How one thing leads to another writes Jan Farmer who has organised a team of relay swimmers who are currently swimming across the English Channel.
As most of you will remember two years ago, Rob Ouldcott trained a team of 13 year old schoolgirls well enough to make a Channel relay look easy. Inspired by their success Eliza happened to comment along the lines "how inspiring some of us more mature girls should do a relay" and was a bit shocked when Nicola said "I'm in if you are" - and it went from there. Eliza and Nicola got together and within weeks there was a group, which some dubbed "the dream team” (i.e. In your dreams!). We ourselves settled on the name Ladies of the Lake, but in truth Ladies in Waiting is what we have become, as we were weathered out of our early July slot and have been waiting our chance ever since!
Well, our dream may become reality today Thursday 8 October as the Ladies of the Lake - Eliza, Jan, Jaana, Kirstie, Louisa, Mary and Nicola (average age 55) - embark on the cross channel challenge with boat pilot Paul Foreman and his boat 'Optimist' and where you can track their progress…
Many people have contributed to getting us this far. A number of us have been trying to improve our chances by patronising Uncle Ray. Several of us made use of Swim Trek's Fomentera swim camp to kick off our sea-swimming season and some of us have also have been getting help for our “mature” frames from Physioremedies. And of course most of all we’ve greatly appreciated being able to draw on the Club’s vast well of Channel swimming experience, including Camp Eton for four of the team – as well as sympathy for our mental anguish over the past three months.
Tweets during the day are available here
We will also be raising money for charity as below:
Jan Farner's chosen charity
Nicola Sanderson's chosen charity
Eliza Kaczynska Nay's page
[John Tierney]
Ladies of the Lake advance to France
