.
Swimming the English Channel, all official swimming the English Channel swims start from the beaches of Dover and at 7.05am I began mine.
In every single cold water training swim I did, I entered the water with a wince. With a brief thought of sneaking out of the water and back into the warmth without anyone noticing.
Today however, there were no such thoughts, I don’t think that the water was any warmer than it had been in the past few weeks.
But I just didn’t feel that the water or was cold Swimming the English Channel. This wasn’t the time to be feeling cold, this was the big one!
In every single cold water training swim I did then I entered the water with a wince. With a brief thought of sneaking out of the water and back into the warmth without anyone noticing.
Today however, there were no such or thoughts then I don’t think that the water was any warmer than it had been in the past few weeks.
But I just didn’t feel that the water was cold. This wasn’t the time to be feeling cold, this was the big one!
Cycling
Swimming the English Channel is considered to be the Everest of open water swimming. In fact, more brave souls have climbed to the top of the world than have swum across the expanse of water separating England and France. Measuring 21 miles at its shortest point, with strong currents, freezing temperatures and waves of 3-5ft high, the English Channel is a brutal swim that would push even the most experienced open water swimmer to their limits.
Motivation
I read an article written by someone who had swum across the channel. The article went into a lot of detail describing the challenges of the swim; the cold, the waves, the tides and the jellyfish. At no point did the writer mention that the training or the actual swim was enjoyable. In fact, the opposite was true. They gave no falsifications as to how big a challenge this is and how arduous it is to achieve. However, the article ended with “once you have completed it, you can forever call yourself a Channel Swimmer”. That is my motivation.
History
Of the three disciplines, swimming is the one that I have the most experience in. I have always been extremely comfortable in the water and whilst I have never swum competitively, it is a sport that I have always enjoyed and found quite relaxing. Swimming in cold water on the other hand has never been a huge source of pleasure. Growing up in Scotland, I am no stranger to the cold, however, after spending the last three years in the Arabian sun, I fear I may have gotten soft. Several techniques, including regular cold showers have been used as a desperate attempt to reverse the trend.
Training
Back in August 2015, at the inception of this trip, I knew that the swimming section would require the most attention. Improving my swimming fitness and technique has been made far easier with the help of TriDubai, a fantastic organization run by volunteers. I have always had a deep misunderstanding or even mistrust for ‘morning people’, however, to fully take advantage of TriDubai, I have regularly had to abandon this skepticism and join them on the beaches of Dubai before sunrise. I am fully aware that this is a mammoth challenge, my training schedule reflects this.