Cuba to Florida – the Impossible Dream made a reality!

Cuba to Florida – the Impossible Dream made a reality!

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Huge Congratulations to Diana Nyad! Never too old to chase your dreams!

I believe in dreaming big. y for Diana Nyad - Cuba to Florida 2013 – Diana Nyad

5 attempts, spread out over 35 years, were needed until she finally made her dream come true and wrote history – with tremendous willpower, determination, patience, vision, faith, dedication and an absolute never-give-up-attitude! In “only” 52 hours, 54 minutes and 18.6 seconds (she expected to swim around 80 hours), supported by favourable currents and a huge team of helpers but without sleep or rest, long distance swimmer Diana Nyad conquered the approx. 103 miles (166 km) from Cuba to Florida – at age 64! Reaching Key West, Florida on Sept. 2nd 2013, around 2 p.m. local time, she became the first person to swim across the Florida Straits without a shark cage after Susie Maronie did it back in 1997 protected (and aided) by a cage.

After her 3 recent defeats in 2011 and 2012, when she was forced to stop due to life-threatening box jellyfish stings, and after 2 failed attempts by faster and younger accomplished long distance swimmers Chloe McCardel and Penny Palfrey, many thought her dream was simply impossible to realise. But Diana was determined to give it a last try and again put everything into it – body, mind, heart and soul. Plus creativity and inventiveness. And with the help of an amazing team of specialists in many fields and believers in her vision including individual sponsoring from all over the world now everything seemed to come together. Even Mother Nature seemed to send her blessings, letting her swim in an almost strait line supported by the currents, in mostly calm seas and with only one small thunderstorm during the first night. Her main problem this time was sickness – the difficulty to keep feedings down.

Her mantra: “Find a way”

Diana did not swim completely according to English Channel rules, but her use of a mask and suit to protect herself against deadly box jelly fish especially at night, allowing herself to be touched, and using a streamer to help her swim in a straight line, does not necessarily take away from her accomplishment, which included incredible amounts of solitary training hours – it rather shows her determination and creativity to find a way to reach her goal.

“I have three messages”

Barely able to speak with exhaustion and a swollen mouth after her arrival on her “Other Shore”, she still had 3 messages to offer:

  1. we should never ever give up;
  2. you are never too old to chase your dreams;
  3. it looks like a solitary sport but it is a team.

Diana-Nyad-Cuba-Florida-Swim2

 

Diana Nyad - Open Water Swimming Conference Long Beach 2012

Holding the Peace Torch with Diana Nyad at the Global Open Water Swimming Conference on the Queen Mary in Long Beach, Sept. 2012

 

 

 

 

 

More in many articles and videos:

Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich, the Hemingway Marina commodore who helped organize the Cuba side of Nyad’s multiple attempts, is quoted by USA today:
Diana-Nyad-Other-Shore“More than the athletic feat, she wants to send a message of peace, love, friendship and happiness … between the people of the United States and Cuba,” he said.
Shortly (end of September), Diana Nyad is releasing her feature-length documentary film, The Other Shore, about her “jaw-dropping journey” to manifest her → Xtreme Dream.

“The fullness of life lies in dreaming and manifesting the impossible dreams.”Sri Chinmoy

Also interesting to read:

Inspirational quotes

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Lots of inspirational quotes for life in general, but many also applicable to endurance athletes: www.boogle.com

It’s lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believe in myself. – Muhammad Ali

Failure is failure only when we stop trying anymore. – Sri Chinmoy

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials. – Chinese proverb or Seneca?

Keep your dreams alive.  Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe. – Gail Devers

Some men see things as they are and say, “Why?” I dream of things that never were and say, “Why not?” – George Bernhard Shaw

Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.
– George Bernard Shaw

I want to be all used up when I die.
– George Bernard Shaw

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. – Mark Twain

All can be done, if the God-touch is there. – Sri Aurobindo

If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things. Albert Einstein

Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still.
– Chinese proverb

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. – Anatole France

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.C.S. Lewis

Selftranscendence brings us the message of happiness. – Sri Chinmoy

If you can dream it, you can do it. – Walt Disney

All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.Walt Disney

How could there be any question of acquiring or possessing, when the one thing needful for a man is to become – to be at last, and to die in the fullness of his being. Antoine de Saint-Exupery

The one thing that matters is the effort. Antoine de Saint-Exupery

When we are dreaming alone it is only a dream. When we are dreaming with others, it is the beginning of reality. – Dom Helder Camara

Hand to hand, heart to heart, we can change the world. –  Lynne Cox, in “Swimming to Antarctica”

“When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn. “ Harriet Beecher Stowe (author of “Uncle Tom’s Hut”)

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” – Sir Winston Churchill

“If you are going through hell, keep going.” – Sir Winston Churchill

“I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.” – Thomas Jefferson

“Don’t bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself.” – William Faulkner

“Determination can change your mind. Determination can change your heart. Determination can change your life altogether.” – Sri Chinmoy

‘Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it!’ – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“Be realistic: aim for the impossible.” – from a t-shirt of Freda “The General”  Streeter, mother of Alison Streeter, Queen of the Channel

“Channel swimming is 80% mental, 20% the rest.”Alison Streeter, Queen of the Channel

“The journey is what brings us happiness, not the destination.” Dan Millman (Way of the Peaceful Warrior)

“The determination in your heroic effort
Will permeate your mind and heart
Even after your success or failure
Is long forgotten.”
– Sri Chinmoy

And one of my favourite triathlon inspiration aphorisms or poems from the back of a T-shirt from the Sri Chinmoy Canberra Ultra-Triathlon 1998:

“I swim in the sea
of silver light.
I cycle along the road
of gold delight.
I run with the smile
of the beyond.”

– Sri Chinmoy

“Common does not change the world.” – from a video about Lewis Gordon Pugh

“If you want to swim across the English Channel from England to France – you have to leave your doubt on the beach in England.”Lewis Gordon Pugh

“Individual self-transcendence collectively inspires humanity at large.” – Sri Chinmoy

Inspirational quotes posted on the Channel Chat group:

“If” – by Rudyard Kipling (video-recitation by Robert Morley)

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”Marianne Williamson

“We are all God’s children.
But world-peace-dreamers,
world-peace-lovers
and world-peace-servers
are undoubtedly
God’s choicest children.”
– Sri Chinmoy

(You are welcome to use quotes from this page, but please include the author when quoting. Thanks!)

More quotes

Marathon Monks

“In the last 300 days of the marathon, the focus shifts…a balance is struck between practise for one’s own sake and practise for the benefit of all. At the end, the marathon monk has become one with the mountain…The joy of practise has been discovered…The stars and sky, the stones, the plants, and the trees, have become the monks trusted companions; he can predict the week’s weather by the shape of the clouds, the direction of the wind, and the smell of the air…and he takes special delight in that magic moment of the day when the moon sets and the sun rises, poised in the centre of creation”.

–  John Stevens

Another great source for inspiring quotes about awareness, life, its challenges and beauty:
https://www.zenmoments.org/ and https://twitter.com/#!/@Zen_Moments

“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and your discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” ~ Patanjali (Wikiquote)

First spring dip in the Neckar

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Today was my first dip in the Neckar (or any kind of open water) since January – 17 min. in 8.5°C  (47/48 Fahrenheit), with the sun out! Only breaststroking in the yacky water on the spot against the current. I totally enjoyed it – thanks Pragya! I would love to do it everyday by myself, but I am afraid people will call the water police if there is noone to watch me and make sure I am fine.

It happened in winter – one Sunday I was almost determined to go in by myself after running, after a friend had not shown up, but on my run home along the Neckar I suddenly saw plenty of police and an ambulance, and when I asked what it was all about they said they were looking for a person in the water and asked if I had seen someone. A skipper had reported a person going into the water and suspected suicide. I asked if there were any clothes on the shore and when they said no, I said, well, probably someone went for a polar bear dip and had gone home by now.  But they were not convinced. A bit later at home, coming out of the shower, I heard helicopter noise right in front of the house over the Neckar – they were still searching! Imagine to have to pay for such a rescue operation!

Yesterday I was very inspired when I found a new Channel swimmer blog: https://www.farbeyondtheblackline.blogspot.com/ by Carrol Wannell, an Australian lady and very strong swimmer, who had been a caravan neighbour with her husband at Varne Ridge last summer and was also unfortunate. She is determined to make it this year – way to go, Carrol! (And I am happy you liked the poems by Sri Chinmoy!)

Miyuki – Japanese “Channel Queen” and the Spirit of Gambaru and Self-Transcendence

Miyuki – Japanese “Channel Queen” and the Spirit of Gambaru and Self-Transcendence

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Miyuki Fujita with Channel friend Margit Bohnhoff 2008 in Dover

Miyuki Fujita with Channel friend Margit Bohnhoff 2008 in Dover

Miyuki from Japan, little  “Japanese Channel Queen” with 7 crossings now, was also waiting for favourable conditions to attempt her first double crossing. I had the pleasure of meeting her (and her friend Margit Bonhoff) and swim with her in Dover harbour last year. She is sweet, humble, funny and “totally crazy” about the Channel (in her own words). But for days and days the weather did not offer a larger window for a 2-way swim.

Afraid to have to fly back to Japan without even getting her feet wet, she finally went out in less than perfect conditions shortly after midnight on August 3rd with Neil Streeter as her pilot, Alison (Queen of the Channel) Streeter’s brother.

Miyuki, Ishii and Margit, training and waiting in Dover weather

Miyuki, Ishii and Margit, training and waiting in Dover weather last year

While she completed 5 of her 6 previous solos in 14 hours or less,  she would need 17 hours 18 min for the first leg this year  with the wind against her most of the time. Determined to not give up, she still turned round after touching French ground to give her all to the second leg, even though the prospects were not encouraging at all and she had to swim through the night again. She swam valiantly for a total of 29.5 hours, refusing to give in to tiredness, feelings of hoplessness, the cold etc., but had to be taken out of the water after getting a bad cramp in her leg a few miles away from Dover.

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This is Miyuki’s story in her own words:

“The English Channel Swim Report 2009

I always wanted to be the best and do something unusual so I aimed to
complete the two-way crossing, not just one way, as no Japanese person has ever successfully swum the two-way Channel crossing.

On my first attempt, I had to stop after ten hours due to thigh pain and I didn’t finish even one-way. A week later, I had another
opportunity to swim the one-way. I swam for 17hours 35minutes but had to give up just 3km from the French coast.

My respected Freda then gave me some good advice, “When you swim the Channel crossing, you shouldn’t look ahead. It makes you feel as if your goal is very far away and that you still have much further to swim so it is mentally harder to keep going. Also, you shouldn’t stop because by doing this you will be drifted by the tide and have to swim further. You shouldn’t do anything which will be disadvantageous to you. You should try the one way swim again.”  It was in 2004.

The next year, I began training again for the one-way swim and followed Freda’s advice. Since then, I have successfully completed the one way crossing six times.

This year, I went back to Dover again. I felt ready for to attempt the two-way swim. I planned to stay in Dover for 35 days and waited nervously for the big day. Neil, the boat pilot, would choose the day  with the best weather conditions for the swim. The other swimmers had gone to swim one after another and everybody kept asking me when I was going to swim but the days passed and I still had no idea when I would get to swim.

I started to feel very frustrated but I could not do anything but wait and trust Neil to pick a good day. For the two-way swim, we would need two consecutive fine days. It was possible that the weather conditions would not permit me to swim because the weather was constantly changing. I told Neil that if the two-way was not possible, I still intended to swim at least one way before flying back to Japan.

At last, one week before I was due to leave England and go back to Japan, Freda told me that I would be able to swim on the next Monday or Tuesday. I was so happy because I had been waiting such a long time for this chance and could not stop crying.

On Monday, I was on the beach with Jenni, an observer when Neil called her to say that we should all meet at the marina at 19:00 that evening for my two-way challenge! I was overjoyed. I was going to attempt the two way swim! I was so pleased that Jenni would also be coming on the boat with me as my observer. I got my thing ready for the swim, had a massage and went to bed for a nap. At last the time for my big challenge had come!

Our boat was called Suva. Once on board, I applied the Channel grease to my body. When the boat came close to Shakespeare Beach, Ishii, my coach farted. Everybody on the ship started to laugh and the atmosphere became very relaxed. Even when I was swimming in the dark, I remembered it and laughed. It was nice to have a funny thought to make me smile whilst I was swimming, particularly when it became dark.

That night I started swimming from Shakespeare Beach. I was familiar with the currents around the beach from my previous swims but, for some reason, on this occasion I kept drifting so that every time I looked up I saw the same scenery. I worried that I might not be moving forward at all and was scared by a big red jelly fish that brushed my arm, stinging me.

After about 40 minutes, saltwater filled my goggles. I had already tested the goggles in the water but the waves pushed the water in. My eyes started to sting. I knew from my previous experiences that the eyes are very important to a long distance swimmer so I changed my goggles when I stopped for my feeding.

I am used to swimming at night but I still felt sleepy. Suddenly, I was surprised by some people screaming. They were a relay team who had already finished their swim and were on the way back to Dover. Their support encouraged me a lot.

Swimming into the French side, I started to struggle with the high waves. Some were as big as 2m. The sea always tends to be rough
towards France and the currents are very fast.

Morning came and as it got brighter, I began to wake up a bit. By this point, I was really enjoying swimming even in the rough waters but I realized that France was still far away after 14 hours of swimming. I usually swim one way in 14 hours but Ishii told me that this time I would have to swim for another four hours to reach France. I realized that I must have drifted a long way off course when I was swimming near Dover and kept seeing the same scenery.

Miyuki says she loves swimming in big waves - like here in Japan

Miyuki says she loves swimming in big waves - like here in Japan

Consequently, it took me 17hours 18minutes to swim just one-way. I told Ishii that it would be impossible to finish two-way because the first leg had taken too long but he encouraged me to swim a little longer. I swam for three more hours before I asked him if I could give up.  Ishii said that the weather conditions were going to become better so there would be no wind or waves so I had better keep swimming as such good conditions were very rare. He told me that I could complete the swim in just eight more hours in such favorable conditions.

I was determined to swim for another eight hours. I tried very hard, spurred on by the though that my dream of swimming the two-way Channel crossing was about to come true. My husband, the pilot, my colleagues, everybody would be delighted!  What would I do if TV reporters were waiting for me at Narita airport? What would I do next after my dream had come true? Maybe I could try to swim the one-way ten times! Or perhaps I should try to become the oldest Channel swimmer! Pondering over these random things, I pushed myself to continue swimming.

My body ached and I wanted to give up many time but I kept my arms moving.

Night came again and it became cold but I didn’t stop. I saw the lights of England as I swam closer and closer to England.

I drank another feeding and said to the people on the boat that I could not swim any more but they told me to keep trying. I screamed and my voice echoed in the darkness over Channel.

It was the first time that my body was chilled to my very bones and even my wrists started to ache.

I gave up about 5 hours from England (about 4 miles). I was mentally and physically exhausted.  I could not swim the last five hours.

I recalled my first Channel swim.  That time, I was also unable to swim the last few hours. I could see the white houses on the French coast but just could not swim. I realized that I had not followed Freda’s good advice. I had looked ahead and convinced myself that the end was too far away for me to keep swimming. If I had continued to swim very slowly, I might have been able to finish the swim but, because I was tired, I convinced myself that I could not do it.

To be a successful long distance swimmer, you have to be mentally strong. I had swum 30 hours in pool and 20 hours 7 minutes in sea. Even though it was tough, I am glad that I did not stop after just one way and challenged myself to my limit.

Now, I have to use this experience to aid my future training for my
next Channel swim. On my first swim, I stopped after just 10 hours but now I was able to swim for about 29hours 30minutes.  I never dreamed I would be able to swim for so long.

I am so grateful to the people who have helped me to come so far.  I could not have done all this by myself.  Thank you very much for supporting me.  I hope that I will soon be able to fulfill my dream of completing the two way swim and will continue to enjoy swimming.

“The Channel swim was… the human mind is weak, you will inevitably experience feelings of struggle and sadness when you swim, but, hopefully, you will find happiness, too.”— Miyuki

What a great spirit of “gambaru” and self-transcendence!

Miyuki, Marcy MacDonald and Barrie Wakeham in Dover harbour

Miyuki, Marcy MacDonald and Barrie Wakeham in Dover harbour

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Nice article about Miyuki on www.10kswimmer.com

Karteek did it again – his 10th crossing – article by UK Scotsman Online

Karteek did it again – his 10th crossing – article by UK Scotsman Online

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Karteek in Dover Marina a few years ago

On August 13,  Karteek from Edinburgh finished his 10th successful Channel swim in 16 h 49 min.

The same day  Suprabha Beckyord from Washington, D.C. – another teammate –  finished her 13th 3100 mile race in New York in a time of 61 days (unimaginable for me, but highly inspirational to follow the daily reports on https://perfectionjourney.org). For both of them these challenges are more of an inner quest than just athletic feats.

The online-article is followed by a few comments by Kevin Murphy, current King of the Channel and Karteek`s oberserver on the day.

https://news.scotsman.com/scotland/-Businessman-hails-yoga-after.5571971.jp

Businessman hails yoga after completing tenth swim to France

Published Date: 20 August 2009
By MARK McLAUGHLIN

AFTER completing a gruelling swim of the English Channel, he vowed to never put his body through the pain again.
But Edinburgh businessman Karteek Clarke just can’t leave a challenge alone. He gave it another go – becoming the first Scot to attempt the crossing twice. Then he did it again, and again, and again.

Incredibly, the 42-year-old business training consultant from Newington has now completed his tenth swim to France – and he puts his remarkable achievement down to meditation and yoga.

He said: “Every time I do it I say it will be my last time, but this time so many events conspired to draw me back to Dover to give it
another try.

“I first attempted it back in 1994 and I thought I could complete it with very little training, but I had to give up after I’d been going for 12 hours and still hadn’t even made it halfway.

“I went back and trained properly and completed the crossing in 1997, and a friend of mine filmed me coming out of the water saying that it was great but that I was never doing that again. It was just too tough.”

Mr Clarke spent a few years pursuing less gruelling athletic challenges, such as swimming Lake Zurich in Switzerland.

“It’s only 17 miles across and it’s a bit warmer,” he said. “It’s hardly a dip in the pool but it’s nothing compared to the Channel.”

However, the Channel drew him back once more in 2000, and has refused to let him go since.

He says he has been continually drawn to cross-Channel swimming by his devotion to the Sri Chinmoy discipline of yoga and athletic endurance.

On his latest trip, completed on 13 August, he was monitored from a boat by “King of the English Channel” Kevin Murphy, the male world record holder with 34 crossings under his belt.

Mr Murphy’s feat is dwarfed only by the “Queen”, Alison Streeter, who has crossed the Channel an impressive 43 times.

Mr Clarke said: “I’m definitely not racing to catch up with these guys.

“I keep going back to hone my meditation skills as our Sri Chinmoy teacher encourages us to undertake these tasks to promote self-discipline. Like most brands of yoga, the aim is to silence the restless mind and purge it of negative thoughts. After about six hours in the water, you’re cold, wet and miserable, but it starts to become quite exhilarating.”

This time, the choppy seas, showers and swell made conditions difficult, and Mr Clarke had to battle seasickness which led to his
energy levels dropping.

He finally paddled up the shore at Calais 16 hours and 59 minutes after setting off. The world record for a cross-Channel swim is just under seven hours.

Mr Clarke is one of a select few swimmers who have repeatedly crossed the Channel.

Michael Oram, honorary secretary of the English Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation, said: “Very few people have swam the Channel more than ten times, and while Mr Clarke has his spiritual motivations, others are motivated by the challenge.

“The Channel is the Everest of swimming, and I would argue that it’s even tougher than climbing Everest because there have been so many ropes and handrails added over the years that you can just stroll up it now. More than 4,000 people have climbed Everest but only around 1,000 have swam the Channel because it’s all about the endurance.”

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Observations by Kevin Murphy who helped out as an observer and even crew member for Karteek, whose helper was busy feeding the fish most of the time (i.e. completely seasick):

“I was out yesterday observing Karteek Clarke’s successful swim (16hrs 49mins). The first five hours in the dark and what passed for dawn seemed to me to be miserable with a fair swell, a following sea and wind strong enough to be blowing the rain horizontally through the back doors into the cabin. It looked to be quite difficult for the swimmer to get a rhythm going. Although it was Karteek’s tenth Channel swim he started being sick after a couple of hours, until it calmed down. But afterwards he said it wasn’t the swimming that made him sick – it was looking at the way the boat was rolling! The second half of yesterday’s swim was brilliant and was as calm as could be hoped for – not quite glassy smooth but almost.  Unfortunately, unless you’re lucky or very fast, the Channel is seldom calm all the way across…

Incidentally, I was very impressed by Karteek. He was always cheerful, always smiling, always confident, fed quickly, never asked how far he’d got to go and just got on with the job. If he keeps knocking them off like he did yesterday I think I may have a problem!”

Kevin Murphy (34 crossings)

Back to running – and cold dips in the Neckar

Back to running – and cold dips in the Neckar

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Meeting Carl Lewis again in New York, Oct. 2009 (He is wearing the same T-shirt under his jacket!)

Meeting Carl Lewis again in New York, Oct. 2009 (He is wearing the same T-shirt under his jacket!)

During a short visit to New York to honour the Mahasamadhi anniversary of my teacher Sri Chinmoy on Oct. 11th, I had the good fortune of meeting once again Carl Lewis (“Athlete of the Century”), who has been a supporter of and spokesman for the World Harmony Run since its inception back in 1987. Carl has launched a new project FitForever.com – the ultimate online fitness tool and community – and everyone is welcome to join!

Back to running

lauf-mit-bigalitaRunning is fun again now that temperatures are beginning to drop. (I basically hadn’t run since my slow 12 hour run in Basel in May.) I love running in the crisp autum air, with brightly coloured leaves all around, and even now, in misty, slightly depressive November. But with my extra kilos now, I have become quite slow. Kastura, a friend, has given me some tips how to get faster again. Next goals: Heidelberg half marathon end of April, then 6 hour-race in Nuremberg (March) and 12 hours of Basel in May. For swimming: 12 hours, Zurich indoors, on March 1st, 2010.

Back to the Neckar

Since our English Channel relay I hadn’t been swimming at all. The indoor pool is still frightening me with its warm temperatures, but I will have to start training for speed, technique, and endurance soon. The first cold dip in the Neckar this season was on Sunday, Nov. 15  – must have been way below Channel temperature already.

Today (Nov. 17th) an article about our English Channel relay appeared in our local newspaper. Feels a bit out of place for only 3 hours 21 min. of swimming in my case, but it was a great adventure with a lot of oneness in our international team – which may be much more important than just doing great things for yourself! And if anybody gets any inspiration from it, I am very happy!

Neckar in November

The Neckar in November

Crawl in the Neckar is reserved for Heidelberg-Man-relays (the water is not too clean)

Crawl in the Neckar is reserved for Heidelberg-Man-relays (the water is not too clean)

(The article says I was the first German woman – but the truth is: just the first German woman in the annals of the Channel Swimming Association (CSA). In 1938, during the Nazi-regime, Dr. Bruna Plarre swam the Channel in the “Daily Mail International Channel Race” – not sure if it was according to current Channel swimming rules. And the first German male swimmer was Ulrich Haevecker in 1982, 4 min. slower, but breaststroke!)

“Just silence the mind.
Lo!
Cosmic energy enters
Into our entire being,
And tremendous energy
Flows in and through us.”
– Sri Chinmoy –

Meet Dan and his Global Triathlon

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While acclimatising for our relay in Dover this year we met Dan (Daniel Martin), whose bike-odyssey from Corea to Cape Town I had already admired on the internet https://www.koreatocapetown.co.uk/.

Dan has a new project – a global triathlon – again with the aim of helping children in need all over the world. He will start on May 8th in New York, swimming in 8 hour/day sessions across the Atlantic to Brest (covering every meter thanks to GPS), from Brest he will bike across Europe and Siberia, cross the frozen Bering Strait and run from Alaska to finish with the New York marathon in Nov. 2011.

This project sounds impossible, but Dan is a great, humble guy and I am confident he will do it. I am sure he will be grateful for any support – during his journey and for his charity.

The Global Triathlon from Daniel Martin on Vimeo.

Check out his route, timetable and all:
https://www.danmartinextreme.com/home.php

“Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.” – Albert Einstein

“Every day is a journey and the journey itself is home. ”Matsuo Basho

“It does not matter how slowly you go, so long as you do not stop.” Lao Tzu (from Dan’s Corea to Cape Town-blog)

Good-bye Vijaya

Good-bye Vijaya

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Vijaya receiving the Gertrude Ederle award

Vijaya receiving the Gertrude Ederle award (photo Dover UK)

On Dec. 23rd we received the sad news that Vijaya Catherine Claxton had left this earth.

She was a respected member of the International Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team who made it across the English Channel from Dover to France the hard way on Sept. 8, 2007, in 22 hours 27 min., after three heroic attempts in the years before. Vijaya, who held a responsible position at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, became the oldest US lady to swim the Channel at age 59, and in March 2008 received the prestigious Gertrude-Ederle-Award for the most meritorious CS&PF English Channel swim by a woman in 2007.

Vijaya was a bubbly person known to a lot of us in the Channel swimming world. She came into our lives determined to swim the Channel and did it on her fourth attempt with Eddie in 2008. Her first three attempts were with me. All were long swims, all were great advances on the previous swim. All were very happy swims with a great support team of girls who enjoyed life to the full. Vijaya, complete with her smile and her willingness to help all around her will be sadly missed by the people who knew her. Those who did not know her missed out on one of the little pleasures of life.” – Mike Oram, pilot and Hon. Secretary of the CS&PF, and Angela Oram, Assistant Hon. Secretary of the CS&PF

Vijaya after her successful swim Sept 2007 with Alison Streeter, Queen of the Channel (44 crossings) and "King" Kevin

Vijaya after her successful swim Sept 2007 with Alison Streeter, Queen of the Channel (43 crossings) and "King" Kevin (photo by Cliff Golding)

“I happened to be on the jetty when Vijaya came off the boat after her Channel swim and I recall being immensely impressed by how cheerful and energetic she was. She wasn’t fast but she had enormous determination. It was a long and therefore a tough swim  – but you never would have known it. She was an inspiration.” – Kevin Murphy, “King of the Channel” (34 crossings)

I remember Vijaya swimming in the Dover harbor, always having a smile on her face, no matter how long she was in the water. The love she had for the water and our sport will be missed.” – Marcy McDonald, Connecticut

She was truly an inspiration. Vijaya taught me so much and I am a better person for having known her.” – Anne Cleveland

More:  www.thewaterisopen.com, on my old blog, on Sri Chinmoy Races and on Open Water Swimmig.eu and Dover UK.

“You don’t have a Soul. You are a Soul. You have a body.” – C. S. Lewis

“Death has no access
To the soul.
It only has access
To our weak and fragile body.” – Sri Chinmoy

“Death is at once
The end of the body’s
Old journey
And the beginning of the soul’s
New journey.” – Sri Chinmoy

Ocean monk – “I always look at the ocean as a temple”

Ocean monk – “I always look at the ocean as a temple”

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“Ocean Monk” is a great movie for any lover of the ocean. If you like it, please vote for it by Nov. 10th:

Ocean Monk

Ocean Monk

Surfing in New York, in winter….

Like Channel swimmers, these “modern monks” get deep joy and inner satisfaction from seeking out unusual challenges – combined with a spiritual way of life.

There are quite a few interesting statements in the movie also for Channel swimmers – about the inner aspects of surfing, like conquering fear, silencing the mind… – and a great combination of contrasts: spirituality and humour, winter and surfing, New York City hustle and bustle and the vastness of nature and more. Great shots, great interview, beautiful poems and music…

(“Ocean Monk” did win the 1st place for best documentary at the St. Louis International Film Festival 2010 – congratulations! More on: www.oceanmonk.com)

Abhejali is swimming!

Abhejali is swimming!

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Seafarer 11 off with Abhejali from Shakespeare Beach

Seafarer 11 off with Abhejali from Shakespeare Beach

Exactly at 6:22 Dover time (7:22 MET) on Monday,  July 11th, Abhejali started her swim with Chris Osmond on Seafarer 11 – along with quite a number of other swimmers.

Tracker 4 for Seafarer 11 on ais-doverstraits.co.uk

Tracker 4 for Seafarer 11 on ais-doverstraits.co.uk

She has tracker no 4 on https://www.ais-doverstraits.co.uk/ (if it works…)

The boats in the Channel can also be followed via: https://www.shipais.com/showship.php?map=dover&mmsi=235018589

Conditions are looking very good – many boats with swimmers are out. Fingers crossed!

Photo by Nick Adams on Suva

Awesome swimming conditons - Photo by Nick Adams on Suva via twitter

Next challenge: Swimming to Africa (Straits of Gibraltar)

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Leaving for Spain on Oct. 4th, swimming hopefully between Oct. 7th and 14th, depending on the weather. Stay tuned and wish us luck!

Update: right now we are starting on Tue Oct. 9th, around 8:30 – if the start is prevented by fog, the next chance is Wednesday.

Here you may see the boat: https://www.marinetraffic.com/ais/de/default.aspx#

For the harbour, enter “Tarifa”, the name of the boat is Columbia 1 or 2.

More info