Emma France's Journey to Swimming the English
Channel:
J-Cloths race reports
First
off it was a brilliant day and one that I will remember and
recall for a very long time. I know that people said to write
this e-mail as soon as possible otherwise you might start seeing
the day with rose tinted glass, well genuinely I had a brilliant
day! Crazy as I am the whole thing was great - even the bits
that seemed bad at the time only made reaching the French coast
in glorious sunshine all the sweeter.
Getting into that cold dark water at 3:30am
did seem stupid and was fairly intimidating at the time, but
once that horn went the race was on and the adrenalin was
flowing. Once I got the hang of swimming in the spotlight it
then became a case getting into a rhythm and forcing myself not
to stop and ask how long I'd been swimming for. I managed that
pretty well and when I saw Sharlene getting ready for her swim I
only had 5mins left. Getting back on the boat I felt a little
sea sick for the first 10mins or so but after a chicken sandwich
I was fine and luckily for me was the last sickness that I felt
for the day.
On the boat I spent some time with the other guys on deck
watching the swimmers in the water and also inside the boat with
Neil and Adrian, which helped me, warm up as well. The
atmosphere on the boat was really positive for those first round
of swims as we made good progress, but as I was preparing to go
back in for my second swim Neil left me with the nugget of
information that "the tide is turning and it could get a bit
choppy".
Neil also told me before I got in that it would probably be
better if I swam on the other side of the boat to which I had
swam on in the first stint, which meant the left hand side as we
were travelling, out of the wind. This wasn't a problem I just
had to breath bilaterally. More of a problem was that the water
and waves were now so unpredictable, I found it almost
impossible to get into a rhythm on this swim, either getting
knocked off my stroke or swallowing a load of water. This made
it feel like by far and away the longest swim. Getting out of
the water was a relief this time but much like when I completed
my qualifying swim I was starving. I can't remember who offered
me jelly babies, but thank you, after that it was sausage rolls
and bread rolls.
The swim had really taken it out of me this time and I needed to
have a sleep. Once I woke up it was becoming clear that our
progress had slowed quite a lot and this in turn was reflected
by quite a drop in the mood on the boat. It was also becoming
clear that I would have to go in for a third swim, which to
begin with got me a little down, but I remembered what people
who had done channel swims before had told me - that the
challenge is mostly mental. So after another good swim by
Jonathan I jumped into what were a lot better conditions. The
waves were probably about the same size as on my second swim,
but this time there was a far more regular pattern to them,
which allowed me to get that good rhythm going again. This
really helped with the mental side of things and with the lovely
sunshine on my back I felt great in the water and started to
push myself with the motivation of trying to get as close to the
beach as possible. At one point the rest of the team were waving
me on saying that I might be able to make it. However I knew
that I had probably gone too quick at the beginning of this swim
and so it proved as I tired quite a bit in the last 20mins,
resorting to backstroke for a couple of minutes to loosen my
shoulders off and have a bit of a break.
This time when I saw Sharlene coming down the ladder there was a
certain sense of satisfaction knowing that I had barely anything
left in the tank and that Sharlene would almost certainly make
it. Getting back on board Tracy looked after me, making me a
couple of ham and cheese rolls and a hot chocolate and then
before we knew it there were shouts that if anyone wanted to
swim to shore they needed to get ready. With that Tracy,
Jonathon and Peter were ready to go and in the water, it felt
like I had only just got out of the water and I didn't fancy
getting back in again, even just for 5mins - I was really tired.
So I stayed and took photos with Jo and Josh from the boat.
Watching the others get to shore was great, hearing our cheers
and then the horn of the boat echoing off the cliffs in that
glowing sunlight really was special.
After passing the Sealags on the way out of the bay and wishing
them luck I stood and watch France get smaller and wondered
whether I would like to be back there some day on another
swim... Then I went into the cabin and reflected with Tracey and
Josh on the day before catching up on some sleep.
To finish I'd like to say well done to everyone on both boats,
thank you to Emma for all the organising, the food for the boat
and persuading me to do it. Thank you to my teammates for
cheering me on, having a towel ready for me after every swim and
generally looking after me when needed. Thank you to Neil and
Adrian for putting up with me asking dumb questions most of the
way and if I wasn't doing that I was asking them how far we had
to go - regularly. Sorry I had couldn't waited around afterwards
for Sealags to get back I had to shoot to an engagement party,
where I sat on a stool and thoroughly enjoyed my pint even
though I was still very much swaying to the tune of the channel.
I look forward to hopefully seeing you all at any reunion we can
sort out and hearing the little stories that end up making these
events so memorable.
Oh and good luck to Emma for her solo!!
The night we arrived back and all day
after I kept muttering 'never again' - well it's two days on and I'm
thinking 'maybe again'. I can honestly say it was the scariest thing
I've ever done, standing on the back of a tumbling boat, having to let
go my grip on the ladder and jump into the icy, dark, tossing waves. I
didn't enjoy my swims - not because of the cold, not because of the
waves, not because I felt sick, but because of all the 'imagined
monsters' swimming beneath me. The reality is - there are no monsters
and everything went fine! And I'm left with a superb memory that I
wouldn't exchange for the world.
The best parts: the start - calm water, shimmering lights, excellent
music, swimming in the spotlight and the finish - even though I had to
be convinced it was good to be getting in for a 3rd time - the water
getting warmer, actually seeing the shore, being able to stand in the
water, clambering over the rocks and standing in the warm sunshine.
The worst parts: not being able to relax on the boat and having to
constantly hang on for dear life - looking up and seeing the next
swimmer nowhere near to getting ready - having to jump in for my turn -
hopping in for my 3rd swim, expecting to reach shore after 10 minutes
but having to swim for 45 minutes.
I have a renewed deep admiration for solo Channel swimmers and don't
know where they get their physical and mental strength from and am
deeply humbled by them. Emma thank you so much.
I had a memorable day, one which I will
never forget. The highlights were the swims which seemed to whizz by,
probably because there was a lot to think about: where's the boat,
when's the next wave coming, keep a good rhythm going, etc........ My
first swim was at sunrise so I had the beautiful sight of a red sun
rising over the boat every time I took a breath. The second swim was
more challenging as the waves picked up but still enjoyable.
Never having been travel sick in my life and always having loved fair
ground rides I also enjoyed the boat rockin' and rollin' (though I was
relieved when it stopped). Enjoyed eating loads of ham and cheese rolls
plus competing with Josh for the sausage rolls.
Best bits apart from the swim was the camaraderie of the team, watching
the pilots deal with the navigation, landing on French soil and admiring
Josh's frontcrawl - shame we didn't see any butterfly.
Thanks to Emma for a great time and the inspiration.
I am still on a high! I was so worried
that I would let the team down. I was scared that I would not be able to
do an hour and that I would get too cold … all unfounded! The hour
seemed to whizz aided and abetted by the Sea France Ferry coming quite
close. When I got in the second time the water was quite rough and
checking that I was swimming beside the boat took a lot of concentration
(trying not too swim into it too!!). Diving in and following Sharlene to
the coast, was a great feeling. Thank you Emma for giving us the chance
to do it and Josh F for the tea! ( but not the flask!)
My own experience…………… now that I am back on dry land the more
time moves on the more I seem to have enjoyed it! Highlights
would be the start of the race, watching the dawn, realizing
that the channel can be a crystal clear blue, chatting on the
boat……………………. but the best bit…………… the moment when you saw the
person taking over from you put on their swim cap and come down
the ladder…..