Last weekend I competed in the The Round Manhattan Swim Race writes Mark Faure Walker. It was a really enjoyable swim and I met some wonderful people. I had all the usual minor dramas along the way. Goggles leaked for the first hour. The Harlem river must have been close to 26C and I almost got heat stroke. The temperature thankfully dropped closer to 20C in the Hudson although we had a full on head wind with white caps and two foot chop. I was delayed by a cruise ship an hour out from the finish. Overall it was a most amazing experience. Nothing quite compares to swimming past the most iconic cityscape in the world. Massive thank you to Teresa Murrias Murray* and my boat crew, kayaker and observers and to Morty Berger for organising. One more swim ticked off the bucket list. Now time to enjoy summer - no more long swims for at least 18 months.
If anyone from the Serpentine is interested in doing the swim - please let me know and I can talk you through the application process which is quite complicated. The annual race has a minimum speed requirement but solo swims round the island are held throughout the summer and are tailored to the speed of the individual swimmer. The nycswim website has a lot of information. If you would like to apply please get in touch as I can probably save you a lot of time. The swim usually takes between 7 and 9 hours. I’m often at the Serpentine on Saturdays or you can email me : mark at markfw dot com
Mark forgot to mention that his time of seven hours 32 minutes was the fifth fastest MIMS swim in 2015. And having successfuly circ-swum-navigated the rock, did he go with any of his support crew to this joint for breakfast?
* That's Mark's wife
