T-shirt, medal, and keg of beer

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.

Wife Carrying

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!)

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.

Sponsor us!

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!

Phew!

I'm feeling good today. My doctor's signed my medical form, confirming that I'm fit to swim the Channel. Yeah!

I had blood tests and an ECG yesterday, and the results show that I'm a fit guy. My blood pressure's a tad on the high side, but my doctor says that it's not a Channel swim stopper (although I do need to take some medication, and I have a blood pressure monitor winging its way through the post to me).

So, back to some serious training (and Steve and Andy, our reserves, can breathe a sigh of relief). Mind you, the rest of the team still need to have their medicals too!.

Medicals

We're going through mounds of Channel Swim Association paperwork at the moment. It all needs to be submitted by the end of March, which isn't that far away.

We all need medicals and certificates of fitness from our GPs. I keep reminding myself that more people have climbed Mount Everest than have swum the Channel.

Today, I had my medical. Sadly, it didn't go quite as I'd hoped, and my GP has kept my medical form and certificate and refused to sign them for the moment. High blood pressure. He's prescribed me some tablets, and lined me up for an ECG and some blood tests. He'll see me again in a couple of weeks. But, if my blood pressure doesn't come down to what he regards as a safe level, it will be no swim for me.

So, a little disappointing. On a positive note, it's good to find these things out and deal with them before they cause a problem. And everything else about me is okay.

I hope Steve and Andy (our reserves) have been training hard ...

Honoured

Well, I'm honoured. I guess the dalek hat was an even bigger hit than I thought. Brockwell Lido is holding its first ever swimming gala this Sunday, and I've been asked to kick the whole thing off with a celebratory length in my "wonderful dalek hat" (as the organiser put it).

So, more opportunities for photos, and more opportunities for PR for Rosemead.

Some of our Channel Swim team will be meeting up for a swim in the Lido on Saturday morning (and a coffee in the cafe by the radiators afterwards), and then I'll be doing a double swim on the Sunday (a training session early in the morning, followed by the gala at 11.00am).

Entry to the gala is free for visitors. It'll be fun to watch, so do come along and see the dalek for real (and stay for some very British tea and cake afterwards).

Taking the plunge

Well I've taken the plunge. I've paid for annual membership of Brockwell Lido. I did the maths and worked out that, with the amount of swimming I'm doing in the Lido at the moment, I'll have paid my for membership in 4 months!

So, I'm the proud owner of a Brockwell Lido membership card. And I've used the card three times since paying for membership. It's less pressuring knowing that I can swim any number of times during the day and not have to pay each time (assuming I get to the stage where I want to swim more than once a day), and I don't have to worry about sticking to the off-peak times (my membership lets me swim at any time).

Yesterday was the first time I've swum in the snow. Okay, so it wasn't exactly a blanket of snow on the ground, but it was kind of surreal walking across to the water with snowflakes on my arms. I can't wait to swim with really thick snow. I'll take my camera when it happens. And that could be soon. The Met Office warning for Greater London is Yellow (early warning of snow). I can't wait.