Channel Myths: Busted!

Sometimes (quite often) I have to remind myself that swimming from England to France is not something that most people decide to do in their lifetime. The confusion comes each morning when I  am immersed around swimmers, so many of whom have either already swum the channel or aspire to. So why wouldn't everyone else want to do the same?!

I have noticed a few myths swimming around and I will attempt to blow them out of the water.

In a straight line, at its narrowest point, the Dover Strait is 34km across.
Unfortunately I am not Trent Grimsey, and I won't be swimming in a straight line

Swimmers get pulled north and south by the tides that enter and exit the Dover Strait. This is an enormous amount of water movement, hence the typical 'S' shape.

Tides change every 6ish hours, they flow North-East to South-West in and out of the strait. So when the tide changes its direction, it turns 180 degrees and flows back to where it came from. Often the difference between high and low tide is 6m. This is enormous. 

There is one exception to this...and his name is Trent Grimsey. Aka the current record holder for the fastest channel crossing. 6hr 55minutes

Gone are the days of covering ones self in porpoise blubber or what ever it was. Thank goodness for that- After a horrid experience with duck fat I am glad this has been given myth status.

We do not wear wetsuits because for the swim to be officially recognised and acknowledged as a true channel crossing we all have to adhere to a stringent dress code. Cosi, cap and goggles-Just like Trudy Ederle (the first woman to swim the channel) and Capt Matthew Web before her.
It is a proud tradition, and one that breads open water swimmers tough.



So no wetty, no grease..just Vaseline and lanolin to help ease the chafing at the back of my neck and under my arms.

I will be stopping every 30-45 minutes for a feed, this is not a rest break. As the water moves at such a great speed, I cannot afford to hang around chatting, for risk of getting pushed too far north/south. Coach Charm will be making sure these stops are for fuel only and will last around 20-30 seconds. At the moment gels are the flavour of the day, though I will be experimenting with Ovaltine.

There is also no touching of the boat or person. Channel rules dictate that the swim is to be totally unaided, an observer onboard will be checking that I do not break any of the rules.

This is what a channel "feed" looks like, liquid carbohydrates handed to me via a bucket on the end of a broom stick. 

Despite appearances long distance swimming is not a solitary sport. On every long saturday swim I know Coach Charm is waiting for me on the beach with words of encouragement, and to shoo me back into the water.
The Vlad will always be visible somewhere along the course in his yellow kayak and hi-vis rashie.
Along the way I also get to bump into these legends and exchange a few words, usually profanity.

When all else fails, I get to think about my special little people; Princess Ada and Pickles. These two little dudes have gotten me through when I just didn't want to swim anymore. When I had 80,000 good reasons to stop swimming, somehow imagining Isaac's smile, and Ada calling me "Aunty Rachoool" gets me through.