Phew! I'm just back from the post office. Finally, all our paperwork is complete, and I've sent it special delivery to the Secretary of the Channel Swimming Association (CSA). The Royal Mail is guaranteeing to deliver it on Monday 30 March (special delivery because we have to send originals and not copies!). The CSA's deadline is 1 April for relay team applications.
So, tight, but not too tight. I had a slight panic last week when I spotted that Orlaith's GP had failed to fill in the most important bit of Orlaith's medical form - the box that says whether or not she's fit to swim! Orlaith dropped off the completed form last night, so we were good to go with paperwork this morning - 6x medical forms, 6x application forms for CSA associate membership, our team relay application form, and 6x 4x6 photos of each of us.
Now we can get on with training. 40 minutes in 8.8 degrees water this morning. I'm definitely getting used to the cold. Apparently the temperature of the Channel yesterday was 7.7 degrees,
I'm on the school's ski trip next week. I will look out for pools (or lakes!), and I have packed my swimming gear. I think I'll just have to use skiing as a form of cross-training though.
I've signed up to take part in the Swimathon on Friday 15 April. Orlaith's signed up too, and people all round the country will be swimming pool lengths to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care.
I think Orlaith and I are braver and tougher than most, because we'll be doing our lengths in Brockwell Lido (all 100 of them - that's 5 kilometres). Goodness knows what the temperature will be. I only did 20 lengths this morning, and I'm still shivering.
So, Orlaith and I have a tough challenge. My challenge will be even tougher though, because Tim Sutton from Brockwell Swimmers has persuaded me to do an additional Swimathon as part of the Brockwell Swimmers team. So, 100 lengths for my original challenge, and then goodness knows how many lengths for the team challenge!
It all starts at 7.00am, so I'll be very, very cold and tired when I've finished. I'll take my sports camera and get video and pics. No dalek hat or red skin-suit this time!
Red Nose Day! Or, in my case, Red Pose Day.
Two swims this morning. 18 lengths at 6.30am in 9 degrees water, and another 2 lengths at 8.00am with some nutty people wearing red noses and deely boppers. How was I to draw some attention when everyone was wearing red noses in the lido? Wear a red skin suit of course.
I had hoped it would be a bit like swimming in a wet suit. But no, it soaked up the water, weighed me down, and made breathing almost impossible. It did create some interesting photo opportunities along the way though, and it raised the visibility of us mad Channel swimmers.
Orlaith was there too. Braving the cold water, and swimming a very elegant breaststroke with piggy red nose.
It was lots of fun, and reminded me that cold water swimmers are a fun bunch of people.
What I really like about the wife-carrying race is the lack of a goody bag. Usually, when you finish a big organised race you get a goody bag. It might sound obvious, but goody bags contain goodies. Goody, you're thinking, you like goodies. But the goodies are normally energy bars, drinks, and sample-sized freebies for gels, lotions and other sports-related stuff. Once I've snaffled the energy bar, I usually throw everything else away.
The wife-carrying race is different though. No goody bag. Just a quality wicking t-shirt with the names of the participants printed on it, a hugely desirable medal (well. desirable if you're mad like me), and, wait for it, a mini keg of beer! And we're talking about locally brewed stuff. Quality t-shirt, desirable medal, and beer beats any goody bag.
So how did we get on? Well, we weren't last (that honour goes to a chap carrying a 'wife' weighing 140kg - and they had most of the media attention), and we weren't first (that honour went to an American couple who completed the 380m hilly course in just 2 minutes). We were in the latter part of the pack. Of course, carrying someone piggyback is much, much harder than Estonian-style (well that's what I keep telling myself). Check out the second picture to see us alongside the Estonian holders.
And, we had a lovely time. Elaine spent most of the racing laughing (until we reached the people with the water buckets and the water pistols).
And my quads were twice the size by the time I'd finished.
Will we do it again next year? I'm sure we will, and we'll encourage a few more Rosemeadians to join us.
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| Carrying my wife |
No swimming this weekend. Instead I'm travelling down to Dorking to take part in the UK Wife Carrying Championship. Yes, us Brits have all manner of wacky races and competitions from cheese rolling to bog snorkeling, and this one caught my attention when someone mentioned it to me last year.
This will be the second time I've done it. My wife Elaine enjoyed it so much she wanted to do it again. I did point out that all she had to do was sit on my back and enjoy the ride.
We're doing piggy-back. Those who take the race seriously (and believe me, there are people who really do take the race seriously), use the Estonian hold and expect to win and represent the UK in the World Championships in Finland. In the Estonian hold the wife hangs upside down on the runner's back, and clings on by gripping her legs round the runner's neck. (Elaine will only let me do piggy-back!)
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| The Estonian hold |
It's a more inclusive competition these days. You no longer have to be married to the wife, wife can carry husband, and husband and wife can be same sex. So the race is quite a spectacle and usually hits national TV and newspapers.
It might only be a 380m course, but it's uphill for half of that distance, there's a straw bale obstacle to climb over, and a water obstacle at the end. That's probably why it's classed as an ultra-marathon on the Runners World web site.
Wish me luck. I'm looking forward to getting back to freezing swims on Monday.
Well, just in case you missed the February 13 edition of the Wimbledon & South London Press, I'm "swimming the English Channel in July as part of a team of parents and staff from Rosemead Preparatory School in Dulwich to raise funds for the school and annual sports scholarships".
I couldn't have put it better myself, and yes, the "famous Dalek hat" certainly drew attention and generated some much needed publicity.
So, sponsor us! We have a justgiving site, so go on, log in and make a donation. July might seem like a long way off, but a constant stream of small donations between now and the swim date will add up to a big sum.
And, ever on the lookout for PR opportunities, I will be swimming in the Lido wearing a red nose on Friday March 13. Yes, it's Red Nose Day!
