Sunday, October 4, 2009

Just beginning.....

Hi there, just starting my second month's training with Eilís Burns. Eilís has coached 8 soloists from Cork successfully across the English Channel, and her most recent success story is Lisa Cummins who just completed a two way crossing. So, there's no pressure really!! I'm doing the same training programme as Rob Bohane, Ciarán Byrne, Danny Walsh, Liam Maher and Donal Buckley who are all swimming the Channel next year. We met last week with Eilís to report on how we were all getting on with our training sessions and get the sessions for the month ahead. So far all the lads are up to date, with every metre completed. I, on the other hand am currently approximately 37km behind....oops-time to get the act together.

All jokes aside, things are running a lot smoother for the last few weeks. I have a great support network behind me which so far includes my husband Mick, kayaker extraordinaire and amazing omelette cook, and all of our kids who against their better judgement have taken on more chores. Niamh (9) and Caelan (8) have kept me company in the pool, while Derek (16) has been actively improving his swimming in order to be one of my support swimmers with John Conroy for my Channel crossing. Ryan (12), Liadh (19) and her boyfriend Chris have been enthusiastic with the others in coming up wth ideas for fundraising for Barretstown. My friends Martin Walsh, Gobnait O'Leary and Alex Taylor have all also been helping by kayaking for me in Inchigeela.

I've been doing most of my training in the open water as I know it'll be getting too cold for long swims soon. I was feeling very sorry for myself last week as I was suffering from a head cold, but was determined to get my training back on track, so for the first time in ages I put my wetsuit back on. Any notions I had that it was a bad idea were quickly erased from my mind as I plunged into the freezing cold lakes of Inchigeela. Went down to Sandycove in Kinsale on Friday for a double lap of the island and was nervous about going without my wetsuit again, but luckily the water was gorgeous, and Liz Buckley patiently swam around with me. So all in all, feeling good but tired, and enjoying my day off today.



Me and Alex starting out at Loch Allua, Ballingeary