The time is near…..

 Another swim complete yesterday in Dover Harbor, this time a 2 hour, again I feel fortunate to have the company of some fellow Cork Distance week swimmers today, Jennifer Zwijen and Helen Gibbs welcome me with warm smiles, I check in with Freda the ” General”, and then line up for grease application, fantastic, Barry is there smearing grease under armpits and on necks, no greasy hands for me, what a  luxury.

  Then it is down to the water, the tide is out, we walk a long way out in the sand, there are supporters collecting our flip flops in bags so they do not wash away when the tide comes back in, these guys have this dialed in, what a treat. The swim is over quick, I  head back to the trailer to shower, eat and rest, Jenny is swimming a 6 hour, I scurry back to the beach by 3:30 to say goodbye to her…….

Colm arrives………

 

 Later this evening Colm arrives, my Irish swimming pal, it is fun to meet his family and we set up a plan to go see our pilot in the morning followed by a 1 hour swim in Dover Harbor, I turn in for the night withthoughts of meeting our pilot and seeing SUVA tomorrow, SUVA is the escort boat for both Colm and I, he is number 1 slot, I am follow him in slot number 2.

 Time to meet our Pilot and boat SUVA…..

 

 9:30am rolls around, Colm, his wife Maria, their 2 boys and I head off to Dover Marina, before you know it we are there, meet Neil Streeter and SUVA….

 On to the boat I climb, followed by Colm, it is much tighter than I had anticipated, the deck is small, I look down into the cabin  and step down, there is a galley, somewhere to heat water and a sink, being in the boat makes things seem very ” right now”, after 2 and a half years of preparation it is close and I am about to find out, closer than I think.

 Neil starts talking about tides, ” Colm, you should be prepared, there is a possibility that you go between 1:00 and 3:00am on Wednesday morning, I look at Colm and he looks at me, I sense we are both doing the math…..” that is tomorrow night”, I think, ” that puts me Thursday, game on”, my mind clicks into gear, “time to get ready Vermont Kiwi”.  We listen to Neil some more and figure out we are not going to know for sure today, we say goodbye and head off the boat and make our way to Dover Harbor.

Dover  Harbor

 

 The beach is deserted, but for a few hardy souls, we change ready to swim, ” we will not be as long as you”, says Maria, Colm’s wife, I am super impressed that Maria and the boys are taking a dip too.

 Our swim feels great, I am amazed at the volatility of the weather here, all within an hour we experience torrential squally wind, but we finish up the swim happy and stop by the Whippy truck for a creamy.

 Next up shower, food, nap and off to the grocery store to collect my final provisions, all the gear is ready to be packed up tomorrow, but not until later in the day, for in the morning I drive to London to pick up Jeff, Heidi and Soeren from the airport, I am excited to see them, Cynthia arrives around in around 1:00am Wednesday morning along with Deb and Paula, not all are coming on the boat, but all are supporting.

 Finally there is another who may make it on the boat, I’ll keep tight lipped on that one until I have confirmation but a wise Channel swimmer who I hold in the highest regard just may be able to make the earth shake and appear for my swim.

 When will I get the nod to swim? 70% chance it is Thursday August 9th

What time?  I will keep you posted.

Closing Thought:

                   Conviction ( believe in what you’re about to do)

                                                                        – author unknown

 

 The White Cliffs of Dover….

 My first view of the White Cliffs of Dover, it takes my breath away, they blast upwards from the sea, I am amazed by how high they are, they dominant the landscape and can be seen from miles away, that is why the swimmers who have gone before me pass down the same advice time and time again, ” don’t look back, the white cliffs of Dover will never disappear”, sound advice indeed.

 I stop by the Battle of Britain Memorial which is nearby, it over looks the Channel, in 1940 Hitler was launching massive attacks to gain the airborne superiority it needed, it is said that he and his highest ranking officers would stand on the French coast and look towards the White Cliffs of Dover, what he didn’t anticipate was that fewer than 3000 Englishmen, including 600 from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA, Ireland and many other countries would stand firm day after day protecting England and eventually force Germany to abandon plans of invasion, those White Cliffs must have been taunting Hitler as England prevailed.

 Back at my trailer, my home for the next 14 days I go about unpacking my gear and the groceries I have picked up from the store, I landed at 7:30am this morning and am forcing myself to stay up until 9:30pm tonight, a guarantee of a good night’s sleep and slotting into my new time zone. My plan is to join the Dover Channel swimmers at 9am tomorrow morning for my first Dover Harbor swim.

 I awake at 7:00am, the rain is teaming on the roof of the trailer, I pull the covers up, for a brief moment I think about staying in bed, ” after all you have just arrived”, I say to myself and quickly add, ” what are you new around here? You never bag out of a swim”, and with that I jump up, pull on my suit, warm clothes and my rain jacket, I down some porridge and am out the door, I am excited to see Dover Harbor, a 10 minute drive and there it is, just as I imagined….

 The sky looks grim, as I pull up to park I notice two familiar faces, Bryn and Sarah who were at Cork Distance week in Ireland are parked in front of me, suddenly the skies brighten, I am happy….

 Dover Harbor Swim

 Bryn introduces me to Freda, “the General”, she clasps my hand tightly and welcomes me, we get our caps, goggles and air plugs situated and head down to the water, Sarah gives me tips on where to swim, ” stay near the red hats”, she says, I nod and busy myself with finding out what and where the red hats are.

 In we go, I am anxious to feel the water, ” will this feel like the jaw clenching cold Irish waters, or the silky smooth tempid summer Vermont waters I have just left?”, I ponder the question as I dive under and swim, the water feels somewhere in between, it feels good. I swim 2 hours and get out, I say farewell and thankyou to the Dover beach crew, then head off to shower.

 Dover Marina

 On the way back to my trailer I stop by Dover Marina, this is where the boat SUVA, is docked and near where my pilot Neil Streeter will pick me and the crew up, I take a few moments to look around…..

 Then off rest up, tomorrow another trip to swim in Dover Harbor with Freda and the Dover training group, the water temperature was 62 degrees today, it was very windy, good practice for me being jostled about.

 Closing Thought:       Never look back 

 

 

Me, Paula Yankauskas, Cynthia Needham, Margaret Haskins, Jennifer Kimmick

Farewell Vermont…….. 

 You guessed it time to wrap up my final training week in Vermont, a 3 hour swim this morning and my goal for the week is complete, 38 miles , lucky for me I have some company today to clock up those final miles, as I swim the final laps in my home waters of the Green River Reservoir, I reflect on how familiar every shoreline, every tree and hill top has become, the taste of the water  and the smell in the air have become like a comfortable old pair of slippers,  through so many hours of swimming my senses have heightened throughout the course of this journey, I know exactly where I am in the lake just by the feel of the water, silky smooth around picnic island, a cool pocket of water where the cold springs are approaching Blueberry Island and finally there are the smells, not an odor, more like a presence in the air that I have become very in tuned too, a mossy earthy smell in Italy, a light playful smell around one tree, I savor these today, farewell Vermont lake, I linger the picture of my favorite spots in my mind…….

 The cat and the duck take it in too……….

Here is One Tree, one of my favourites, Deb usually grabs plant life from the shallow waters as we go around one tree island, she thinks I don’t see her, but I do, then she throws it at me from the kayak, it usually hits me my back, or smack in my face, I always try to hide, but she always hits me and I always laugh.

 Time for Goodbyes…..

 You think next on the list would be a rest, not yet, my mind is in top gear, much to prepare in the way of final packing and logistics. Out comes my equipment list, feed list and crew supplies lists, I start ticking things off as they go into the bag, only thing left now is too muscle the bags shut and zip her up, there done.

 That’s me, the one looking beat…….

Next up it is off to say goodbye to my some of fellow swimmers at The Swimming Hole, many of these swimmers helped keep me company through the long snowy Vermont Winter months when I was training indoors at The Swimming Hole…..

 

Time to head to the Airport

That’s me and my sister Robbin, we give each other an extra big hug……..

 

Then final goodbyes at the airport, I am thrilled to have family to send me off….

Wells Up time for this Vermont Kiwi to fly

 

  The plane door closes, I can feel my heart thumping, I am closing in on the Channel, a mere overnight flight to the United Kingdom, a few hours driving after that and I will be in Dover and take my first ever look at English Channel, I am heading to Dover 5 days early to allow plenty of time to recover from the trip and to have a chance to size up the Channel before we meet I meet the Channel and the Channel meets me.

Will I see the White Cliffs of Dover tomorrow? I’ll keep you posted

 Closing Thought: To reach your destination you have to keep moving

                                      – Charlotte. J.Brynn

 

 

Rain, Rain come out to play…. 

Vermont is turning on ideal conditions for my final full week of training prior to my departure to England, the overnight temperatures have dropped into the lower 50’s, it has been stormy, oh and the rain has come down with a vengeance, shear pelting it down. Do I cancel my training? Of course not, it is 3:30am up and at em. I am due to leave at 4:15am to meet Paula and Deb at the lake, time to bust out the head lamps ready to start our 3 hour excursion, we will start in the dark and swim into the sunrise, well in today’s case the cloudy, rainy rise, no sun today, Paula gets supplies ready for the kayak….

 

 Out into the unknown……..

 Deb launches the kayak, Paula slides into the water, I reluctantly peel off my cozy sweatshirt and sweat pants and slide under the water, I stroke  towards the kayak which is lit up with a blue light stick wrapped around ” Cat Stanley”, and a headlamp on Deb, if you are just joining us on the English Channel adventure let me give you a little background, ” Cat Stanley”, is a life sized cat that sits on the front of Deb’s kayak, he wears what looks like a collar, however it is actually a GPS Tracker to track distance, ” Cat Stanley”, has had many intrigued lookers while we have been out swimming over the last few years of training, he has clocked hundreds upon hundreds of miles and remains quiet, composed and humble, never a complainer he doesn’t say much, he has fallen in the water a few times( luckily we have learned he can float), one day he had a bright blue wig plopped on his head mid swim, highly entertaining for me…I roared with laughter. Here is ” Cat Stanley” on one of our previous swims, it is bright and sunny, not like today…..

 

 

 

 This morning it is dark, black dark, I am swimming on feel, I can’t see where the dark color of the water finishes and the dark of the night starts, to me it all blends into one, the rain is pouring, the air cool, it is over an hour before I can make out Deb in the kayak, when the skies lighten enough for me to see her I notice she is drenched, the heavy rain is bouncing in, under and off her black jacket, pants and cap, to add insult to injury every stroke I take I splash her even more, she doesn’t miss a beat, giving me my pick up signal when it is time to increase my speed, reaching over my feed bottle when it is time for me to eat and entertaining me by tossing various forms of plant life on my back, or displaying one of my favourite rubber ducks to make me laugh, it all lightens my mood tremendously, I feel fortunate to have Deb by my side.

 The second hour comes and goes, slippery little peaches get inhaled at my 2 hour feed and my energy surges, time to bring it home strong for the last hour, I step up the pace, Paula stays right on my left swimming strong beside me, it doesn’t seem possible, but somehow the rain gets even heavier, it feels like an aqua massage on my back, the rain drops feel like the size of gumballs, hundreds being launched at my back from the sky above, I glance over at Deb, she remains composed and paddles on….

  One More Lap Around Blueberry……..

 Then I here those magical words, ” just one more lap around Blueberry”, I’ve heard it many times before, a mere 30 minutes or so to get around Blueberry Island, ” I love going around Blueberry Island, I know I can do that, I know I can”, it is the common theme in my mind when I hear, ” just one more lap around Blueberry”.

 So off we go for our final lap, the rain pelting down, Deb takes off her glove and dives her hand under water, the water is warmer than the air today, ” she must have cold hands, how miserable, wish I could wrap her in my cozy water blanket to warm her up”, I think.

Swim Hard France is close…..

 We turn for home, I am ready for my final sprint to shore, my stroke rate builds, my under pull gets stronger too, I dig deep for the final push and I breathe harder as we move closer to shore, “time to open her up”, I think, I do and before I know it the shallow waters appear beneath me, we are done. I am very pleased,  a rainy night swim with a good clip, very satisfying indeed.

I paddle over to Deb for my end of swim Jelly Babies, ” Great stuff today, thanks so much for being out here, Oh and Deb, it’s still raining, looks like I am going to get wet getting out”, I say with a giggle, ” Yes, you are”, says Deb with an impish grin, and with that we go about packing up and heading home.

Will there be more Vermont Rain this week? I’ll keep you posted

Closing Thought:

  “Within each of us is a hidden store of determination”

–Roger Dawson

 

11 Days and Counting Down…..

11 Days, that’s what it has come down to, a mere 11 days until I board the big iron bird that will fly me to England and there is still much to do, including high mileage in the water, strength training, flexibility and my regular body work sessions to help keep my body and mind finely tuned, work and family responsibilities.

 It has been a good week of swimming, my body quickly recharged itself after last weekends 16 mile Vermont to New York return swim, and today I am up at 4:30am ready to hit it again, today a 5 hour swim, the night air has been cool the last few days, back to burying myself under the comforter at night, I rise before the prompt of my alarm and peer out the window to see dew on the lawn, the car and a misty fog sprawling over the low lying hills….

 Down the stairs to mix my 9 feeds, toss some slippery little peaches in a  container and grab a handful of Jelly Babies.

 Robbin is up too, she is simmering porridge on the stove and gathering her gear, she is the first shift in the kayak this morning. Into the car we go, what a gift of a morning, ” time to take in the moment”, I think as I watch the sun come up from behind the mountains, the sun looks like it is saying ” time to play, come on Charlotte, I’ll lead the way, let’s hit the lake”. So me and the sun have a great start to the day, we soon get situated at the waters edge, Robbin in the kayak, me and Paula swimming, the water is mirror flat, the morning fog is so thick I can barely make out the shape of the long gray kayak, no Robbin in my view.

Feeding Time

 We swim and swim, today the first 30 minutes is a long time in coming to a close but it does and it is time to feed, Robbin hands me my cup, down with the drink, ” you can’t see a thing, can you?”, she declares, ” Nope, you can poke your tongue out at me and I won’t know it”, I reply, things remain this way for the while, by one hour the sun has won the battle with the fog and it streams down on the lake, it feels like the sun is creating paintings, there are reflections in the water that look like a brightly colored watercolor painting, beautiful.

 The pace remains steady, hour by hour, feeds come and go, Robbin taps out at 2.5 hours and Cynthia takes command of the kayak, paddle in hand, more feeds come and go,  I look forward to downing my slippery little peaches at both my 2 hour and 4 hour feeds, I like to make quite a production out of it by tipping back the cup, sliding them all in my mouth at once,peaches stick out of both sides of my mouth, then comes the arrrggg mmmmm arrrrgggg sounds to show my crew how much I am enjoying the little devils, when I down a feed of peaches I feel like a seal.

Nail the Finish

 

 The homestretch is here, my 4.5 hour feed is complete, I am on my way back to the shore, in my mind I am pulling hard towards the shores of France, this is what a have been working towards today a good quality finish with long strokes, each one with a strong  underwater pull, I set the intention, ” pick it up by 15 %, swim in control, now pull harder, hold the feel, bring it home now, build your speed,  nail the finish”, I run the commands through my mind, to me the shores are the French shores and I am driving it in to the finish, the bottom gets clearer, shallower, shallower, BAM, shore, done. I am pleased.

Homeward Bound

 What a great swim, we load the kayak on the car, say our goodbyes and I head home, shower, inhale lunch and nap.

 I feel quite sprightly post swim today, but after my nap “Channel Fatigue” sets in, I plop myself down at the desk and finalize plans for next week’s training schedule. I take a moment to reflect on last night,  a night out in celebration of my father in law’s Birthday, a happy occasion and one I was excited to share, yet there was I propped up in a chair to prevent myself slumping forward and dozing off, after dinner as usual these days I thanked everyone for their company and went home early, leaving my family to continue celebrating. Today I read a timely comment from a Channel Swimmer

 ” Channel Swimmers make significant sacrifcies to swim just as importantly do their familes, the biggest sacrifice is time and things for other people”

    – Donal Buckley

 Well written Donal, a moment to thank my family and friends for their sacrifices along this journey.

 What’s Up Next? 3 Hour Swim tomorrow

How will it go? I’ll keep you posted

Closing Thought:

      “Behind every able man there are always other able men”

– Chinese Proverb

 

 

 

 Nothing like an adventure and today is shaping up to be just that, I wake before the alarm at 3:00am, suit on, sun lotion applied, now time to get together the final bits and bobs before our 4:00am departure, I go about scooping up my gear, Jeff downs his coffee and my sister Robbin rustles up some delicious scrambled eggs, followed by porridge.

 Cynthia, Deb and Paula arrive, we pile into 2 cars and are on the road, there is little traffic and before we know it we are at the Charlotte Marina, as we go by the flag pole I notice the flags, they are all dancing in the wind, hmmmm, I contemplate the implications, perhaps a little wave action today. For now the Marina is calm, Jeff loads the boat…….

 

  We stack our bags up front and off to one side, all aboard, Jeff drives, Cynthia casts off, it is 6:15am when we leave the marina, the sun is rising in the sky, it is a glorious day, ” this has been one of the most amazing things I have been fortunate to experience on this journey to the Channel, the magical sunrises and sunsets during swims”, I think quietly to myself, we motor out into the Lake….

 The GPS

 This trip we have my friend Tricia’s GPS, she has kindly printed a map of the Lake with Waypoints marked and lent us her handheld GPS to help navigate, as we pull out from Charlotte Marina all the islands and peninsula’s seem to blend into one land mass, ” this way” we all decide, the boat picks up speed and motors out into the Open Lake, ” funny the arrow on the GPS is pointing in the opposite direction”, Cynthia and I say in a quizzing way, ” must be off a bit”, we comment, reassuring each other that we are not sure that we are going in the right direction but there is no way the GPS is correct, how could it be right?

  We drive and we drive, ” that’s 4 miles already”, says Jeff, you guessed it we are off in the wrong direction, we turn the boat around and retrace our steps, now let’s all repeat after me, ” The GPS is never wrong”, yep, you guessed it, we made a minor detor, but on the up side,  it is beautiful, sheltered from the wind and calm, we all laugh and enjoy the scenery…

 

 We finally make our way to Burlington, including our detour we have covered 17 miles in the boat already, one of the two gas tanks is close to empty, ” fuel up?”, I ask Jeff, he agrees, I pull out my phone and trusty goggle takes us to a fuel dock, well near it anyway, Cynthia eyeballs us to the actual pumps, thanks Cynthia. We tie up the boat and see the hand painted sign on the wall hours 8:00am – 8:00pm, I glance at my phone, 7:15am, ” Oh dear”.

 

 The Best Plans are flexible…..

 

 We discuss the options and all decide better to wait here 45 minutes than to run out of gas during the last leg of our swim, ” we have plenty to do, reapply sun lotion, go over feeding plans, the Spot Tracker tracking system and grease up”, I say.

  We plop ourselves on the dock, I take the time to reread the instructions of the new GPS Spot Tracker, I activated it yesterday, it is set up to send out a location every 10 minutes to a shared web page that viewers can follow to see our progress during the swim. By 8:00am all the final details are double checked, fuel tanks are topped off and we are on route to Oakledge Park our starting location, we arrive to see much of the beach closed due to Blue Green Algae, ” there is a section open”, I announce merrily, Blue Green Alge can’t be in that 10 feet, right”?, I laugh.

Paula and I jump off the boat, Paula jumps first, I follow…..

 The water feels great, it is shallow we half swim, half wade into shore, time to clear the water, I stand on the beach and watch as Paula swims out and gets her fins and hand paddles on, she raises on arm to give me the sign that she is ready to go, I enter the water, the stop watch starts we are off…

 Rough Waters

 As soon as we make our way out of the bay I feel to wind gusting, the waves hit my back and jostle us around, the New Zealand flag on the back of the boat dances in the wind, I work to find a rhythm and time my breathe to avoid a throat full of water, Paula swims strongly beside me, she doesn’t miss a beat in the waves.

 Our first feed arrives, Deb feeds Paula, Cynthia feeds me, Maxim a-la-fishing pole, I snag the feed up and am swept away from the boat by the waves, the line lets out, feed down, I drop the cup and swim away, Cynthia reels in the feed cup with the pole like she has just caught a big fish, a  “Maxim Fish”, we swim on, one feed goes by after another, by my 4th feed I notice something, ” hey my Maxim tastes weird”, I keep my mouth shut, drink it, then swim on.

  The next feed is a fruit punch flavored Maxim, I tentatively swallow, ” sweet, this tasted great”, I suck it down in 20 seconds and swim on, then I notice something else, ” why are we still seeing Vermont”, I ask myself angrily, I glare at the crew, ” Why is there land on my left?”, I crossly think again, my mood shifts, I am ticked off, ” what are they doing, New York is across the lake not down it”, each stroke I take slaps the water angrily, ” Hey, Lady, you are swimming, your job is to follow, not question, besides they have a better view than you, a map and a GPS, SHUT UP AND SWIM”, you got it I give myself a good swift kick in the pants, ” you know this stuff, now behave and swim”, I do, I pull my socks up and get down to business, the pace picks up and I no longer look for Vermont, or New York, I just swim, things feel great, the waves are good training, the only thing is that the feeds are tasting worse, I down them anyway, I know I must take in every drop.

“Where did you swim from?”

 On we swim, I notice big sailboats alongside the boat, every now and then Cynthia, Deb and Jeff point and wave there arms at a boat to alert it that there are swimmers in the water, suddenly I see shoreline to my left, the boat pulls up and Paula and I swim in to shore alone, I sight and see a beach, ” sweet, no cliff to climb up”, as it gets shallow I notice zebra mussels on the rocks, ” wonder if they’re sharp”, I ask myself as I let my hand brush over them, ” Yip, sharp”, I decide to go on the “float in on the belly technique” and take the possible shredding of my suit rather than my feet, now it is too shallow to belly float, I crawl on hands and feet, I clear the water and  shoot my hands up,  New York, New York.

I notice someone else on the beach……..

 “OH MY GAWD, WHERE DID YOU SWIM FROM”, bellows a friendly lady from New York, I have in ear plugs but can still hear her strong accent, “Burlington”, I reply, she turns to here party sitting 25 yards away, ” OH MY GAWD, SHE SWAM FROM BURLINGTON”, she shouts excitedly, ” WHERE IN BURLINGTON?”, she shouts again, ” Oak ledge Park”, I reply, she turns back to her friends, ” OH MY GAWD, SHE STARTED AT OAKLEDGE PARK”, she scurries over the her friends and reappears with a bottle of water, ” WOULD YOU LIKE SOME WATER?”, she shouts, ” no thanks, I have to swim back now”, she turns back to her friends, and louder than ever ” OOOOHHH MY GAAAAWD, SHE’S SWIMMING BACK“, I smile, here I am amidst of a 2 way crossing, the stop watch is running and it is time to get back in the water, this energetic, friendly lady doesn’t know me from Adam and is ready to pull me up a deck chair and throw another Hamburger on the grill and what’s more I am catching a little chat, “be would be rude not to”, I decide, I turn to her, ” time to go”, I say as I begin navigating the slippery rocks, ” SHE’S GOING BACK IN”, she shouts to her friends, ” WHAT ARE YOU TRAINING FOR?”, the friendly New Yorker is not ready to let the visit end quite yet, I turn my head and shout, ” THE ENGLISH CHANNELL NEXT  MONTH”, “OOOHHHH MYYYYY GAWWWD, OH MY GAWD… SHE’S  TRAINING FOR THE ENGLISH CHANNEL”, she shreeks to her friends, ” ARE YOU SWIMMING THE CHANNEL TOO?”, she shouts to Paula, before I slide under the water I hear her reply, ” No I’m just the friend”, I swim away, Paula swims back to the boat, 4 hours, 51 minutes, Vermont to New York, for Paula, outstanding, she boards and peels off her wet suit.

I break my code of silence….

 So, remember my goal of keeping my mouth shut and ” just swim”?. Well it has been going well, the odd word here and there at a feed, like ” 2 advil next feed please”, or ” great day for a picnic”, but now I am about to break it, I look at Paula, ” hey she is not JUST a friend, she’s MY friend and I am going to make sure she knows it”, I hatch a plan, feed time arrives, I down my feed and shout ” Hey Paula, your’re not just THE friend, your’e MY friend”, head down and I swim off, as I turn to breathe I see a wide mouthed grin from Paula, we swim together alot, hours side by side, we never say a word, yet we share so much, today it went into words, if just for a moment.

Vermont, ” The Green Mountain State”

 I feel great, my body feels peppy and I am excited to be on the return leg of the swim, my feeds have been getting more and more disgusting, I watch Cynthia and Deb mix them in horror, knowing soon it is time to swallow that putrid stuff, ” must be that it is heating up in that plastic container, I can’t tell you how vile it tastes and smells, still the memory of hyponatremia after the 25.2 fresh water swim is clear in my mind I know despite the foulness of it I need the fuel and nutrients to keep my body strong and system in balance, I dread it anyway but know I will obediently take in every drop.

What’s on the menu?

 Fortunately I’ve packed some treats and fruit punch flavored Maxim, they are all yummy, ” nothing to do but look forward to the peaches, pears, Jellybabies and fruit punch Maxim”, I declare, I do and savor them when they arrive by fishing pole.

Hours go by…..

 

 I have lost track of time, my world is now 30 minutes at a time, from one feed to the next, I study the crew, they make me smile by pulling out my favourite rubber duck and twirling the sun umbrella, then I see Paula getting back into a suit, ” she is coming back in the water, fun”, I think, in she comes and we swim on towards Burlington, I know we are getting close, just a few more ghastly feeds to stomach, ” how about I just fake the next feed, tip it out, I am nearly there, come on it will be fine”, I debate the idea in my head, ” NO ALL FEEDS FINISHED”, there I said it, oh dear now I really have to take it down, I watch the girls pouring the hell juice in my cup, : Oh No”, I shudder at the thought, Jeff stands with his arms crossed watching me, I drink it and swim off, ” that’s it, NO MORE FEEDS, I AM FANGING IT”, I declare, the plan to nail the finish before the next 30 minute feed it due. I swim hard, Paula stays right with me, stroke after stroke, “oh no”,  I see the feed cup come out and the ghastly Maxim is being poured into it, “not yet, not yet”, I sprint harder and then it happens, I see golden sand, ” the shores of France”, I  visualize it in my mind, I sight and see bathers on the beach, on I swim, then stand and jog in, along with Paula. On the beach there are not just bathers, my son, Soeren and daughter, Heidi are there with their Grandparents, what a welcome, I go to hug Heidi, ” Yuck, what’s that white stuff”, she asks, ” Grease”, I reply, we do our best to hug without smearing grease all over her, an ” air hug”, then goodbyes and Paula and I head back to the boat, what an adventure.

Motoring Homeward Bound

Paula and I get situated on the boat and Jeff motors us back to the Marina, we pull in to the dock at 6:45pm, unload the boat, reload the car and all drive home, we share tales of the day tired and happy, it has been a good outing and one that will be remembered, I learnt some more valuable lessons to help me in the Channel, got the chance to practice feeding off a boat again and had some valuable mental training, not to mention a 8 Hour, 31 minute and 19 second training swim, I am pleased, BIG thanks to my boat crew, Jeff, Deborah and Cynthia, to Paula keeping my company for many hours in the water and notching up her third Lake Champlain crossing and my sister Robbin for getting up at 3:00am and fueling me with eggs and porridge, a team effort for sure.

What’s up next? Sleep, Yoga and Body Work work with Kate Graves and 60km of swimming this coming week.

3 Weeks of Heavy Training remaining, How will it progress? I’ll keep you posted

Closing Thought:

 Concentration is the ability to think absolutely nothing when it is absolutely necessary

                                                                       –        Ray Knight

 

 

 July 14th, 2012: Lake Champlain Vermont to New York Return…

 That’s the goal tomorrow, 16 miles of swimming with a Boston Whaler support boat, on the boat my crew who will be supporting me in practicing:

– Various Feeding methods from fishing pole to feed cup on a string

– Fast feeds every 30 minutes

– No asking questions, you got it ” Shut up and swim” on the menu for me

– Beat the tide pace when requested

– Not ” seal like behaviour” in the water from me

 Weather forecast looks great, we have a 3:15am wake-up call then off to pick up the boat and motor to Oakledge Park our start location, from there we swim to Willsboro Point New York and back.

The Maxim is mixed, the bags are packed…

 

 The boat is fuelled up, now just some sleep for me and porridge and eggs in the wee hours of the morning.

 

 If you want to come for the journey follow me with my spot tracker GPS updates, click on the following link to see location updates every 10 minutes…

  

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0z6qcnHlSSr6PhDggx72CiYYaRAKFYnTq

 Will I play with the Lampreys in Lake Champlain tomorrow or will they play with me?  I’ll keep you posted

 

Closing Thought:

” No one keeps his enthusiasm automatically. Enthusiasm must be nourished with new actions, new aspirations, new efforts, new vision.”

– Papyrus

 

 

I awake to overcast skies, Jeff and I pack up and pile into the mini for the 1 hour drive to Newport, we leave home late, on the drive to Newport I plan an arrival strategy, this will be tight, but the good news is all my feeds are packed, the bag with all my supplies is ready to set on the boat, we both are lathered in sun lotion, all we need to knock out on arrival is check in, unload the boat and for me to make my way to the start chute, no worries, right?

 We Arrive….

 Jeff pulls right down to the beach, we notice all the other kayakers are all ready situated, that’s us in the mini unloading, I snag my race number, then Jeff and I head up to park the car, on with the grease for me then down to the boat to launch Jeff, not a moment to spare, well maybe just enough time to duct tape my New Zealand Flag on the kayak, ” that will be fun to look at”, I think. I wave Jeff goodbye as he paddles away, I scurry off to the starting chute.

 

 

 It is confirmed I am one of the last swimmers to line up, all the other swimmers are ready with their caps on and goggles down as I make my way to join them at  the start line, on arrival I hear ” 3 minutes to start”, ” no worries Mate”, I giggle to myself, ” what a little monkey I am, next time leave ON TIME!”, I give myself a good talking too and then go about relaxing and focusing on the swim ahead, ” 10 miles, goal = long strong strokes, pull hard, fast feeds, no peaking like a seal and there is nothing you need to ask Jeff, keep your mouth shut and swim”, ” OK, race plan in place”, I relax, now I wait.

The 3 minutes goes by fast, ” Take your mark, BEEP”, the starting horn blasts, we are off, I am the one on the left, black suit and black cap, should be easy to see me, there is only 75 or so of us running into the lake…..

 

 Next it is out to the first buoy, around we go and then on a long straight where Jeff is waiting to slide up beside me in the kayak…

 

 Lake Memphremagog…..

 I have not swum in Lake Memphremagog since September 10th, 2011, it is firmly implanted in my brain, 15 hours, 30 minutes and not to forget the 30 seconds of a battle between me and ” the Lake” , from Newport Vermont to Magog, Canada….so who won? Well I made it to Magog and walked out of the Lake fair and square, however ” the Lake” put up one heck of a fight. But on to today’s swim, yes ” Lake”, I am back.

 So that is how the swim begins, me and ” the Lake” catching up, the water feels great, there are 75 other swimmers around me and Jeff paddling by my side, I am happy. The first hour blazes by, my speed feels perfect, fast but not so fast that I can’t hold an even pace. Jeff and I make good time weaving in and around other swimmers, ” I love the flag on the boat, only there is not enough wind for me to really see it”, I ponder the thought for the next 30 minutes while I wait for my next feed.

 One hour, thirty minutes comes and goes, a quick 20 second gulp of my 300 ml serving of carbo drink and I am off again, next feed, 2 hours ” ooooohh, 2 hour feed I can’t wait, at 2 hours I get slippery little peaches”, I savour the thought, my latest yum yums is tinned peaches, they slide down super fast and are soothing on my throat.

” The Lake” wants to play….

 

  As I am patiently waiting for my slippery little peaches to arrive at 2 hours I notice things begin to jostle about a bit, but the main thing I notice is that my New Zealand flag is dancing around in the wind, ” what fun, ” The Lake” wants to play”, I giggle underwater at the thought, ” it is like we are cat and dog teasing each other, we aren’t really supposed to get along, but we kind of do, in a rough each other up sort of way”, I think.

 

 

 So that’s what we spend the next few hours doing, the Lake tossing me about and me punching right back at the lake, every stroke I attack, I am thrilled with myself, what a good time and how lucky am I to have some wave action today, good for my training.

The Smurf song…..

 That’s how we bounce along hour after hour, me watching the New Zealand Flag dance in the wind and smiling at Jeff, Jeff navigating the waves and the course like a champ and finally me and the lake wrestling with each other, it feels like we have all fallen in to a good routine, my feeds are going great, fast down and no unexpected feed coming up, I am not talking to Jeff, he is not talking to me, we are in a good rhythm. Now for the goal I forgot to mention, yip, it’s the pee goal, important to pee regularly during the swim, you may well laugh but it’s not as easy as one might think, so my goal today is to pee  once every 30 minutes, sorry lake. So what of the smurf song? Well for some reason today when I hum the smurf song I pee, ” got to remember not to hum that when I am on land”.

The Final stretch…..

 In 2010 I swam the same course, glassy flat water and blazing sun, my time 4 hours, 42 minutes, today before I know it my 4 hour feed is here, I stuff my mouth with slippery little peaches and ask my only question of the 4 hours, ” left or right of the buoy?” I ask Jeff, I can see a buoy a few strokes in front of me, Jeff answers right and I am off, I can now see the bottom, ” must be close to Newport”, I say to myself, I continue to pull hard, I study Jeff’s face to see if there is any give away as to our proximately to the finish, nothing, Jeff is expressionless, so I resign  to the fact that it makes no difference where I am in the lake my only job is to swim and I do, I sing the smurf song and start dreaming of my next feed of maxim, “it must be near my 30 minute feed time because I am hungry”, I think, as I think the words Jeff points ahead, the final buoy and I am a mere  hundred or so meters from the finish, ” WOW, I can’t believe it’s over already”, I think and go about sprinting to shore, images of the shores of France crowd my mind as they always do at the end of a swim, in I sprint until it is too shallow to swim, then I right myself and run in, 4 hours, 32 minutes and 19 seconds, I am pleased.

Go team mates

 Some of my team mates are already on shore and some are still to land, everyone has terrific swims, I dash off to shower and change then it is time to watch my daughter Heidi’s 1 mile race. She lines up with the other youth swimmers, the lake is choppy, the starter horn sounds and the kids are off, what a treat watching these young swimmers dash off the beach and into the water…….

 

 29 minutes later Heidi lands back on the beach, along with her team mate, she is thrilled, I am beside myself with excitement, we all hug.

 Next up it is off for ice creams and back home, what was the conversation home? Well it was about our next open water swim of course, seems that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, Heidi loves stretching it out in the Open Water too.

So what is my next big Swim?  Lake Champlain 2 way crossing Saturday July 14th, 16 miles plus

Will I swim from State to State, Vermont to New York and Back? I’ll keep you posted

Closing Thought:

” If you take responsibility for yourself you will develop a hunger to accomplish your dreams”

– Les Brown

 

 

July is here, and that means next month my tide window arrives, August 8th-16th, 2012, 2.5 years of preparation, what seemed like an eternity of time to wait 2.5 years ago now seems like a blink of an eye, and I could not be more excited…..next month I am leave my hometown of Stowe, Vermont and head over to England to wait.

There has been much preparation of the last few years including:

– over 2,500 miles of swimming

– night swimming

– cold water swimming

– swimming when it’s sunny

– swimming when it’s snowing

– swimming with buddies

– swimming alone

– mega amounts of eating, an estimated 2,000,000 calories each year

– swimming in sea swells, waves, rivers, dams, lakes and ponds

– swimming with dolphins, sea lions, seals, sting rays, whales, lampreys, jellyfish and more fish than I can list

….and swimming in various Open Water events:

– USMS 10km Nationals 2010, Indiana

– Greater Kingdom Lake Swim 10 miler 2010, Newport, VT

– Rhode Island 10km 2010, Flat River Reservior, RI

– Golden Gate, San Francisco, 2011, California

– USMS 25km Nationals 2011, Indiana

– Lake Champlain 16 miler, 2 way crossing 2011, Vermont

– Boston Light Swim, 8 Miler 2011, Boston, MA

– Lake Willowby,  4.75 Miler 2011, Vermont

– In Search of Memphre, Lake Memphremagog 25.2 Miler 2011, Newport, VT

– Bantry, Cork County, Ireland 5km, 2012

Each event has taught me valuable lessons, often lessons learned the hard way, ” learn by doing lessons” the ones that pack a severe punch, the hardest lessons, the ones that deliver the heaviest blow are the ones you don’t forget, especially when in duress, I call that ” practiced instinct”

 So here we are July, the training is not over, there are 4 weeks remaining, the next 3 consist of mileage, quality mileage, this week that consists of

Monday – Recovery swim 1 hour

Tuesday- Good Effort, 3 Hours, 6 minutes

Wednesday- Put her in R for Racing- Top Pace 2 Hours, 38 minutes

Thursday- Massage/ Rest

Friday- Rest

Saturday…..Lake Memphremagog, 10 Miler, Newport, Vermont

 I am ready, the forecast looks great, Jeff, my husband is kayaking for me, we start at 8am, then a super exciting twist, at 2:15pm my daughter Heidi is racing her first Open Water Race a 1 miler, I am excited to watch her swim and my 5 other team mates racing tomorrow, I just know it is going to be a good day.

How will my race go tomorrow? I’ll keep you posted

 

Closing Thought: 

                                There is no easy way

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here we are a new week and time for 59,000 meters, I glance at the forecast to get a feel for how to dress for the first of my 6 swims this week, ” Right then, time to bust out the Irish hat, the sweat pants and cozy sweatshirt, looks like a wet and wild week”, I think. ” How kind of Vermont to turn down the thermostat down for me, chilling the water, and looks like Mother Nature is going to deliver me some good waves later in the week with the common theme, 15 mph winds, EXCELLENT!

 

 Out comes the umbrella when I arrive to swim this morning ,  ” gotta wonder what you are thinking when you pack an umbrella to go swim right’, I joke with Paula, Deb and Robbin as I bounce the umbrella, along with my Aloha Rubber Duck into the kayak…..what can I say I am easily entertained while I swim, the duck makes me laugh.

 We make quick work of peeling off our layers of clothing and get into the water, out the canoe launch we speed, the rain is chucking it down, it is coming down in sheets, ” ohhhh, this is like a sort of rain massage on my back”, I laugh as I swim. Once in the water I am amazed at how cozy I feel, “it seems like the grim rainy day is all on the outside and I am tucked up in the cozy comfort of the water”, I think,  I feel like I am on the couch watching a movie and Deb is the lead role, she is wrapped up with a neck warmer, hat, gloves, rain proof jacket and pants, yet I know she is not dry, I am a notorious splasher when I swim, she is drenched.

On we go…. 

When we arrived Deb said, ” how long?”, I replied, 3 hours, she didn’t blink an eye, in the boat she went, swimmers in the water and off, ” no one else would be out here on a day like today, ( except the Irish of course)”, I think to myself, I am one lucky ducking.

 We knock off the swim hour by hour and before I know it it is time for the final stretch, amongst the pouring rain Deb still smiles and entertains me by showing me the Aloha Duck, I laugh, she squirts water at me, I try and spit water back at her when I turn to breathe, we smile at each other, laugh and head for home.

Next up it’s Jelly Babies and off home to eat, work, sleep and get ready for tomorrow’s swim, oh and then the day after that, and the one after that…that’s how the week goes, one wet day after another….and I LOVE IT!

Did we reach our weekly goal? Yes 59,000 meters

Am I tired? Yes

What’s Up Next Week?  43,500 meters and the Greater Kingdom Lake Swim 10 Mile Swim in Lake Memphremagog

……I haven’t been to the Lake since the 25.2 Mile ” In Search of Memphre Swim”

What will it be like returning to the Battlefield? I’ll keep you posted

Closing Thought:

  ” To give less than your best is to sacrifice the gift”

– Steve Prefontaine