A weekend of two halves

One of the great things about our forced adaptations this year is that we know who is due to be training each day. So I knew in advance that no one was going to be training on Saturday. That was weird. What would we do with the day? We could have a lie in. We could tackle our buckling to-do lists. We could treat ourselves to an activity away from Dover. What did we do? Well, I felt uncomfortable not being there, especially as I knew that there had been some notable swims in the preceding days and I wanted to be on the beach to welcome any new channel swimmers. We were not disappointed!

Sometimes, it’s nice to just chill out and enjoy the beauty of the beach without the hustle and bustle of training.

Back in action on Sunday though with training as normal, and yet more visiting superstars.

DOVER SWIMS

Remember that the camera flattens the water

Saturday:

Swimmers: 0
Water temperature: No idea
Air temperature: No idea (quite warm though)
Conditions: Lovely!

Sunday:
Swimmers: 8 (over 3 start times)
Water temperature: 18.0C
Air temperature: 20.1C
Conditions: F4 SW. Clear sky.

CHANNEL SWIMMER ON THE BEACH

We had more enjoyed a couple of days of swims this week with:

11 new soloists
2 new relay teams

Of special note we saw:

Joe Milnes complete his solo in a time of 12:10. Joe trained really hard with us during the season and was always smiling. I hope the smile from the success never fades!
Wendy Trehiou (14:40:56), whilst not someone who trains with us (why would you when you live on the beautiful island of Jersey), this was Wendy’s 6th successful crossing!!
Matt Murphy (13:06), yes that surname is very familiar! Matt trained himself and was often seen on the beach in Dover. He’d taken the opportunity to bring his swim forward from next year - cracking stuff!
Jennifer Laffan (14:27) who showed great resilience with last minute crew challenges and DCT alumni rallied round and made sure she was well cared for.
Lucy Ashdown-Parkes (14:20). Lucy trained with DCT last year for her relay and started her training last year for a solo attempt this year. Whilst Lucy didn’t train with us this year, it has been a real rollercoaster of a journey to watch. In July her swim was terminated only a few hundred metres from shore after something like 18+ hours of swimming. She quietly trained some more and went almost under the radar and smashed it. It was lovely to chat with her at the weekend, another person with a smile that I hope never fades.
Cosmic Rays relay (14:27) in this team is an inspirational lady who I met on a SwimQuest training camp in April 2019. She had been due to swim a relay last year and did all the training, but just before the relay she was diagnosed with cancer. After successfully enduring her treatment she came back determined to finish what she started. Her facebook posts talk about how she cried on every swim. I love how she has totally appreciated the blessing of being able to do what we do. It was lovely to see her on the beach on Saturday. Even more lovely to see her and Lucy chatting about a shared experience of a day.

Well done one and all, you are all legends. There are more to come as I write and I can’t wait to talk about those next week!

My heart goes out to those who didn’t get across this week. Your time will come and victory will be sweet.

BEACH EYE VIEW

Successful soloist and relay swimmer chatting about their shared experience of the same day.

It doesn’t matter where or how you trained, it is always a privilege to welcome successful swimmers to the beach for their ‘Channel Swimmer on the beach’ whistle.

For some it is going back to where it started. For others it is a group of people who understand what you’ve just achieved. It was so lovely to see so many swimmers just enjoying and reflecting on their swims.

It’s not just those who got across though. For all sorts of reasons, not everyone does get across (it wouldn’t mean so much if everyone got there first time), and chatting through what happened can help to process it and make sense of it. I find that most, and not all, do come back again having adapted if required.

I didn’t make my first attempt, and with the benefit of hindsight, I’m glad that I didn’t. Had I made that first time I probably would have moved on and not come back. Look at what I would have missed out on in the last 13 years!

VOLUNTEERS

Mandi creating the design for the Class of 2020 hoodie. Who’s interested?

Thank you to Paul & Mandi for helping out this weekend.

There are just a couple of weekends left, so a low pressure way to learn how things work in advance of next season, if you’re tempted to join the fun. Next year we will be particularly reliant on volunteers to join us as some / all of our 2020 regular volunteers will also be training.

HALLOWEEN FRIGHT NIGHT

We’re considering putting on a special night swim on Saturday 31st October. A short, dark, fright night. This is not the session if you are new to night swimming or have any issues with it whatsoever! It is the session for you if you like to have a bit of fun!

I’m interested in gauging potential interest - if this could be for you - please let me know.

REMINDER - BADGE WEEKEND

Because of the need to minimise large groups at this time due to COVID-19 restrictions, we can’t hold our traditional end of season BBQ and that is a shame. So what can we do? Well, we thought that if you still wanted to achieve something this year and your other plans had been postponed, then why not get yourself a badge on our last weekend of the year.

Chances are that the water will be too warm for a qualifying swim, but you could still do a back to back 7 & 6, after all, don’t they say ‘Go big or go home!’? What a way to end the season.

So if you’re tempted, book in to the sessions in the normal way. You’ll only be able to select 6 hours, but don’t worry, there will be 7 hour options for anyone who wants them on the Saturday. Badges will be available at £4 each to those who complete a 7 & 6 on the same weekend.

Come on, you know you want to….

The first of the bookings are in. Limited spaces available, so don’t delay, book today!

Book your session here. Choose Dover weekend training sessions. I have now released all sessions for the remainder of the season.

EMMA’S CORNER - SELF BELIEF

Have you ever seen a swimmer (or someone at work if you broaden the context) who is clearly talented and in whom you believe, yet for whatever reason, they do not believe in themselves?

It is hard to watch people who are full of doubt. Perhaps they are suffering with the imposter syndrome, something I have struggled with in various contexts from time to time. I’m not alone and neither are they. Up to 70% of people struggle with the imposter syndrome at some point in their life. I wrote a blog about this once https://www.emma2france.com/blog/2019/4/2/imposter-syndrome.

Me reflecting after an unsuccessful swim in Jersey in 2018, just before a successful channel solo.

Whether it’s you or you’re interested for a friend, it helps to know that the imposter syndrome is a thing and that you are most definitely amongst good company.

So, if you lack in self belief, yet there are people around you who tell you that they believe in you, borrow their belief in you until you find your own again. If you can see others that are struggling with self-belief who you can see are holding back their obvious ability, suggest that they borrow your belief in them until they find their own again.

Teamwork. Together we’re stronger.

PHOTOS

A few photos from this weekend.

DCT Week 20 - lots of legends on the beach