Zoe Podmore and team took advantage of a slot reserved via South London SC by Richard Chatterjee, who is also a fellow Serpie.
Here is her account of their 13 hour 24 minutes adventure.
Team "Pollocks To This"

Zoe Podmore, Hannah Carter, Kristie Boyd, Sam Deave
We got “The Call” a little earlier than expected. We were offered a slot due to the fact there had been a cancellation and our window opening a week later wasn’t looking so favourable weather wise!
Most of the team at the time just happened to be assembled in the pub watching the Lionesses play in the World Cup Final! A quick decision had to be made to secure the slot and it was decided it was now or never as we had trained hard and were as well prepared as we would ever be!
We all dashed home to pack a bag and reassemble only a few hours later for the journey down to Dover Marina for 0030 where we were met by our pilot Neil Streeter & Toby Evans as well as our Observer Colin Palmer aboard the boat "Suva".
Once we were all safely aboard, Suva set off for Samphire Hoe. The conditions recorded on Suva were Sea Temp: 21c, Air Temp 17c and Sea State: smooth. But as we rounded the harbour wall we were met by an unexpectedly choppy sea!
Undeterred by the choppy sea Hannah bravely entered the water at 01.42 and the horn was blown to start the clock as she set off strongly from the shore into the darkness with a spotlight trained on to the water so Hannah could be seen from the boat. The first rotation of swimming progressed well with all of us completing our first one hour swims in the dark. Kirstie jumped in and took over from Hannah, who was then replaced by a calm and determined Sam before I then got in.
The boat was a bit bouncy and as you slipped into the water from the stern of the boat there was a strong smell of diesel and gentle “putt putt “ of the engine as it rocked from side to side! We all wore green flashing lights attached to the back of our swimsuit and goggles so we could be seen easily from the deck of the boat. Once in the water I soon fell into a steady rhythm of breaststroke and I felt reassured as I could hear the gentle sound of chatter from the team, music from our playlist as well as the lapping of water against the side of the boat! It was exciting to swim through the dark into a short lived but most beautiful sunrise which felt such a privilege but was soon scuppered by fog which gave little visibility and an eerie atmosphere where we could hear the distant foghorns of ships but with nothing to see!

Zoe Podmore, night swim to sunrise
We powered through the first shipping lane and into the separation zone with little trouble despite by 0700 the wind picking up ...with the daylight we could see the jellyfish which miraculously we all managed to dodge!
Our progress as we entered the North West shipping lane looked as though we were going to be good to land on Cap Griz Nez, however despite both Kirstie and Sam giving their all in their third swims, the tide took us past the cap.
Early afternoon the sun made a proper appearance for my third swim and unbeknown to me at the time I was joined by a large pod of dolphins chasing their quarry of mackerel!
I thoroughly enjoyed this swim as could see land on the horizon. It felt so exciting. Before I knew it I saw the “5 mins left “ sign held up by our wonderful support crew Gina Deave (Sam’s Younger Sister) who had completed a Channel relay swim herself the previous year!
Next in came Hannah for her fourth and final swim and she steered us nearer into Wissant Bay, Kirstie next entered the water at 14:42 for the last swim of the day! This felt quite emotional with the realisation there was less than 400 metres to the beach, at this point we were all allowed to jump back into the sea and swim behind her to the shore, where Kirstie then strode out of the sea and clear of the water to crown us Channel Relay Swimmers!
Wissant Beach

L to R - Sam Deave, Zoe Podmore, Kirsty Boyde, Patrice Chassery, Hannah Carter, Gina Deave
We felt most fortunate to have been met on the beach by the infamous Patrice Chassery who kindly filmed the last few minutes of our relay swim and took pictures on the beach for us to fondly remember such an amazing experience and achievement for us all.
Our swim ended at 15:06, 13 hours 24 minutes after leaving Samphire Hoe, Dover. There were big hugs and a few tears before we got back in to the sea to swim back to the boat Suva that would motor us all back to Dover in approx 3 hours… whilst we had a glass or two of fizz!!

Homeward bound - Hannah Carter, Kirstie Boyd, Zoe Podmore, Sam Deave
We had trained well together through winter swimming and had lots of support from our friends at The Serpentine swim club and plenty of sea swimming trips to Hove, Brighton to accomplish this but more importantly a great bond and lasting friendship was forged.
Zoe Podmore.
Zoe took time to explain the origin of the team name -
"A night out together at the Sea Garden & Grill in Tooting Market, with a plan to come up with a team name! After a few glasses of wine ... Kirstie announced 'Pollocks to this!' which made us all laugh!"
And just in case you are intrigued, here is a pollock

(Brian Thomas)