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Skinner’s Island Double Crossing- July 8th

July 16, 2016 By Charlotte Brynn

ready to start

I gaze down the boat ramp at Newport’s Gateway center, there is no doubt about it, I’m excited, way excited. My adventure to Skinner’s Island is close, as soon as my foot touches the water, the words will flash across the movie screen, turn your cellphones off, this show is about to start.

I pull my goggles down, and adjust my cap, I take a few moments to take it all in, the beauty of the lake and my admiration of my team. Pilot and observer Phil White, and my capable one woman crew and teammate Cynthia Needham. Finally, Uriah Skinner, 206 years ago, he was setting off from Newport in his boat, bound for Magog to purchase contraband supplies, to bring back to the local farmers and their wives. ” It’s a better way to make a living than hard labor, I make more in one night than I would on the land, in a year”, chuckled Skinner, as he shoved off from the shore. I take the plunge and dive in to the dark waters of Lake Memphremagog.

Swim start

The water feels like silk as I slip under it’s surface and begin stroking away from the boat ramp, away from Newport and into the early morning, an old adventure and a new one, are now intertwined as one, as Uriah, and me head towards the Canadian Border.

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My heart is thumping. I drive my head down and pull through the water with long, strong strokes. I look straight down, taking in my surroundings. The water is thick with pollen, it is suspended in the water, like big snowflakes in a January snow storm. I swim through it, like a car driving through a blizzard, the pollen hitting my goggles, like snowflakes hit a windscreen.

Breathing

Django, pulls up beside me. She is a fine looking boat. A 16 ft, handcrafted dory, with Phil at the helm. He loves her, and it shows. Cynthia, is perched on the port side, looking over at me, we are eye to eye, I smile, and so does she. I am a port side swimmer, I breath to the right, meaning, that every 4 strokes, I roll to the right, getting a clear view of Django, Phil and Cynthia. There is much to keep me entertained, and I love watching. The jet boil is on, the coffee mugs are out, “it’s breakfast time, coffee and croissants, with ole Lake Memphremagog as a backdrop, what a morning”, I exclaim, as I return my eyes down, into the water. I am watching two movies, one above the water, and one below.

“I wasn’t expecting ole Magog, to kick up such a cool North wind in July”, grumbles Skinner, as he wraps a large sheet over his head. He had brought the sheet to cover his smuggled goods on the way back to Newport, not to shield himself from the wind. His cheeks burn, and he buries his head into his thick woolen sweater to better shield his face from the wind. ” All worth, a bit of discomfort” , he chuckles, ” a swig of brandy will cure all that ails me, ” he says with a grin, and with that, he put a little more heave ho into the oars, and rows quickly, down the lake, towards the Canadian Border.

Cynthia, starts reaching for my feed cup, out comes the thermos, she is pouring hot water into my feed, next she is shaking the bottle, ” Oh I can’t wait, it’s feed time”, I think. She holds the cup over the port side, and I swim up, and swipe it, like a toll operator collecting a dollar, at the toll booth. I roll onto my back, and swallow the contents. Cynthia gives me an update, ” your’e fly’n, we are past the lighthouse already, less than 3 miles to the border”, she says. I drop my feed cup,and shout ” hi,and thanks ‘, then roll onto my tummy and swim on, I’m off again.

I look deep into the water. I can see Skinner approaching the Canadian Border, in his row boat. An over-sized man, with a large frame, so big in stature that he tends to hunch over, allowing himself to bury his face from the view of others, and glance behind him on a dime, to see if he is being followed. He has bushy, thick beard, and, a half grin. A grin, giving one the impression, that he is up to no good, and getting away with it. A grin, that shouts out, I know, you know, what I’m doing, and, you’ll never catch me! ” That Captain Charlton, and his men, are just wasting their time trying to track me, for I know the ole islands of Magog, like the back of my hand, even in the dark, they’ll never find me, my precious boat, and cargo” He says, his voice trailing off into the wind.

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The US- Canadian Border, is marked by Border Buoys and a slash in the tree line, my eyes fix upon the slash in the trees, I am elated to cross into Canadian waters. The Canadian officials have granted us pre approval to enter Canada without stopping at the customs station, me and Uriah, continue into Canadian waters without skipping a beat.

Border Buoys
Every 30 minutes, Cynthia, calls me into Django to feed, 15 to 20 seconds later, I am back swimming, my eyes looking down into the deep waters of Lake Memphremagog, watching Skinner, on his journey, on my underwater movie screen.

Uriah, arrives at the end of Lake,in Magog, Canada. He wastes no time, tying off his beloved boat, and searching for a seller, from whom to buy his order of contraband. He repeats the list of goods in his head. ” There is the silverware, for the Robinson family,and the lace order for Mrs Dalton, a big order that one is too, she got lace for her all three of her sisters and their families, what a haul!” chuckles Skinner, as he loads the parcels of lace into his boat.
“Then there is the brandy for the loggers, and no shortage of it. The loggers in Newport, have a thirst I can barely keep up with, the most profitable of arrangements”. Chatters Skinner. “If I’m lucky, they’ll share a few swigs with me on delivery, and we will all have a few laughs about, how Captain Charlton, is still searching ole Magog for me, wet,cold and frustrated!” Skinner laughs as he imagines the scenario.
With the boat loaded, Skinner, gets to heaving the oars. His boat heads out into the night, heading south to Newport, and the border.

Cynthia holds up my feed up, ” Skinner Island is in sight”, she grins as she announces the news. I down my feed as quick as I can, I am excited to get my head back underwater, and see what’s happening to Skinner, there is less than 2 miles to go before I swim into his cave.
In the distance Skinner Island

” What a night, overcast skies, no moon to guide the captain and his men, it’s a smuggler’s night for me”, Skinner hummed. But what Skinner didn’t know was that sound had guided Captain Charlton and his men, they heard the waves against the bow of his beloved boat, they followed the sound, and within minutes, Uriah saw the lantern of the patrol boat, and it was closing in on him. Skinner, spun his boat around and heaved on his oars, he made quick work of rowing to his favorite hiding spot on ole Magog, a small overgrown Island. The island, has a shoreline of steep cliff faces. At the top of the cliffs, are heavily overgrown bushes, weeds and trees, which drape over the cliffs, concealing much of them.

Skinner pulls alongside the cliff, parts the vines and weeds, revealing a hidden cave, wide enough for six men, and tall enough for three. He unloads his parcels of lace,cases of silverware, and brandy, ties off his boat and stashes himself and all his smuggled goods at the back of the cave. Nothing left to do, now but wait it out, like he has many times before.

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I take my last feed before the cave. I know, that Skinner,is now hiding in the cave from the Captain, and his men. The frothy waves are sloshing against the walls, at the mouth of the cave, sending chills down Skinner’s spine, he can’t swim. Not much scares Uriah Skinner, but the thought of immersing himself in the cold dark waters, of Lake Memphremagog, without air, makes him shudder. The water scares him to death.

I swim stronger now. After hours of swimming, the island is before me. I can feel the cave, the darkness of it, the dampness of the air, the intensity of the moment. I swim alongside the cliffs, looking for the cave.

Captain Charlton, and his men are scouring the top of the island. They have been searching the island for hours.
” That filthy outlaw, cannot disappear, find him, we are not leaving this god forsaken island until we find him”, Charleston roared, he was in a foul mood.
” Captain, you’ll want to see this” , shouted an officer. He pulled Skinner’s beloved boat along the cliff, with a proud smile. The Captain, had had enough, he was cold, wet and angry, ” That filthy hermit can have this hellish island”, screamed the Captain. And with that he tied Skinner’s boat, on to his, the men begin to row, the Captain holding the lantern. Skinner watches from the security of his hidden cave, as his boat and the light of the lantern fade from view.
He wants to shout out, STOP, NO! He bites his tongue, ” I won’t let them win, no one catches Uriah Skinner ” he mutterers, through clenched teeth, which are chattering from the cold. Skinner knows, if he is captured, it is certain execution, back in Newport, it doesn’t matter that he is in Canadian waters, they will take him by force, across the border where they can arrest him. Shortly after, execution.

Swimming to the cave

206 years later, the hanging vines, overgrown weeds, and bushes, have gone, yet I still nearly miss the cave, it blends into the cliff, from the angle of the water. It is the perfect hiding place, if you don’t want to be found, I can see how the officers missed it all those years ago.
The rocks are flat, sharp, and slippery at the entrance. I swim up to the mouth of the cave, staying on my belly as long as I can, after 9 miles of swimming, I know my legs will not be steady, when I stand up. I slowly draw myself upright, and make my way into the cave. I am able to swim up into the mouth, the water, sloshes from side to side, just like it did for Skinner. Spider webs drape across the front entrance, and phosphorescent moss lines the inside of the cave. I make my way further back to clear the water. At the very back of the cave, there is a rock formation, similar to that of a small seat or rock perch. I sit on it, and look out, catching the tail end of a boat, moving away from the view of the cave, the view Uriah, must have seen as his beloved boat faded from his view.

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Sitting like skinner

I breath it in, and look out to the lake, Uriah Skinner, unable to swim remained a prisoner in this cave, unable to swim, he was jailed here for life”, I pondered.
I waded back out, pump my fists and shout to the Cynthia and Phil, ” let’s finish this”.
I slipped back under the water and swim for the border, feeling very determined, with purpose and drive, ” Time to go home Skinner”, I think to myself.

Excited to land

I though a lot about Skinner on the way to the US- Canadian border. I thought about how he choose to perish, rather than surrender to the officers. I thought about how his fear of the water, defined the end of his life. I imagined, he drank the brandy, and sat in the cave until, it was time to meet his maker, comforted by the fact that he had not given in. And yet Mother Nature had the ultimate victory, for his smuggled goods where of no aid to him in the cave, and the brandy did not cure all that ailed him.

One the way south, back to Newport, I no longer had Skinner to watch underwater, so I focused back on my crew. The wooden trim of Django, the proud stance of Phil, my observer and pilot. The warm smile of Cynthia, my crew, feeding me, and perching Percy, the parrot on her head to make me laugh. They were all listening to music, and when I came in to feed I heard the music too, catching a song to play in my head until my next feed, 30 minutes later.
Soon we were crossing the border, out came the New Zealand flag, dancing in the wind. I lengthen my stroke and pull for home.

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Soon we pass the light house, 2 miles, and closing. We are nearly there. I dig deep, and pull hard, my hips are high in the water, I am slipping down the lake fast. More music, this time, not from the boat, it is from the Newport Jazz festival, welcoming me home

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I make my way up the boat ramp, I am pumped! Skinner Island Double complete. I finished what Uriah Skinner had set out to do 206 years ago, escaping the cave and making my way back to Newport.
18 miles of swimming in 8 Hours, 35 minutes and 57 seconds!

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Thanks to Phil White of North East Kingdom Open Water Swim Association, Cynthia Needham, crew, Tricia Kules, of Little River Land Surveying for documenting the course and Evan Morrison, of the Marathon Swimmers Federation for hosting my tracker.

Kinsale, Cork County, Ireland a village with heart & history

August 3, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Sunday July 10th: Swimmer plays Tourist

Sandycove, Cork County Ireland, Distance Week is over, time to pack up in preparation for our 4am departure tomorrow morning, but before then a little time to dedicate to learning some more about the town of Kinsale, what has gone down in this little town and the waters of the harbour before my visit, I can sense this area is oozing with history, my senses are right.

Me at the entrance to Charles Fort, what history in these buildings

 Robbin and I zip back to the apartment, change into dry clothes and head down to the harbour, yesterday we spotted a harbour boat tour, 5pm, we are on the boat. The tour begins by telling us of a town rich with history, the town is on the site of a monastery founded by St Multose in the 6th century, by the 10th century the Vikings had a trading post in Kinsale. The Normans walled the town in the 13th century and established it as an important trading base. By the end of the 16th century as a result of overseas trade, Kinsale had become one of the most significant towns on the south coast. Numerous battles took place in Kinsale Harbour, Kinsale had become a place of desire to rule, numerous battles including battles between the Spanish, Irish and English forces, to keep attacking forces out  a chain was even laid across the harbour  channel to deter attackers by sea.

The Fort buildings

 Charles fort was built in the 1600’s, on the boat tour we saw it from the harbor view, I also got to see the beach from the torture swim, amazing to see it from a different angle, ” how could I have missed that during the tourture swim?”, I wonder. After the boat tour Robbin and I make our way to Charles fort by land, the fort was named in 1681 in honor of King Charles II, the fort was a formidable deterrent to intruders by sea but had weaknesses with regard to attackers by land. The fort is star shaped with five bastions which defended the entrance to the harbour. At the entrance to the fort was the guard house, this was where they used to detain soldiers when army regulations were breached, the discipline in the army was governed by the Army Discipline Regulation Act, this act listed 25 distinct offences that would result in death, these included murder, mutiny, striking a superior officer, fraudulent enlistment, falling asleep on duty and cowardice in the face of an enemy…no pressure there right!

  The fort itself remained in use until 1921,  the English withdrew at the setting up of the Irish free state, in the 1990s restoration began and it is now maintained and open for visitors to tour, what a remarkable site. Robbin and I walk around the posts, we view the soilders quarters, soilders would enlist for life, it must have been so terribly cold and bitter during the winter months.

The Governor's House on the left

 We tour the governor’s house, this is quite grand compared to the other buildings, here lived the governor and his family, as the story goes on the wedding day of his daughter the governor shot his new son in law. The son in law and his new wife, the governor’s daughter had been walking, the bride saw some flowers and asked the groom to climb down and pick them for her, the groom wanting to please his new wife, asked a soldier on his post if he would retrieve the flowers, he agreed as long as the groom watched  his post, the groom agreed eager to please his new bride on their wedding day, but alas the groom fell asleep, the governor at the time was doing his rounds, he came across one of his men asleep at the post, in keeping with the Army & Discipline Regulation Act he shot him, it was not until afterwards he realised that he shot his new son in law, his daughter was so distressed she threw herself of the cliffs to her death, later that night the governor shot himself dead. Over the years the ” lady in white” has been reportedly seen at Charles Fort, she fell to her death in her wedding dress.

 That is but one of the stories we learned on our whirl wind tour of Kinsale on Sunday evening, just the tip of the ice burg I am sure.

 We finish off the afternoon with a drink at the Bulman, the only pub we managed to visit during our stay in  Ireland, it is a lovely spot with life music and wouldn’t you know it they played a song by a New Zealand  band ” Crowded house”, perfect.

 Next up the final pack up, off to bed and up at 4am to drive to the airport and a farewell to Ireland, what a wonderful country. I have enjoyed my stay and meeting so many tremendous friendly people, goodbye Kinsale and County Cork, I’ll look forward to another visit some day.

 What is up next travel back to Stowe, Vermont, USA, then sizing up the next big challenge, a 2 way crossing of Lake Champlain on August 4th, 16 plus miles and swimming at night, how are plans shaping up for the big swim? I’ll keep you posted.

Time to size up the next swim, on arrival back to Vermont, I drive to the waterfront and look out over Lake Champlain, hang tight lake I'm coming in August 4th

I’d rather see a lesson than hear one any day

August 2, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Sunday July 10th, 9am

Today is swim number 16 of 16, the schedule says:6 Hour swim at Sandycove- Meet at 8am

 
 
 

Sandycove the last swim, there is the red house my favourite land mark

 

 Isn’t it amazing how things can seem to move so slowly yet be over so quick, just 9 days ago this point in time that I am at today seemed like a century away, all I could think was ” how am I going to endure another 15 swims, it will take FOREVER, well it didn’t take forever, it took me focusing on one swim at a time, I made a commitment to attend this distance week and I am going to see it through…..and now here I am, so surreal, my last dip in Ireland during the 2011 Sandycove distance training week.

 Today’s swim is a 6 hour swim, it is a qualifying swim for the English Channel for many, the water temperature is said to be 11-13 degrees celsius ( 51.8-55 F), my plan to swim the strongest and longest my body allows me to.

 So onto the swim we arrive at 8:45am with 6 premixed Feeds of Maxim, hot water to be added to them to make them hot feeds, today I have my New Zealand Cap on and temporary tattoo on my shoulder for a little extra ” KIWI DRIVE”.  Ned pulls us in for our swim debrief, he starts  with a summary of yesterdays TORTURE swim, asking each of us how it felt to have the boat drive away, our feeds not given to us when we were swimming, confusing instructions shouted at us and all the boat wakes. ” Today will not be like that, we are here to help you succeed, there will be a team on the island to feed and support you, you swim laps around the island we will be there for you”

Neave, Robbin and Billy in the background spoiling us swimmers once more

 Ned then goes on to announce thanks and awards to the many who have helped make the week possible, a big one is Neave, Billy’s Mum, she has been on shore during most of the swims, putting on a spread of hot drinks, home baked muffins, biscuits and even BBQ’s for us to savour post swim. Robbin  has been helping her and they have had a right laugh, even getting in and swimming too on occasion and lending Robbin a wetsuit so she could swim to the island…which she did on Friday, way to go Robbin. We all applaud, then Ned announces all the English Channel swimmers who have come to swim and support the newbies, I clap hard on that one, what a treasure to have these accomplished, experienced swimmers share their knowledge and finally acknowledgement of the one swimmer who attended every swim, and wouldn’t you know it, it was me, the stubborn ” skinny penguin”, 16 swims ,14 of them hypothermic, I tilt my head slightly as the group applauds, I am EMBARRASSED with the attention.

A low tide treat to begin our last swim..that means slithering through the weeds and scrapping over the sharp rocks.

 With the awards out of the way we get down to the business of the last swim, ” Find someone to swim with, it is much more digestible with company”, Ned says, as he says this I start shuffling closer to Colm, I look up with a ” pick me” look in my eyes and we walk down the slip way side by side, the tide is low and we all walk out, Colm asks if I prefer the rocks or sea weed to swim through, ” sea weed please”, I say, it feels warmer to me in the seaweed, with that we are off.

 

Today the water is extra special cold for us, I don’t swim my usual punchy pace I hold it steady and swim beside Colm, I am pleased with my choice it is nice to swim alongside him and I sense he knows this Island well, I follow. Around we go one lap down and time for me to take a feed, Colm had told me at the start that he was not feeding until lap 2 , ” I’ll wait for you”, he says as I swim towards the island, I swim in and take my feed, the feed feels lovely and warm sliding down my throat, I swim off with a burst on energy, Colm kindly waits for me and we take on lap 2 together, I notice it is colder around the back side of the island, then in for the next feed we both feed and head out again, then things get fuzzy, we swim another lap or so, I see the island, Colm pointing me in to feed, someone standing with a bottle, I stagger up to take it, I stare at the bottle….” that’s not my feed”, I say, Robbin, my sister replies ” this is your feed, here drink it”, ” that’s not my feed, it’s orange, my feed is green, that’s orange”, I say again, Robbin again replies, ‘ Charlotte you made this feed yourself, look you wrote your name on the bottle, it is not orange”, I look down I don’t see my name and the bottle still is orange to me, I don’t trust them, why are they messing with me? Next thing I know the hot fluid is tipping down my throat, it is scalding hot, ” I can’t believe they are feeding me boiling hot water’, I think as I stumble back in the water, Colm is there, ”  come on this way” , we head out to swim another lap, next time I come into the island there is no recollection, only what I have been told I said and did, so here is an account from Robbin….she tells me after the swim that I again was convinced the feed was not mine and refused to drink it, then she tells me ” you looked like a walking corpse, no color in your face, there was no blood in your outer extremities, your eyes had sunk into their sockets, you had big dark blue smudgy circles around them, you looked puzzled and then in an inquisitive way said” Who the F*ck are you….., anyway”, apparently I could still swear!, Ned tells me I didn’t recognise him at all, ” no more laps of the Island for you Charlotte, you swim to the slipway and back  with Carol” Ned says, then there was Carol, my savior, she took my hand in the kindest voice, ” come on Charlotte we’ll swim to the slip way and back, just 3 minutes there”, OK I said in my head and with that I put my head down and swam, ” now we go back to the Island”, Carol said,” OK”, I mumble and I put my head down and swim back to the island, next thing I know I have swum back to the slipway after swimming one more width and Carol is helping me out of the water, next comes a blur and I am in the car with blankets. My last swim is over, I gave it all I had, thanks to the support of the crew and other swimmers, my camp is over OR IS IT?

 In the car I go through my usual shakes and tremors, my muscles spasm and cramp up, that is the most painful bit, today I am fascinated with my feet, they look like those of a cadaver, I used to study anatomy using cadavers when I attended Otago University in New Zealand, granted my feet don’t smell of formulen, but they do look so drained of blood like a corpses, ” how could I be alive and have dead looking feet, wierd”, I think.  At Otago I completed a 4 year degree in Physical Education, we studied Anatomy for the first year, I never forgot the muscles names after seeing then first hand on a body, kind of sticks with you, just like the smell of the formulen, our anatomy lab was always right before lunch and whatever I did I couldn’t get the smell off myself, duing lunch it hung over me while I ate, I didn’t look forward to lunch on those days.

Robbin notices me drift off to sleep and decides to whisk me away for a shower and food, a good call, as we drive away I glance back at the island, many swimmers are still out there, Ned had asked me if I would like to come over to the island and watch the other swimmers feed after I was done swimming today, ” you’ll learn alot”, he said, so my plan is to go change and come back, I have already decided, I am coming back with my suit on underneath my clothes, if Colm wants company towards the end of his swim I am getting back in.

 Back to the apartment, a warm shower, food, dry suit on, I pick the one that simmers like a fish, brightly colored, warm clothes on top, then I stuff my swim cap, ear plug and goggles into my pocket so no one can see and am off with Robbin back to the island.

 I catch a ride in the dingy out to the island and sit and watch the remaining swimmers as they swim in, feed and head back out for another lap. Ned is right, I do learn alot, ” look how calm and controlled they are when they come in”, says Ned, I look, sure enough they swim in, walk up to the island, ask for their feed, maybe something special like a jelly baby or mint, even mouthwash to give the mouth and tounge relief from the salt water, then thay are off again. They don’t argue, shout or reject help, the swim on. I am amazed that they can talk at all. There is still 1.5 hours to go, Kevin is still swimming, along with Alan from Montreal, Donal is still out there too and Colm, who had helped me so much earlier in the day. I continue to watch and notice it is hard to look upbeat and positive knowing how hard this must be for them swimming, I spare a thought for my own crew and realise what a tough ask I give them..” look happy it helps me when I swim”. More time goes by, now only 40 minutes to go, Colm swims, Lisa brings him his feed, ” It’s getting tough out there now”, says Colm, her looks up and sees me all bundled up sitting on the rock, ” coming in for another lap?”, he asks, ” Yes I said I can if it would help”, I reply, ” No, no, I was just joking you stay warm”, Colm replies, ” really Colm she has her suit on, cap,and goggles ready to go”, says Lisa, ‘ no Charlotte I have slowed down over the hours, I’ll be much too slow for you”, as Colm continues to say no I am ripping off my pants and jackets, and shouting to him, “you go I’ll catch you up”,  with that he resumes swimming, I tug on my cap, ear plugs in and goggles down, I dash into the water chasing him, I don’t care if he is slow or fast I am going to be there for him if it helps him through. So off I stroke, winding in and out of the weed and the rocks, the water is refreshing and before long I pull up alongside him, he was right I have to slow my stroke down to stay alongside him, I look down at all the wonderful activity on the bottom of the cove, I breathe to my left and fondly look at the powerful waves crashing on to strong rocks, it is beautiful, I feel so grateful to be in such an amazing place, then I breathe to the right and see Colm soldering on, nearly 6 hours completed in this water in the low 50s, what a feat. The cold snaps my mind back, I swim fast past Colm to warm myself up, swim in a big circle and then pull up beside him again, hoping I am not distracting him. We swim along like along the backside of the island, round the 3rd corner where the water is a bit warmer and then back into the island where I get out and Colm goes about finishing the last little bit of his 6 hours and he does, what a terrific swim. Alan makes his qualifying swim and Donal his mentor leads the way, setting a good example for Alan by keeping him company and swimming the 6 hours also, Kevin cruises in and completes his as well.

Me and Colm my new swim buddy

 So there we have it, distance training week comes to a close, time to gather round and say some goodbyes and some thank yous for all the good swimming, lessons learned and support offered, Ned headed up one heck of a wild ride, it was the most miserably painful wonderfully enjoyable experiance I recall, thanks Ned for everything. So into the car and off Robbin and I go, is this the last story from Kinsale, absolutely not, we have not it is 3:30pm and we are going to high tail it to make it in time a harbor cruise at 5pm and tour Charles fort, we haven’t done any sightseeing yet( apart from in the water!) and I am determined to learn a little history about this wonderful little village and harbor before we leave for the airport at 4am tomorrow morning,what will we discover, I ‘ll keep you posted!

Closing thought: True success is the only thing that you cannot have unless and until you have offered it to others

 Author unknowen

  

 
 

Torture Swim: Total Mind Body Confusion with a smile

August 1, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Saturday July 9th 10:00am

TORTURE SWIM

 Today we are swimming from Sandycove Island, Ned has a pack of accomplices accompanying him today, accomplices who know the lessons we are about to “learn by doing”, many have swum the English Channel and other challenging waters, this group are no band of merry men today, they are ghoulish figures on board to help Ned teach us lessons the HARD WAY, you know the way you never forget. I am amazed that I can read accounts from other Channel swimmers of ” what to do and what not to do”, but boy when you experience the discomfort of ” not a good idea” it is firmly ingrained in your deepest inner self….” Boy I am NOT doing that again during my swim”, Yes I would say today is shaping up to be a good learning day….THE HARD WAY.

 Robbin and I enjoy the novelty of a ” late start”, we arrive at 9:30am to find a bustle of activity, Sandycove is no longer the sleepy little cove we have swum in over the last week, there are kayaks, boats, paddlers, swimmers, a hive of activity. As soon as we park we are called over for the day’s meeting, Ned gathers us around the top of the slipway and begins the rundown…

Time for SNEAKY Instructions....read on and see why!

 ” In the Channel anything can happen, the more you experience of the ” what ifs’, the better prepared you will be, the best laid plans can and will change, your job is to ” SHUT UP AND SWIM” despite what is going on with your boat, pilot and crew.

 Today you swim out around the island, you swim in the opposite direction that you have been swimming all week, the island will be one your right, be ready for further instructions, you will get fed by the boat, put your feed on the slip way to be taken in the boat, you have 5 minutes GO!

 I scurry away to get my gear sorted, grease on, earplus in, cap and goggles, then my feed bag laid in the pile with all the other swimmers…

Feed Containers lined up ready to go!

 From here it is ” walking the plank again”, you guessed it….down the slipway….

There's me at the back of the bunch, looking eager walking down LAST!

  The Torture Team are shouting at us to get in and swim, it feels like we are being prodded by electric poles by a farmer trying to move a flock of stubborn stroppy sheep, and then a swimmer dives in, like sheep we all follow, one after the other.

 The water temperature is no longer a shock to my brain, my mind has become accustomed to 11-13 degrees Celsius ( 51.8-55.4 degrees F), in fact my mind says ” Bring it on”, my body however is not quite as convinced.

 Off I swim, stretching out with long strong strokes around the island, I LOVE swimming in this direction, I favor breathing to my right and today I get a good view of Sandcove Island and the goats that live on it, it is also particularly clear water, below me are wonderful scurrying crabs, swaying seaweed, it is swaying in harmony to some hidden soothing music underwater and finally the fish, darting everywhere, YIP I am having fun, ” I love swimming”, I say to myself. Around the island I go, I notice that my mind has already begun calculating, where I am, how long I have been swimming, speculating that I will go around the island atleast twice, yes I am already steamrolling ahead in my mind taking control of the situation at hand.

 Whirl, Wosh, Whirl….I am aware of cold bursts of water engulfing my midsection, suddenly I don’t feel quite as much in control as I did just a few minutes ago, “OK, just a boat, just a boat, they are here to help”, I repeat over and over in my head, little do I know they are not here to help, they are here to make things difficult, they are here to add confusion and some real live Channel scenarios….I will soon learn more.

 I lift my head up, it is one of the bright orange boats, I don’t recognise anyone on the boat ” Rats no familiar faces”, I think, someone shouts at me..” Follow the boat, follow the boat, FOLLOW THE BOAT”, ” OK, I guess they want me to follow the boat”, I think and I do, ” this is fun, turn here, follow there”, I follow and I follow, then my mind pipes up ” Hey where is the island now”, Hey the boats taking you in figure 8s”, my mind keeps tossing out new scenarios, each new one confusing me, I override my brain” Head down SHUT UP AND SWIM” I instruct myself, and I do, PHEW, that was a close call.

Follow that Boat Swimmer NOW

 

 So I swim , swim and swim, I have settled back down and get into a rhythm in my stroke, I have no idea where I am, then I feel a wave push me back, I pull my head up and look ” Hey that sucker came out of nowhere”, I think, on I swim cross that a rogue wave caught me off guard, next I hear shouting ” drink this”, a bottle is passed to me, ” ahhhh not MY bottle”, I had been banking on my feed, a shot of energy to help me be strong in the chilling water, ” DRINK, DRINK, DRINK IT”, the shouts from the boat continue, I want to please but am not feeling that ” this water is going to taste great feeling”, I spill alot, drink some and then swim on humming the Talking Heads song ” We’re on a road to nowhere”.

 At the start of the swim I felt such purpose, as time has moved on my stroke has slowed, I don’t know where I am going and I feel a “ does it really matter stroke” creeping  in, I snap myself out of it and start swimming with all I can muster. At our meeting this morning we were told to take responsibility and charge of ourselves, if we need assistance a fist punch in the air. I have decided to swim as long as I can, I swim on and JUST SWIM.

 The boat comes by again, I don’t know how long I have been swimming or where I am, I stop and am instructed to drink water again, I look around, ” open sea that way, the other way, I don’t recognise any of the land in the distance”, ” DRINK”, there is a water bottle thrust into my hands,

 ” DRINK IT DRINK IT DRIIINNNNKK”, someone is shouting at me, I am not sure who, they are angry, I want to drink but my jaw is clenched shut, I manage to get the top of the bottle in between my teethbut as soon as I do my jaws clamps down around the bottle, it hurts, I tip my head back and do the best impersonation of drinking in a relaxed style with a smile, the impersonation fails miserably. Next thing I know the bottle is gone and Ned is yelling, ” catch those swimmers”, his arm is pointing that way, ” OK, that way swim to catch swimmers, I can do that”, I say to myself, and with that I swim off spinning my arms as fast as I can. I catch the swimmers and recognise Craig, I settle in beside him, we swim alongside each other for a bit and then he is gone and I don’t no where, I AM ALONE VERY ALONE.

 I am lost, ” is anyone watching me”, I wonder, I swim on, my hands are like claws, my body that has been aching from the cold doesn’t seem to ache any more,  I stop, I swim, I stop , I swim, at some point I no longer remember if I am swimming or not, I am disorientated, my body unresponsive and my mind muddled. I punch my fist up in the air to signal for help, I don’t recall much from here, I am not sure how quickly the boat came to pick me up, I do remember thinking, ‘ OK you are in control, YOU are going to climb up the steps into the boat YOURSELF”. So the boat comes by, I hear the boat talk about pulling me in, I smile inside about a cunning plan to climb up the ladder on my own, down comes the step ladder, I look at it commanding my legs to step up and my arms to reach out…..nothing happens…I command them again, still nothing happens, my legs are defiantly not moving, next thing I know I am  scooped out of the water, Donal wraps me in a towel and then a blanket, he sits me down on the boat beside him and I latch on to him like a starfish on  fish tank glass. I burrow myself into his side and tuck right under his arm, he warms me, I feel safe.

 After a bit Ned shouts ” time to get dressed’, Doanl helps me pull a pair of big corderouy pants over my suit, a fleece pullover and Ned’s big long  jacket.

 My swim is over for the day, and now that I am on the boat Ned and Donal have switched gears from  gruff confusing torture pilots, to patient, kind and instructional, the cooler opens up, hot chocolate, bread rolls, ham and cheese, Ned makes us sandwiches and the two of them share their knowledge of swimming, I am the luckiest penguin out there, I am able to watch the other swimmers and hear Donal and Ned’s comments, how the remaining swimmers are doing, who is weakening and who is picking back up, it is invaluable, I learn alot.

 ” I can help, I have lots of post on cold water swimming on my website www.loneswimmer.com “, says Donal, I make a mental note of the name.

 I am taken back on how in tune Ned and Donal  are to the swimmers, from the water it felt like they didn’t know what was going on and were not aware of my location, being in the boat I see that these two are ” as sharp as a tack”.

 The remaining swimmers have been instructed by Ned to swim to a beach in the distance, they make it, some swimmers leave the beach, there are no directions from there, some of the swimmers stand around wondering what to do next, others get back in the water and resume swimming back towards the way they came. 

 After a bit of time has passed, enough time for a couple of sandwiches our boat motors to the island, Craig is the last man swimmer left on the island, he is not having a bar of it getting back in the water and we scoop him into the boat, I feel for him, my recent feelings of hypothermia are still fresh in my mind, he is wrapped up in blankets, I pull the hat of my head and pull it over his.

 The swimmers are making good progress back towards Sandycove Island the start of our journey, looking at the terrain on the way back I find it hard to believe that I couldn’t have recognised where I was when I was swimming, there is that inkling in me saying ” I can’t believe you couldn’t get to that beach, I know you can do it, until another day beach, another day”, I threatening say the words in my head, ” watch out beach, I’ll be back someday”

 There are a group of 3 swimmers and 2 swimming alone, ” see how comforting company is”, says Ned, I do, ” when they get around this corner, they will be deflated, they will think that that corner is Sandycove Island and it isn’t they have one more to go”, Ned is right, when the group round the corner there is still 1more stretch to go until Sandycove some of them drop their stroke rates, but then one kicks in and the others follow. Then one swimmer refuses feeds, ” that’s it, she does that one more time she is pulled out”, says both Ned and Donal, I make a mental note, don’t say NO to your crew and pilot.

 We finally make it back into Sandycove, the first 2 swimmers in the group we are watching land and fist pump each other, then a hug , I feel their elation, it is great towatch, despite all the cold and the tremors I wish I was there with them, sadly I am in the boat. It is too shallow for Ned to drive the boat into the slipway, ” can you wait a bit til we get you a ride in?”, Ned asks both Craig and I together, I look at Craig, he looks at me, we could swim in, I am excited to be able to swim back to the slipway, we both jump in and tread beside the boat, ” sprint to the Island first”, shouts Ned, ” it will do you good”, and we do, and it is FUN. We reach the island huffing and puffing and then stretch it out to the shore…….we’re there fist pump!

Tortue Complete

 LEARN BY DOING: Here is what I learned today, long higgle-t- piggelty list, but what can I tell you my brain slowed down out there…..

  • Head Down, JUST SWIM
  • Don’t try to figure out where you are JUST SWIM
  • If the boat leaves don’t worry JUST SWIM it will be back
  • There will be waves JUST SWIM
  • Never Give Up JUST SWIM
  • JUST SWIM until you get there or are pulled, your crew is watching you, they know your stroke.
  • Take your Feeds and JUST SWIM
  • Positive Comments motivate me more to JUST SWIM
  • Take out the uncertainty by being as prepared as you can to JUST SWIM

So we are at a point I was willing to arrive FAST, 15 swims complete and just one to go, how could I be feeling sad about this miserably painful week coming to a close?

 It’s the people that get you through. So what’s on the schedule tomorrow….8am 6 hour swim. Oh and the parting gift from today’s swim a chipped front tooth from my clen

Closing Thought: No team can ever be whipped if they hang tough together and refuse to be beaten

Friday arrives, what’s in store for the weekend!

July 25, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Sandycove Island

Well it is finally here, Friday morning, Day 7 , that’s right 7 consecutive days of double swims in Ireland, this morning is my 13th swim in the last 7 days and we find ourselves once more at Sandycove Island. The first day I set eyes on Sandycove Island it looked unwelcoming, the first morning I swam around it the same….unwelcoming, or perhaps it was me not respecting or being receptive to the Island and it’s unpredictable and cool waters. Today when the Island comes into view I look at it with respect and with excitement, I want to swim and rise up to the challenges this Island throws my way, yes I am beginning to look at this Island in a new light, my new master, tough yet fair, strict, yet achievable, I like Sandycove Island.

THE WATER TEMPERATURE TODAY=WAKE UP IT’S COLD

 Like it or not the island is tossing 11 degree Celsius water my way today, I don’t fret or flince, instead just size up the stakes, I will have to swim fast and will swim strong for as long as my body will allow me to function, and I do. 2 laps, a good pace and a strong finish with a sprint back to the slipway. Off home to shower, you guessed it YOGA, EAT and REST.

SEASIDE FUN

  Next up is our Friday evening swim, I am not quite sure what to make of this one, our schedule reads….

Garrettstown 6:30pm swim and PLAY in the surf and drink in Kinsale afterwards.

Garrettstown= sandy, sunny, SWEET

PLAY…..I read the words again, ” how odd, what does he mean PLAY” I think quietly, and with that decide to go prepared for anything BUT I will put on a playful suit, it is bright colors and shimmery like a fish, a refreshing change from the morbid black suits I have been sporting all week. So off we go, Robbin and I, we drive 20 minutes to Garrettstown through beautiful rolling hills, passing through a little village and finally following a winding road alongside the beach that drops us into Garrettstown, my jaw drops slightly….it is a delightful long sandy beach, no threatening cliff faces or crashing white foamy waves, this is a paddle at the seaside type beach…how lovely.

 We stand on the roadside chatting with some of the other swimmers awaiting instructions on the night’s swim, while we are waiting we get talking about Feed, I have brought some Lemon Lime Maxim to give Billy’s Mum Neave, they are interested in trying some out, ” I have 2 big tubs with me” I told Neave this morning, ” I’ll bring you some of mine”, I do, while we are chatting Kevin tells me that he uses electrolyte free Maxim, he explains that it is better without the electrolytes due to the salt water you take in over long periods of ocean swimming, thanks to Kevin I file away the suggestion and make a mental note to search the stuff out whenI get back home.

Time for a playful seaside paddle swim

 After a bit Ned says…” OK we play in the surf for a bit then off to Jowita’s home for dinner”, I am still processing “play” for a bit, hmmm that means not jump in and pound out strokes until my body will no longer obey my mind…. ” interesting concept”! So into the water we go and wouldn’t you know it the water feels WARM, and I feel RELAXED, off we go into the water, my mind is singing the song from last night…..

don’t you know you better swim, swim, swim, swim , swim swim

I take some long  strokes and the water feels great, Alan, Finbar, Ned, Billy, Kevin are coming out past the breaker waves with me, we start meandering along swimming parallel to the shore, we are heading towards a big bunch or rocks, we stop here and there to chat, float, duck and dive and guess what? This is the most exciting bit for me, I  CAN TALK….we pull all up treading water in a circle and I can TALK, yip I can chat with the boys and I am thrilled with myself, all week I have watched the other swimmers happily tread and chatting in the water and I, the POPSICLE STICK have had my jaw frozen shut only letting out mumbles and slurred words, now I get to hang with the big kids and converse WHAT FUN!

 We swim along to the big rock pile at the end of the beach and swim back, a surf ride in on miniture waves, into change at the car and off to Jowita’s for the yummiest Pumpkin soup ever, we are home by 9pm, my earliest night back since we arrived in Ireland.

7 Days Complete: 70 kilometers, a little shy of 45 miles

GET READY FOR THE NEXT CHALLENGE

What could  be next?

Saturday 10am TORTURE SWIM, how far, how fast, how long, to where….no one knows!

Closing Thought: To achieve all that is possible we must attempt the impossible

Success is a Peace of Mind: Sandycove Island Style

July 23, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Thursday

 Today is race day, day 6 of 9, up at 4:30am to stretch and load myself with fuel which consists of Porridge, bananas, a dash of milk and a sprinkle of sugar, then 2 poached eggs and toast, a hot cup of Barrys teas and a 500ml hot Maxim and water to go on the way to swim number one of today, my belly feels full and I can feel the heat of the food from the inside out.

 This morning the air is crisp, 8.5 degrees Celsius crisp (47 F ish),  the water a bit warmer than the air at 11-12 degrees Celsius (51.8-53.6 degrees), it is a beautiful morning, it is a morning offering an extra lashing of cold, I rub my warm belly as I look out to sea, ” come on porridge, share the warmth while I’m in the water”.

Sandycove Island, photo from Ned

 TIDE’S OUT

This morning the island looks unrecognizable compared to the other mornings, this morning we drive down the narrow windy road towards Sandycove Island, as we round the last corner it is not the familiar image you see above it is this……..

Low Tide Rocks and Weeds are silently waiting to add to the challenge

Morning meeting complete me and the other swimmers scatter to out various spots to get ready for our penguin plunge, today the grease is extra cold making it even harder for Robbin to smear on, cap, goggles, ear plugs and we are off for the ‘ hike” in to swim, with the tide being low, there is no ” walk the plank” off the slipway, we trudge across the sand and rocks, this morning I learn a ‘low tide lesson”…..

LOW TIDE = ROCKS, SEAWEED AND KELP

 We are off swimming, (or is it scrambling), I chase Ned as he weaves in and out of the rocks and drives through the seaweed, my tactic of slithering over the rocks to take a short cut is a rookie mistake, the rocks are sharp and covered with razor sharp barnacles, like needles on a porcupine ” you will regret getting too close”, and me the clumsy puppy does exactly that, I slice my foot on the top of the rock, fortunately I have little feeling in the foot at the time so am oblivious to the gash while I am swimming, I feel just a bump andwith not much blood going to my foot there can only be a small stream of blood, if any leaking from it as I lap around the island.

 Next trick is the seaweed and Kelp, I must say although I find this slow to pull through it appears to be warm, it wraps around my neck, my arms, feet and waist like a blanket, once it is wrapped it is tricky to shake off, it all looks like a Halloween forest down there, all sorts of dark shapes of different sizes, some look like massive mutated house plants gone wrong.

 The first 2 corners of the island are the ones that are the rockiest and weediest, I slip and slither, pull and push my way through and then sprint to catch up to Ned, I know that without his expert navigation I will have a much longer and tougher swim this morning, his strong pace is great for me to swim along with.

 So we are off around the back side of the island, no more sheltered water of the cove, it is noticeably cooler this morning, not only the water but the air, I am noticing the driving cold of my head, it aches with the cold, my feet have already ice blocked up but the good news is my hands have not clawed and my midsection feels toasty warm, I can feel the warm porridge sitting in my belly radiating heat like a pot belly stove AND I feel strong. What fun I am enjoying myself this morning, what progress from the horror show swim on Saturday morning just 5 days ago, either I am starting to show signs of acclimatization or my brain been tricked into thinking this hijinx is normal stuff, either way I’ll take it.

 Around the back side things get rough, there is a keen swell and the waves are picking up, I am jostled about by the waves, sometimes I am picked up and dropped away from Ned, sometimes the swell knocks me straight into Ned, then we hit corner 3 the incoming tide picks us up and we surf in super fun, I get to swim around for 3 laps and each time I look forward to  the surf in around the back corner, before I know it it is time for the final 800 meter sprint to Cape Gris, we pull through the current along side the red house and into the slipway, EXCELLENT, GOOD TIMES!

 The cold did once more get the better of me today, Robbin shuffles me up the slipway, I stumble, mumble and slur ” Tanks Blobbin Zinzibar” to her as she wraps me in a towel, 2 blankets and thrusts a hot chocolate in my shaking hands. I am thrilled my brain is still functioning even if my body has started to shunt blood away from my extremities.

 How far today….3 Laps 4.5 km

How Fast…our first 2 laps were Lap 1= 23 minutes

                                                                 Lap 2 = 24 minutes

 I like the faster pace, next up off to feed and rest up for tonight’s swim, back at Sandycove for a 2 Lap swim at my top speed, I am told it is a RACE, I LOVE TO RACE.

Closing Thought:

” Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best that you are capable of doing”

John Wooden

The surest way to not fail, is to be determined to succeed

July 18, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

7-9pm Speckled Door or around Sovereigns

 Thereit is tonight’s swim in black and white on my schedule, we meet at Sandycove Island, it is a stormy night with a blustery wind and driving rain, the sea reflects the mood of the current weather it is gnarly and unpredictable looking, we hover around Ned for our meeting…..

We swim up the coast along the cliffs to land pieces out there, there is NO exit, you are responsible for when it is time for you to turn around, we swim in groups and pairs after turning around we ride the current back with the incoming tide, Ned looks up the coast, the landmarks are big, things seem further away than they are, they get big fast, if you can see it you can swim it”

No exit point there

 We all scatter to get ready, cap, goggles, ear plugs, grease on and down to the waters edge, I am swimming tonight with Billy, Colm, Carol and Ned, we head down the slip, the air temperature is 14.5 C( 57 ish) the water 11-13 degrees C ( 51.8-55).

Sandycove Island Low Tide

 No launching off the slipway tonight the tide is low, the Sandycove Island lap is unrecognisable to me yet we manage to slither out through seaweed and rocks and with that take to swimming up the coast adjacent to the cliffs, it is the most breathtaking view yet dark and grim all at the same time, the rugged nature of the cliffs, the height of them fascinates me, all while leaving me with a hollow gnawing feeling inside….NO EXIT POINT. That is a fact, the waves are crashing into the cliff face, to try and exit there would not end well knowing how sharp the rocks are and then if you survived the landing where to go and how would someone get you out, nope firmly ingrained in my mind is ” I am swimming this out”

Rocky Cliffs, Sandycove in the background

 So we swim, and we swim, I am enjoying the pace and the rhythm, after a while Ned stops, are you good, ” Yes “I reply, we continue, I can start to make out the shape of the land pieces, they look like tall sea versions of sky scrapper jetting up out of the water, perfectly formed and surrounded by the sea, ” I am going to swim to them tonight, must swim to them”, well looks like my brain has decided that we are swimming the whole enchilada tonight….wonder if my body knows that yet?

 On we swim, our group has turned around to head back, Ned asks ” time for you to turn around?”, ” not yet, a few more minutes”, I reply doing my best to speak clearly and concisely, we swim on the land pieces are getting larger, any thoughts of how to exit and the return swim are gone I want to see the land pieces, ARE WE THERE YET?

 Finally we are, it was worth the effort they are magnificent, so tall, so perfectly formed and what a view from the water. We turn and head for home, swimming with the current is a blast, I feel so fast thanks to the push of the current, back comes the race horse pace and we are off thundering down the coast, I am having FUN, I am getting colder as we swim, I have no choice but to swim with all my might and get back to Sandycove Island FAST, we swim and swim and swim, we come across Colm and the three of us swim together side by side and still I get colder, my feet have lost feeling, that’s OK, I can manage that, my hands claw up, no problem I can manage that but then my speed drops, UH OH, that will take more effort to manage, I pick up my stroke rate, it helps but my arms seem to be spinning there is not as much power in my pull, I stop and look around, ” How far, how far” I repeat it in my head, while I do this I am not swimming, the worst thing I could do, as I am pondering how far I hear a booming voice SWIM, and I put my head down and swim, after a bit I slow again and pick up my head…. ” SWIM, SWIM NOW”, there is that voice again, I obey and put my head down and swim, then I begin to drift away, my mind that is as clear as a bell I hear my son’s voice, he is quoting a line from Family Guy which always makes me laugh ” I might not be able to go to the bathroom by myself but I can STILL DO THAT”, he says it in the funniest voice and pulls a face to match, my frozen jaw gives it’s best impression of a smile…..” Yes I can still do that I can swim home’, with that I hear SWIM, Ned is bellowing loudly at me and I swim and I swim and I swim.

 Soon I can see some tiny specks in the distance, THE RED HOUSE, THE RED HOUSE…IF I CAN SEE IT I CAN SWIM IT”, with that I swim with all I’ve got, the Red House does not get bigger as fast as I would like it too, my mind keeps drifting off and I force it back to THE RED HOUSE, there we are in the inlet it must be less than 500 meters, give it your all DO IT!

 Little did I know Robbin was up on the cliff watching us, worried of course but also amazed, amazed because we had a guide a big seal was leading us home, guiding us in, Robbin could see him porpoising underneath Ned, Colm and me, sometimes behind us and sometimes right underneath, he helped me back, Ned helped me back, swimming beside Colm helped me and my son Soeren spoke to me out there in those cold evening waters, ” you can still do it Mum” and I did.

 Into the car to defrost, Robbin wraps me in blankets, she is soaked from the rain, I thank her for her help in a faint little voice “tank you”, an abbreviated thank you, then Robbin gets her new nickname….amongst my mumbles I say Blobbin Zinzabar, I repeat it many times and we laugh, it sticks.

 Off to the apartment to shower and change we are all heading to Craig’s for dinner and then home to catch some zzzz’s to be ready for another Sandycove Island swim at 6am, 10 swims down 6 more to go, how far have I swum in the last 5 days? 55,000 meters

 Closing thought:  The tougher the job the greater the reward

Sandycove Double Dip Day

July 17, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Wednesday Morning EARLY, today is the first of two swims both leaving from Sandycove Island.

Sandycove Island my new friendly waters

 This morning I awake to a beautiful sky, it shows all the signs of a morning swim with SUNSHINE, ahhhhh YES sweet sunshine to warm my skinny penguin back! I have been wearing a black suit on purpose for every swim so far, black because I know the dark color will draw any heat there is up for grabs from the sun, whether makes a difference or not physiologically I don’t much care, but mentally my primitive brain knows it to be true and I believe the difference is huge on a day the sun is out and I milk it for all it’s worth. Today is such a day.

 Since my visit with Amelda I have been thinking alot about pace, she asked me my pace and I garbled out 100, 200 and 400 meters cruise set paces from the pool….didn’t help much, then I told her my average mile pace from my 25km Open Water swim less than 2 weeks ago, still not there, she was looking for a kilometer/hour pace, one that my English Channel Pilot can use to guage my speed to help him determine a departure time and location from England, all dependent on the conditions on the day and ME!

 Amelda suggested a comfortable pace for 2 laps around Sandycove Island would be the way to get a pace time, after meeting with her I couldn’t wait to give it a ” good old kiwi try”, so this morning I rolled myself out of bed at 4:30am, giving me a little extra time for 20 minutes of Yoga, then breakfast made by Robbin, 2 eggs on toast and porridge, hot tea and 500 mls of Maxim, my carb drink.

 Off to Sandycove we go, we are not late PHEW! The swimmers are milling around chatting, I quietly move towards Ned, ” can I have a word to you in private”? , I ask Ned, we move a few paces away from the chatter of the group, he starts before me, ” you’re not feeling good are you”, ” No I’m GREAT”, I reply, ” you’re always great, aren’t you”, Ned replys back, I think for a moment and smile, ” well yes I am mostly good, well GREAT”. I sense that Ned thought after last nights nose bleed swim and repeated frosty freeze experiences I might be sitting this swim out, or worse the rest of the week, I don’t know for sure if that is what he thought I was going to tell him, I did not ask because what I was asking about was…….” I have a plan this morning, I want to swim 2 laps at a comfortable pace to get a feel for my kilometer per hour pace, will you help me?” YES, said Ned, you set the pace, we will swim 2 laps. I am bubbling with excitement, I love having a mission, I scurry off to get ready to swim.

Ready to take the plunge off the slipway....that's me in the black suit with orange trim, fast swimming Ned is to my right and super nice speedy Carol is in the wetsuit on my left

 Me and all the other penguins make our way down the slipway, one by one we fall off into the water, I am excited this morning not only because of my plan and the sunshine one my back but because today the water feels NICE! Opps did I really say that, yes I did I feel more comfortable today and less like an ice cube in a someones drink, I am able to enjoy stretching out into a comfortable pace, I am taken back by the beauty of all I see under the water, the sea weeds swaying from side to side moving with the swell of the ocean like they are in a waltz, the frothy white foam of the water as it breaks on the rugged rocky sides of Sandycove and the rocks themselves under water, they have the most interesting crevices changing the shade of the rock here and there, then there are the barnacles, fierce little barnacles that cover each rock, I learn today that cutting it too fine where clearance of a rock is concerned results in a short sharp reprimand from the rock, those barnacles are sharp, one little brush of my toe slices it open this morning. There are other things to look at, crabs scuttling along the bottom, seals looking for those crabs and fish, lots of fish darting around this way and that, I wonder when a school of fish all change direction in unison and go in exactly the opposite way whose idea it was…OK which one of you decided to dart that way! None of the little fish fess up and they swim off.

We are off!

  When we get around the back side of the island the sea gets rougher, I am jostled about, Ned and I are swimming along like a pair of bumper boats, WHAM Ned’s hand punches my in the right eye, SMACK my hand punches him in the nose, BAM Ned’s hand punches me in the same spot on the right eye ramming my goggle further into the socket, ” that’s going to leave a mark”, I giggle to myself as we swim on. As we round corner 3 we ride the tide in, too much fun, body surfing in towards the feed station, I LOVE it and although I can’t wait for my hot feed that Owen has ready for me in the dingy I am more excited about swimming around again for lap 2 so I can ride the surf again.

 Feed down and off for lap 2, before I know it we are surfing around the back corner of the island again and we are making the pull for home, the red house is in sight and we make a beeline for it, the Red House is a double edge sword, it is so uplifting because it is the symbol of completion the gateway to the slipway, on the other hand their is a menacing strong current right along side it, you have to give it all you’ve got to make through this current, it is like fighting the dragon in front of the castle.

 We fight, we fight and we fight some more, I turn on my best interpretation of sprinting to the French shore, it is no where in sight, I swim on pulling even harder, Ned begins to pull away, he is so well practiced in sprinting to Cape Gris France, so well in fact that he had the shores of France achieving a solo crossing of the English Channel, his experience shows this morning, regardless I stick to his bubbles and land on the slipway not far behind him.

 What a good result I am not cold, DREAMS DO COME TRUE! I walk out of the water unassisted, thank Ned and talk to Robbin as she and I head to the car to get dressed. What fun. It urns out that 2 laps is 3.1km, I average out my time to round it up to 3.5km and come to the conclusion that this mornings swim was a 3.5km/hour pace, looking back a bit too slow but I certainly did enjoy myself. Another exciting thing is that Amelda has come out to swim, I was hoping she may swim this morning, I want to thank her for all the wonderful information, she in turn has put together some reading material for me which is super helpful, we exchange before she swims, ” are you free this afternoon? I have an hour at 2pm for us to talk a little more”, a beaming smile from me and a “YES! 2pm I’ll be there”

 Robbin and I head back to the apartment, me to shower and stretch, Robbin to wash out all my swim supplies to get ready for the afternoon swim and make me a big brunch, what a wonderful support, I feel thankful.

 After a nap it is off to meet Amelda, I did not nap much instead I sat up in bed writing notes, I want to share my 2 lap pace with Amelda and some other thoughts.

 I pushed some numbers around and listed the following to share with Amelda

 Today’s swim was 54 minutes for 3.1km, rounding up the distance = 3.5km/hour swim pace

Racing 25km my 5km splits were:

# 1 – 5km 1 hour 18 minutes

# 2 -5km 1 hour 23 minutes

# 3 -5km 1 hour 23 minutes

# 4 -5km 1 hour 27 minutes ( wind and waves)

# 3 -5km 1 hour 27 minutes ( wind and waves)

What I like most about this is not just the 7 hours and 1 second swim time but more the consistancy, the first 5km I planned to go out hard, then hold my strongest possible pace with out blowing up, lap 2 and 3 5 km times where within 20 seconds of each other, then the conditions got more challenging slowing my progress, but the exciting thing is my pace stayed steady, laps 4 & 5 within 10 seconds of each other. From this effort I calculated my kilometer per hour pace at a little under 4km/hour.

  With these numbers and a few other thoughts jotted down on my yellow sheet of paper I am off, we once more see Amelda, it is like seeing an old friend, we start immediately talking, I ask her what it was like to take those first few strokes from Dover and what it felt like as she saw the bottom at the French shore….I listen, I can’t write a thing I am memorized by her description, not just the words but her energy, the glow of her face the sparkle in her eyes, it is like she is right back in the channel in the thick of her swim and I am there with her, FANTASTIC!

What a ride for me to live part of that journey with Amelda on this rainy afternoon in Kinsale, Ireland. Then she begins to tell me about crewing for others, she has the best ideas, ones that I would not have thought of, ones that she has learned by experience andwhat she has observed and learned when she has captained a crew, stories of emotional spouses and or partners whose faces and words were not the best motivation for the swimmer, ” the last thing a swimmer needs to do is see a girlfriend or boyfriend in distress shreiking your name while you are swimming”, I shudder,” yes that sounds exhausting”, I think to myself.

  Amelda  says some things I just have to write down….

 NOT GET IN CONTACT WITH NEGATIVITY

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF YOU CAN GET ACCROSS THE CHANNEL

DON’T LOOK BACK THERE IS NOTHING TO BE GAINED BY LOOKING BACK

UPLIFTING IS GREAT

 From there she tells us some crew details…

Only one swimmer communicates with the swimmers at a time

Short concise uplifting  comments or words are best

Big Green poster board to signal 5 minutes to feed time

Big Red poster board to signal time to feed

These are just a few of the wonderful bits of information, in picking your crew swimmers are best, non swimmers are OK as long as they have a task, someone to captain your crew vital.

 I ponder, I have been pondering this for 24 hours, I want to ask this amazing person if she can recommend someone to captain my crew, someone who is a swimmer, someone who has been in the Channel and knows unpredicatability, it is clear I need a captain.

 ” Amelda, it is clear to me that I need a captain to head up my crew, a swimmer who knows the channel, has experience and most importantly clicks and feels right, you are welcome to say no to the following question………. I would like to ask you if you can recommend someone to head up my crew and I can’t ask you that without first asking you if YOU would consider being my captaining my crew, you are amazing and I can’t think of another person in the world I would rather have, it is OK to say no and you do not need to answer right now, I can’t ask you to recommend someone else without first letting you know that you are incredible”

 Amelda smiles, where are you looking to find someone from? she asks, ” anywhere in the world”, I reply. On we chat, so much to talk about so little time, we get one last picture and I open up a bag of goodies that Amelda has brought for me, inside is an English Channel Solo hat, “this is for when you get back onto the boat after reaching France”, a swim cap that says” When the tough get going the Sprinters get out and an English Channel T Shirt ” Nothing great is easy”, how funny I just thought of that the other day and it is a quote from Captain Webb the first man to cross the English Channel.

Me and Amelda I am sporting my gift an English Channel Solo hat, I will not put it on again until I reach France..... one stroke at a time

 What a time, if all I had done in Ireland was meet Amelda it would  be the ” best trip ever” and with that I am off the get ready for tonight’s swim at 7pm.

Later this afternoon as I am getting ready for tonights swim I receive an email from Ned..

Subject Line: Amelda is it

Email Content: Cheers

 I blurt it out to Robbin and we jump for joy around the apartment like two school kids, I keep saying ” pinch me, pinch me Robbin, I can’t believe this is happening, how can this be so, I am the luckiest girl in the world”, as you can see I am quite excited, Amelda said yes, never in my wildest dreams would this happen, I feel Dover racing closer and I could not be more excited.

Closing thought: We do not remember days we remember moments

I will never forget the moment I read that email……. Amelda is it

Skinny Penguin and the stone lickers

July 14, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Swirling Water and Lampreys

This evenings swim is at Muckross Lake in Killarny, it is a 90 minute drive to the lake, as we drive the skies darken and the temperature begins to drop, I have my eyes locked on the temperature reading in the car, each time it drops a degree it is like a dagger to my heart, arrrhhh sounds inside my head and heart, on the outside I am silent. Just Robbin and I are in the car tonight, Alan is off on his adventure to Dover.

 The air temperature continues to drop, now 12 degrees C ( 53.6 F), we arrive at the lake, park and gather round our fellow swimmers for Ned’s debrief, the lake itself is stunning.

Muckross Lake

Two local swimmers are on the beach ready to give us a run down of our course tonight, Mike begins telling us about his home lake, fondly describing all of it’s idiosyncrasies, ” you swim up on the left to trees, then on to the white house, from there cut across to the other side, swim back down on the right, this is one of Ireland’s deepest lakes, it is black because it has a clay base, there is a shelf along the side of the lake, in the center it is essentially a big hole, 80 meters deep, you will notice it colder there, the water will be more turbulent on the way back down the lake, due to the depth drop and temperature change it is like a giant whirlpool, hot pushes cold down, then cold pushes up creating a turbine effect, it spirals up, hits the shoreline and then rolls along the shelf, if you breath to the right it will roll into your mouth when you breath”

We all look up the lake...ahhh....which group of trees Mike?

Someone asks ” which group of trees are you talking about Mike?, Mike replies ” those ones there” and points again.

Those Trees there!

The other thing Mike mentions is the Lampreys, Ned had warned us that there were Lampreys in this lake, Mike reinforced that tonight, ” the Lampreys have been running”, I am not sure what this means but suspect that they are more present at the moment than they have been in the past. One of our swimmers is very afraid, she is terrified of the thought of Lampreys and what it might be like if one pays her a visit while during her swim, her eyes are wide and red rimmed, ” tell me of these Lampreys” she asks Mike, he walks over and says the following in his soft Irish accent with the most comforting tone of voice…..” you’ll be fine, I’ve swum in this lake 1000s of times, for many years and I’ve only ever had one bite…….and that was last week”
We reassure Jowita, ‘ you are going to be OK, you can do this’, with that we get start to move towards the water. Mike and his fellow lake swimmers are armed with a kayak, they are going to paddle up and down the course. Pink fleece off, sweat pants handed to sister Robbin and I take the first step in, WOW this is so slippery you could package it up and sell it as Jelly, Yip the rocks are slick, we are reduced to crawling on our hands and knees to get out into the water, Ned latches onto the kayak for support, I follow suit for a bit and then decide to simply slither along on my belly.

Slippery little suckers....

 Finally we are in the water, Ned begins thrashing around yelling he has been hit by a lamprey, it is quite a dramatic performance, I could swear he had rehearsed it, it lightens the mood, we all laugh ( well maybe not Jowita) and with that we are off.

Boat support takes on a new meaning tonight

Tonight’s course is oval shaped, that means we will be swimming 2.5 km straight down the lake, I pull alongside Ned and instantly fall into a cruise pace, strong, steady and aerobic, I feel great, when it clicks you feel like your body is on autopilot, your body is running like a finely tuned machine, all cylinders firing in perfect harmony, strong and steady, a good push yet in control, I feel like we are thoroughbreds on the track, I feel on top of the world. Ned pulls up and asks ” are you good for 6km”, “Yes”, I blurt out in reply, almost in unison with my reply the skies darken further and it begins to rain, poring rain, I can feel it on my head while I am swimming and pounding on my back, it is cold rain, the temperature feels like it is dropping, nonetheless Ned and I power on, straight back into the rhythm, we pass the white house and swim on eventually scouting across the lake, when we get to the other side I notice the temperature drop just as Mike had said and when I breathed to the right the water seemed to pass and then roll back past my mouth and drop in , it was the strangest thing, I am fascinated and play with it for a bit before following Mike’s wise advice and throwing in some left side breathing.

 It is a wonderful feeling swimming in this Lake, the scenery is beautiful, I think about the Lampreys, I have swum in a Lamprey Lake before, Lake Champlain in Vermont where I train and currently live is said to contain Lamprey, I have seen there ferosuos mouths in photos in the local newspapers, they are considered a pest, posing a threat to the fish.

 Lampreys are a jawless fish, they are sometimes called lamprey eels, they have a toothless, funnel-like sucking mouth, they are well knowen for boring into the flesh of other fish to suck their blood ( some species are non parasitic and never feed on other fish). They pyhsically resemble eels in that they have no scales, they can be 5 to 40 inches long and have large eyes, one nostril on the top of the head and seven gill pores on each side of their heads. Here is how they feed….they attach there mouthparts to the target animals body and then use their teeth to cut through surface tissues until they reach blood and bodily fluid, from there you do the math…” I want to suck your BLOOD!” They generally don’t attack humans unless they are starved, I don’t yet know this but someone is going to get bite tonight, but who!

(Source en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamprey)

 Mike gave us the ” how to” on removing these blood suckers should we find one attached, ” get a good grip close to the head, twist then pull hard”, well I now feel more relaxed, how about you! Actually I do feel relaxed, I have swum round these little devils before, never a bite and if I get one tonight I fully intent to tear the little toad off and toss him away, the funny thing is Lampreys have long been used as food for humans, they were highly appreciated by ancient Romans, during the middle ages they were widely eaten by the upper classes throughout Europe and check this out, on March 4th, 1953, the Queen of the United Kingdom’s coronation pie was made by the Royal Air Force using Lampreys! Ned had shouted revenge of the Lampreys when he was thrashing about in the water when we started, perhaps tonight is the Lampreys turn!

 Amongst all the excitement of Lampreys and fun swimming the air temperature has dropped, my head has been aching cold for some time, I choose to ignore it, my feet got cold earlier and I lost feeling in them, I choose to ignore it, my hands have clawed up, I ignore that too and swim on, I am thrilled that my speed is holding it together, but still something doesn’t feel quite right. I have been fighting this annoying cold all week, each night I have had a fever, burning hot, causing me to sweat, my clothes and sheets dripping wet 2 or more times during my 4.5 hour night sleeps, by day my sinus’s have ached with green mucos stuck inside, pulsing, sometimes I am able to blow some out causing theblood vessels inside mu nose to crack, breaking open so my nose drips with blood. I have been ignoring all of this, I have purposely kept training any time I have got sick over the last 16 months, I am used to the feeling, this thing is not going to stop any of my Ireland swims, if anything adding a bit to the challenge. Still something doesn’t feel quite right as I am swimming the last stretch of this oval loop, I had asked Ned earlier ” can you check my speech at the 5km”, it gave me some comfort knowing he could hear me talk and notice if I take a rediculousl long time to reply to a question or get tongue tied trying to talk. 

Sprint to the Finish

 Mike had told us of a big tall rock that would be our land mark to make the right hand turn to swim back across the lake and into the beach, our finish point, we come across a rock and swim on…not that one, we come across another lake and swim on….not that one, man how many rocks are there? There were indeed quite a few but eventually we made it to the biggest one, our turning rock WAHOO!

 Ned sights the life jacket hung on the tree our landmark for the beach, we take off, I am feeling chilled from the outside inwards, my head, hands and feet are the most painful, I am excited that my stroke remains strong and long, Ned picks up the pace I chase, he is well practiced at sprinting to the Shore of France, I dig my hands deep into the water, firing the muscles in my upper back and abdominals I pull hard with each stroke, it offers me a glimmer of warmth in my midesction, this is good. Iss the slippery rocks appear under my face, next I feel them, WE MADE IT1.

 Next up getting out, back to the slithering on my belly, I pick my head up, it has got quite darkish out, Owen and Robbin are on the beach waiting with blankets and towels, Owen looks distressed, “hmmm what’s up I wonder, have I got Lampreys hanging off me”, nope, not that, unbeknowen to me my lips and chin are covered in blood, ” it looked like you were in a horror film”, Robbin later tells me, poor Owen I must have looked frightful, my nose had been bleeding while I was swimming, when I stops and stood up it all ran down my face, oh well, onwards, Robbin wraps me in a towel, Ned throws a blanket around me and we walk rapidly up to the car, I am thrilled because I can walk and navigate the windy path uphill, EXCELLENT PROGRESS, I am doing better than after many of the other swims.

 Into the car, changed and out for a  hot drink, ” you don’t want to be out here”, says Ned, instantly I see why there are what seems like thousands of little biting bugs swarming around me, I jump back into the car, we drive a few miles down the road park and gather around Ned’s car for hot drinks but the midges follow and many of our fellow swimmers are chowed. We all pile into cars and are off for the 90 minute drive home throught the pouring rain, into bed after a hot shower, 20 minutes of Yoga and some food, the alarm is set for 4:45am, up again in 4.5 hours.

 So did someone take a hit from a Lamprey, YES, Gary from ” up North’ has bite marks, just a half circle, looks like the Lamprey didn’t get a good hold on him and did Jowita complete the swim, yes she did it, did she like it NO, but I tell you what a couragous person, she faced her demons head on and conquored the lake, awesome job Jowita.

 Next up: Sandycove Island 6am and I have a plan……what is it I will tell you tomorrow.

Nearly time to swim with the Lampreys!

July 13, 2011 By Charlotte Brynn

Tuesday Evening: Swim # 2

Location: Muckross Lake- Killarney

After this mornings fresh water swim Robbin, Alan and I loaded into ” Pooh Bin” and followed Ned to Cork, the plan for the middle of the day is to practice feeding off Ned’s boat in Cork Harbour, I am excited to try this and get pointers on how to receive a feed and how my crew can best deliver it to me.

Owen, the youngest Irishman to swim the English Channel and historian, he has a wealth of information about the history of Ireland

 Ned launches the boat and Robbin, Alan and I all climb in along with Owen, our Irish host. The day is stormy the rain comes and goes as we motor out into the Harbour. While we drive Ned is telling stories of swims that have been held in the harbour and stories of Channel swimmers, meanwhile Owen is spurting out the most incredible historical information on not only the Harbour but also Ireland itself…..there is the last pot of call of the Titanic, there is the British navel base, the list goes on and I am fascinated skipping in and out of Ned’s stories, into Owen’s and back again, it is terrific. While all this is going on I am loading up on my Carbo drink Maxim in an effort to recover from this mornings swim and prepare for tonight’s, I have also downed a good amount of water. The boat tour goes on, I can’t believe how much we are seeing, Ned points out our Church Bay swim from last night, it is so great get a perspective of where we have swum.

The Titanic's last port of call, this is the last port some of the passengers aboard would ever see again

 Time ticks by, the Harbour starts getting rougher and the boat leaps up and down as it travels across the waves, I start to notice that I have that  “I have to pee feeling”, ” OK don’t worry, we are out here to practice feedings, just politely ask Alan if you can swim first, then you can pee in the water as soon as you get in, just wait, just wait”! I do wait and I wait and I wait some more….. 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes…I JUST CAN’T WAIT ANYMORE!!!!”

 Ned, can we please stop I have to get in to pee,” if you want to get in but I would be hanging off the back of the boat, your choice”, Ned replies matter of factly. The boat stops and Ned, Alan and Owen all turn their back away, Robbin is in the back with me and I go about navigating holding onto the back rail of the boat with one arm, the other manoeuvring my sweat pants and swim suit to make sure I don’t pee on them. Well I start peeing, I would be mortified to pee on Ned’s boat and to prevent it hold my deepest squat all while holding on with my right arm, I continue to pee, and pee, and pee and pee……and pee, my arm begins to burn, it is fatiguing holding my 137 pound frame, my thighs are burning and still I pee on. Well I start to get the giggles, ” I’m OK back here I laugh”, the boys remain facing forward in the most silent way, ” Still going’, I say and continue to pee, minutes go by, ” Hurry up” I am thinking to myself, ” I promise I am not a Camel”, again working hard not to a. Fall in and b. Laugh so loud they think I have something other than Maxim in my drink bottle. Finally I am done and Robbin hauls me back into the boat, we motor on looking at more historical buildings, I am feeling much more comfortable and then wouldn’t you know it Robbin had to go pee too!

Me, Alan, Ned and Owen Cork Harbour

 All that squared away we drive the boat onwards. Ned pulls up the boat, it is time to practice feeding, Alan goes first, he falls into the harbor and swims alongside the boat for a few minutes, we lean over and pass him his feed, he downs it super fast under 10 seconds, drops the bottle and swims on, we all applaud, he did great! Than it is my turn, I jump into the water, relieved at another chance to pee, I swim long easy strokes beside the boat, Robbin leans over the side and passes me my feed, I down it, not as quickly as Alan but still under 20 seconds, then I make an error, I start putting the top back down on my bottle, ” drop and go, don’t throw” yells Ned, I know to do it but old habits die hard and I was automatically putting on the top and about to toss it to my crew, LESSON LEARNED….” Gulp’n Go” , this is not a tea party. Back into the boat and we motor back to the boat launch, since we left the tide has gone out, a yacht that was happily in the water when we left is now bone dry leaning against the jetty, Owen tells us that the tides cause the water level to lower and us over 25 feet, it is amazing.

Harbour swim and boat feed complete, time to wrap up, I am pleased!

 We follow Ned back to his house, on arrival he says ” your job now is to shower and scrub up the best you can for lunch”, we do, I have a bag of clean ” street clothes”, it feels great, when I come down stairs I smell a BBQ and see a table set up with all sorts of treats. The 5 of us sit down for what feels like a lunch fit for Kings and Queens, BBQ sauasages, seared fresh Tuna, a selection of cheeses and a baguette, I tell you I have not eaten a sausage off the Barbie in over 20 years…it was insanely good and I swallowed down a few more along with Tuna, then Ned pulled out Vermont’s finest ” Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, NO WAY!

 Well with our tunnies full, I am feeling content, time is ticking on and it is time to head back to Kinsale to get ready for tonight’s swim, before we leave Ned takes us into to his office, we see maps of swims he has completed and swims he is planning, then there is “the big map” on the wall of the English Channel, out comes a slew of information, he points out Cape Gris the ultimate landing point  in France, I am amazed at how small it is, then he shows us all the other possible landing points, some less appealing than others, it is such an experience to listen to him, both Robbin and I learn so much from Ned and from Donal another Channel Swimmer who shares his knowledge as well.

 We say our farewels to Ned, Donal and Alan. Alan and Donal are heading to Dover for the day tomorrow to let Alan get the “Dover feel” and see France, I am excited for him and am looking forward to hearing of his experiences when he returns on Thursday.

 We make it back to our Apartment and go about changing and packing up for tonight’s swim, within an hour we are in town ready to meet Craig, then we are off to yet another lake tonight, this one is reportedly the home to a good population of blood sucking Lamprey…..”something new to think about while swimming tonight!”, I think to myself.

 Will I be a” latch on Lamprey victum?”…….I’ll keep you posted!

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Charlotte Brynn, Marathon Swimmer, Channel Swimmer, Ice Swimmer, Exercise Specialist

55 Marathon Swims, 2x International Ice Swimming Association Mile (1st New Zealander)

World Open Water Swimming Association’s (WOWSA) 50 Most Adventurous Open Water Women list – 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019

World Open Water Swimming Association’s (WOWSA) list of top women open water coaches and mentors in the world 2018

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