Summer 2014 - I've struggled through 6 months of injury and managed to race (albeit slightly broken) at the European triathlon championships in Kitzbuhl. After 5 years competing as an age-group triathlete and months of tests and scans the results are in:
* Hip guy - "if you continue time trials you will most likely need a hip replacement and/ or develop hip arthritis."
* Spine guy - "if you continue running, you will most likely have chronic back pain for the rest of your life and problems with childbirth".
Cue teary phone call to Nico outside the Lister hospital and a mad panic about what I will do without triathlon in my life, something which fills my every day of the week, my social life, my time with Nico... Nico as always, calm and reassuring, "don't worry, you can find something else to be competitive at". Right, so running and cycling is off the menu for the moment while I start a long road to physio recovery and/ or contemplate surgery for one or both. Not content with any 'leisure activities' or spending my weekends shopping/ hungover/ at brunch (is that what non-sporty people do at weekends?!) I knew I needed to find a challenge to quench my competitive appetite.
So swimming is my remaining doable sport for the moment. Lucky as it is actually my fave triathlon discipline and I am most happy in h20, Nico often tells me 'tu est comme un poisson'. I know I need to find something to fill the triathlon void in my life next season so now to find a good swimming challenge. And what is one of the most challenging swims? The English channel of course! For some reason I have always wanted to swim the channel - I once saw a film about an old woman who had swum it as a young lady and I thought, wow she is brave and gutsy - I'll do that one day!
As I started looking into a solo attempt - 22 miles, average of 15hrs if you're good/ conditions are kind, wetsuit not allowed, high rates of unsuccessful crossings... OK so that's quite a change from my 1.5k Olympic distance triathlon swims in calm lakes and rivers. Someone suggested a relay was a good starting point for anyone hungry for the channel challenge to get a taste of what is to come so that was that - channel challenge stage 1 - make a group of friends do it with me...
As a member of a brilliant, brave and hardcore triathlon club "Clapham chasers" I knew that I would be able to recruit a team of keen/ mad swimmers. So, some direct emails, gentle bullying and a shout out to my closest and bravest age-group Tri mates and quite quickly I had a team of 5 from the club, and then of course my big bro who loves competing/ beating me at anything wanted a piece of the action too - so we had a team of 6: Bossy Naomi - Team Captain. Hardcore Anna. Frenchie Sophie. Polish fish Kris. Aussie Tim (with his crack out). Big bro Jase. Aka the "+1".
Next up was to book our pilot, boat and swimming slot. For a novice, I had to quickly get my head around the 2 associations who accompany channel swimmers, the high cost, the best tides, the queuing system and how you actually train for it. After many conversations with salty sea dogs, we booked Andy on Louise Jane as a friend of mine had used him for a solo attempt and he had a good slot in August 2015 which was the only month the whole team had no race/ wedding/ work commitments in.
Training started in November 2014 - we met on a Sunday (after everyone's weekend long runs and rides) at Crystal Palace where I made up some long endurance sets of around 5k, much longer that us triathletes are used to. The comradely and company for all those lengths, little races, waving underwater and encouragement when the arms were limp and useless was a great start to our team bonding!
Our first official team meeting was in a pub (of course) and I did an agenda (of course) to go through all the detail of our challenge ahead. I talked very seriously about the rules: the swim order, how you changeover, not touching the boat, the tides, estimated time and what you have to wear: swimsuit, hat and goggles. Big bro Gayler chips in "and wetsuit yeah", "No Jason, no wetsuit, it's against the rules", "what?!?!", cue much laughter. Perhaps I forgot to mention it when I was convincing him to sign up :)
Throughout the winter everyone started cold water dips - during any work trip, hen doo weekend or holiday - we bullied each other to jump into the sea to start our cold water acclimatisation and sent around shrieking videos. In March I started my cold water 'swims' which involved brief and very painful 10-15 min doggy paddles in around 8 degrees at Tooting Lido. Nico would come down with me and go for the run and return to check I wasn't hypothermic. The lifeguards are also trained and very reassuring for newbies which I was grateful for. One day I had gone alone and came out feeling "very weird" - I wasn't shivering, felt light headed and felt like I was walking on air. Cue panicked messages to some experienced channel folk I had befriended - Mike and Matthew - "I think I have hypothermia stage 2, what shall I do?!" They laughed and said if I was texting I was probably OK. A hot chocolate and my trusty Rab jacket and I was fine after 30 mins.
I spent Easter weekend at the very brilliant Eton camp, run by channel extraordinaries Nick Adams and his lovely wife Sakura. It was an amazing weekend - firstly for the people who attended, all of whom have already done and are planning extraordinary swimming challenges, which made my channel relay seem a bit weedy. The collective knowledge and experience in the room was amazing and something you would never get from a book. Secondly for the most amazing training, I was up to swimming 5k (albeit not in one go) but that weekend would see me swimming 5k one morning, 6k that afternoon and then a 10k the next day. In a 25m pool. I was terrified. The night before the 10k I text Nico and it hurt my arms to type... Oh god. I decided that I had to put peer pressure on myself by telling all my triathlon mates about the challenge ahead - if people are expecting you to do it, you have to bloody do it.
The next day, with a brilliant lane mates in Mike and Deidre and a trusty abacus, we did it. 100m at a time. I broke it down to 1k's and had huge celebrations at 2.5k, 5k, 7k and for each k remaining when my arms resembled floppy spaghetti. The last k was not pretty but having done the majority I knew I could, mind over matter, I knew my friends Anna and Kristy were thinking of me during those 3hrs and that massively kept me going. It was my greatest swim achievement so far and gave me great confidence that I can happily swim for 3hrs and didn't get bored. Think I'm liking this long distance swimming!
At the end of April all the lakes opened so we took our team outings outside. The lake was 9/10 degrees and we all knew how hard it was swimming in this temp IN A WETSUIT from previous seasons. The aim was to do 2 short swims and warm up in between. With all my new knowledge from the Eton camp I became strict mum bossing the team around - prepare your clothes in the order you will dress, wet your neck, get in slowly, breaststroke then front crawl, deep breaths, stay close together, get wet clothes off quickly, hat on first, no faffing, get dressed quickly, hot drink huddle like penguins!
In May we did our first trip to Dover where we met the scary but brilliant Freda and a lot of channel nutters who are doing solos. I was in awe. We continued our 2 x swims, with Freda always telling us to do more than we planned. Dover is either wonderful and sunny, or grey and depressing. Either way, it's is great preparation for the channel and definitely worth the long drive/ painful pebble walk/ character building harbour laps.
The team had booked a number of long swim races as practise at the beginning of the summer but unfortunately following a shoulder injury (I have no working limbs left!!!) and a promotion and work move for a filming shoot in Devon, I missed all of them! I was working all hours and had an injured shoulder so couldn't swim - I was feeling low and wondering if I would even be able to do the channel swim. But after a swimmer friend of mine recommended a great Physio Tamara, after a month of boring exercises, I was back in water and embraced my new training ground in Cornwell at Cawsand Bay where I met another load of channel nutters, Pauline and Kate, who were training for solos and again I felt my relay was a bit weedy! That's the great thing about the long distance swimming community, you can always find another friendly nutter who is training for a solo and is immensely encouraging, whatever you are doing.
My filming schedule meant I only managed 1 long sea swim a week but in July managed my 2hr qualifying swim overseen by Nico who had popped down to make sure I survived ok. August came around quickly, my shoot had ended and I was a broken woman after 6 weeks of 20hr filming days and barely any time off, let along much training but I had faith in my 10 months of base training, my competitive nature and the fact that as team captain, basically I can't be a pussy.
It was the first week of August and channel window opened and all eyes were on 5 different wind/ weather forecast apps I was quickly becoming obsessed with. We knew quite quickly that we would most likely swim on time which luckily coincided with a weekend as I was worried about getting time off from work. We finally got 'the call' at 7pm on Saturday night. We would swim to France the next day (hopefully) and needed to be at Dover marina at 4am, quick go to sleep! Obviously I can't sleep.
1.30am my alarm goes off, I cycle to Battersea high st to pick up a zipcar and on to Annas house, knackered but super excited. Nervous chatter, a beautiful sunrise and finding a convoy with Kris en route to Dover. Our brilliant support team were also there - dad Gayler and Soph's brilliant mate Sailor Jerry (who is actually called Tom but I decided Sailor Jerry had a good ring to it). After a bossy briefing in the car park and popping some sea sickness pills, we loaded up Andy's boat and off to motored out or Dover marina, this was it.
The sun was just coming up, casting orange, pink and purple colours across the very still water, we realised how lucky we were to have such amazing conditions to start the swim. It was a magnificent morning. 3 other boats were nearby starting their swims, their small lights twinkling and a swimmer splashing along side them as they too started their journeys to France.
As team captain and chief organiser, I was the lucky first one to start the swim - sun cream, chasers swim hat, lube for having and plenty of nervous energy, I jumped into the chilly morning water and sprinted the beach, this was it. I cleared the water and waited for the klaxon, a sound I had heard many times at triathlon races and this was rather different.
I ran in and the water was surprisingly comfortable 14 degrees. Having swum in much colder all season, I felt happy we were prepared for this, and would put aside my fatigue and bloody go for it - this is it, we are swimming to France. My first hour was magnificent - the sun coming up, the water like a mill pond, my friends and family smiling and shouting down at me. This is something I will never forget!
The following hours passed in a haze of jumping in, climbing up the ladder out, drying off, warming up, whistles and changeovers, sunshine, sleeping bags, beanies, homemade lasagne from Andys oven, jelly babies, naps, cups of tea, funny/ rude/ encouraging white board messages and plenty of nattering and laughter, with such amazing conditions it was rather lovely day out.
Passing huge ferries and takers which such a surreal experience. We came so close to a 100ft tanker that Kris had to literally stop and swim breaststroke.
The first 6 hours were great - still waters, sunshine and good conditions. As we moved into the shipping lane, there was more seaweed, what we thought was a seal (actually a black plastic bucket) and then - the jellies. Poor Kris got a jelly in the face but bravely carried on without making any fuss until he got out and we noticed a huge patch of red pain all over his face. I then got 'the fear' and skipper Andy gave me a tough talking to telling me he would steer around any big shoals. I didn't think he actually would but it made me feel better.
I got in for my second swim and saw jellies everywhere so decided to swim as aggressively as I possibly could - don't mess with me you jelly fuckers! Luckily they didn't. As everyone second swims started and we got nearer France, the conditions became more choppy and harder work - the boys did great legs. Particularly Tim who got us very close to France indeed. Andy then made a tough call as to whether to get Tim to do final swim beyond his allotted hour or have me get in for a 3rd shorter swim and decided the latter. I felt incredibly lucky (and guilty) that I was able to start and end the swim.
We were only about 1km from Wissant bay. I could see people walking their dogs along the beach and a small crowd gathered as I swum further into the beach and I realised how surreal and amazing this experience was - my mates, brother and I have swum to France with our legs and arms. That is pretty cool. The water became shallow and I could see the sand, soon my fingertips were touching sand and I felt rather emotional! Imagine how this would feel on a solo swim... A crowd of 20 welcomed me on the beach, some English tourists and a local Frenchman who asked me where I was from, how long it took us etc, it was utterly bizarre. Excited to head back to the boat and celebrate with the team I stuffed 8 sandy seaweedy pebbles down my cossie and ventured back in to swim back to the boat waiting in deeper water.
Cue lots of cheers, a pop of the champagne cork - we had done it in a very respectable 12hrs and 10 mins. It was a rocky journey back as Andy attacked the bigger waves to get us to the pub as soon as possible. Nico and Kris' girlfriend Erin had cycled down to Dover from London to meet us when we arrived back in the marina which was amazing and we all went to the white horse pub for celebratory beers and of course to the wrote our team name/ date and time of our crossing on the wall alongside many other inspirational channel swimmers.
1yr of planning, 10 months of training and it was all over. I am so pleased to have had such an amazing, encouraging, brave and strong team, everyone giving it 100% on the day to get us there in good time. It was an amazing day and one I will never forget! Am also incredibly grateful to Dad Gayler and Sailor Jerry (Tom) for being our amazing support team - accompanying us on training swims as well as the big day, giving us warm clothes, hot drinks and food, you are both brilliant. Also thanks to our pilot Andy and his son for getting us a cross safely.
Finally to everyone in the channel community of London, Cornwall and Dover who have given the team and I so much useful advice and brilliant encouragement and 'normalising' something a lot of people think is ridiculous.
Nicos French friends and family obviously think we are nuts:
"Why would you swim to France?"
"Because you can"
:)
Of course the next questions is "when are you doing a solo", and the answer is of course "yes, I will". That moment when my fingertips scraped French sand at Wissant gave me enough motivation to attempt to get there with my own stumpy arms tout sol one day, so watch this space...
