Dover, here I come.....

Getting the last few things together and heading off to spend the night in Cork before flying out in the morning. Feeling strangely calm, which I keep expecting to change. Sick of eating, and feeling wierd not swimming during this tapering period. The weather is looking good for an early swim, maybe as early as Monday or Tuesday, but will know more and update when I speak to my pilot, Paul Foreman tomorrow.

Thanks to all who have donated to my charity, Barretstown . We are moving towards our target, so please those who haven't already, click here to get to the charity page where you can donate.
I will post a link to the gps tracker on the boat when I get it so you can follow my progress, and regular twitter updates will also feed to the blog and my facebook page.

A big thankyou goes to my lovely friend Jenny-Rose Clarke who has kindly agreed to take my mini monsters, Niamh and Caelan for the time we are away. By the sounds of it, they'll have even more fun than me!

Last swim at Sandycove....

The sun came out, the friends came down, and a lovely swim was had on Sunday. Rob Bohane, Ciaran Byrne and Gabor Molnar were at the end of their 8 hour swim when Donal Buckley, Liz Buckley and myself joined them for the last 3 laps. Liam Maher joined us for the last leg. There were loads of other regular Sandycove swimmers either in the water, or milling around enjoying the weather. Had a lovely feeling when we finished the last lap, all of us in a straight line as if it was organised that way. Nearly a year of training together and it was a lovely way to finish my last swim with them before I head off.

Last minute addition to the crew is Lisa Cummins, which I'm thrilled about. Will be lovely to have some female company, not to mention her experience after her two way crossing last year.

So, I head for Dover this Friday with Mick, Derek, John and Lisa. Getting very excited in between stuffing myself with pasta etc at every available opportunity.

Not sure exactly when the swim will start, but will update the blog as soon as I do.

Thanks everyone for the well wishes on Sunday!

Lee Swim 2010......

Well, what an experience, the first year in 5 years that I haven't swum in the Lee Swim in Cork. Myself, Niamh and Caelan set off this year as spectators and had a ball! Mick and Derek both swam, Derek taking the silver medal in his age group!! We watched the start and barely made it back to the finish to see the first swimmers home. The sun came out and as usual, it was a great day. Caught up with Liam Maher, my first time seeing him as a successful Channel swimmer and he was in great form, with a big smile permanently on his face. I spoke with many other Channel swimming friends who all wished me well. It was lovely to be socialising rather than swimming for a change, although I will be back in the water for next year's race! Thanks everyone for the well wishes!

So proud of Derek. He has gone from strength to strength in his first season, and came out with a fantastic result for his first mass participation open water race! Delighted that he'll be with me in the Channel next week, maybe he'll force me to pick up my pace!

Resting up....

As I lie in bed typing and resting, my fellow Aussie swimmer Chloe McCardel is out in the Channel, on her way back to England. I met Chloe during her stay in Clonakilty, Co Cork and we had a lovely swim, freaking out a few lifeguards in the process, and a lovely chat after numerous bowls of chips. Her two way attempt seems to be going well, she's flying it. You can track her progress here. Awesome job Chloe! Go Aussie Go! Channel 9 on board for all you intersted Australians out there. Another exciting day!

Great weekend in Valentia...

Channel Aspirants and Coach Eilís Burns before the Beginish Island Swim

The weather again left a bit to be desired, but fun was had by all anyway. The swim around Beginish Island looked dodgy right up until we were given the go ahead in the briefing. The swim was tough, but fantastic. Similar to last year, we got in just as the weather was closing in. Safely into the bar afterwards for food, awards and large volumes of drink for everyone it seemed except me! A great night, loads of fun.

Had a lovely swim with Lisa Cummins and Liz Buckley on Sunday to clear the heads, and then home to Cork, on the way getting news that Liam Maher, the first of our Cork bunch to go to Dover had been given the go ahead for 4.30am this morning. I normally find it difficult moving quickly on a Monday morning, especially after being away, but I lept out of bed and down the stairs to get the update as soon as my eyes opened!

He's still out there, doing well, with all of his Cork supporters behing him. Go Liam, Go!

More fun swims...

Well, the weather didn't hold up for Nick and Simone's swim last Saturday, so we had an alternate route, which was just as much fun. We were treated to a lovely barbeque in the lashing rain afterwards. Great food and even better company. Back to the hotel steamroom and sauna to warm up, and then to the beach bar for a few drinks with the rest of the gang. All in all, a lovely day and night. The following day, I was heading for a swim with Imelda Lynch, Ossie Schmidt and Rob Bohane. We decided to start at the beach and swim to the original start point of the race (had the weather allowed) and back again. A local swimmer had been training for the full swim for a while and was disappointed when it was cancelled, and when he discovered that we were heading over and back, he briefly contemplated joining us. Instead, he went for a shorter swim around the bay while we headed over, but he looked disgusted! Next thing we know, we're half way over and a rib goes past us with Gavin Hennessey on board, with a big grin on his face and waving wildly. He had got a spin over and was going to join us on the way back.

It was brilliant. Every time we stopped, the comments coming from Gavin were priceless and he had a ball, which in turn meant we had a ball too!

A big congratulations to Gavin who achieved his goal and loved every bit of it. It was a pleasure to have been there.

This weekend, we're in Valentia, Co Kerry, for another fun swim tomorrow, 6km around Beginish Island. Weather not looking too special for that one either, but if an alternate route is necessary, I'm sure it'll be great too.

Fantastic 8 hour swim....

Ok, so the weather didn't settle at all, can't remember when it rained so much except for our last lovely Irish summer, but it does make me realise how lucky I have been with my training all along-it could have been like this the whole time! Despite the downpour, we were lucky enough to get a window of opportunity to get my 8 hour swim behind me yesterday. It went really well, couldn't have been better, conditions went from flat to choppy, Derek and Mick my fabulous crew members fed me flawlessly from the kayak, which mustn't have been easy in the rain, and trying to fill my bottles with hot water from a flask while balancing the kayak must have been fun! Got stung by loads of nasty jellies and attacked by sea lice, but figure that this is now one more element of surprise out of the way if it happens on the day. Tired getting out but delighted. My last long swim before THE swim! Thanks heaps to my support team and to Simone Mulcahy who had the tea and chocolates ready!
Looking forward to Nick and Simone's swim today which should be fun and relaxing. Hope the weather improves just a bit for them!

A great week so far....

Had a couple of great swims so far this week. Early morning starts, but worth it! Feeling strong and looking forward to some great training, and maybe a small bit of misbehaving (what's that again?) in Caherdaniel, Co Kerry this weekend. Hope the weather is someway settled!

Fundraising fun...

A huge thanks goes to the brilliant kids who helped with bag packing at Tesco the other day to help raise funds for Barretstown, giving up an afternoon of their holidays. The icecream and chocolate bribes were not even needed (although vanished anyway) not a moan or groan from any of them, in fact, I found it hard to get them to stop. In total they raised €934.00 in just 5 hours. A huge well done and thanks again to Niamh and Caelan Hurley, Marie and Paraic O'Leary, Eimear O'Leary, Lorraine Dromey, Aisling McCarthy, Ashgan O'Dea and Niamh Ni Chuanachain.

Not long to go....

The excitement is building! Have had a few intensive training weeks, one or two more to go before the tapering period starts. Met some other Channel aspirants from the UK during Ned Denison's training camp-great to get a different perspective on training techniques and things to bring on the boat etc.. Very tiring, but great fun to swim in different locations around Cork for the week.
Had a brilliant 6 hour swim at Warren Beach in Rosscarbery last weekend with Ciaran Byrne and Gabor Monar. What a pretty place to swim. Felt strong and happy with the way the swim went.
Lat week I met a coule of fellow Aussies, Chloe McCardel and her boyfiend Paul McQueeney. Paul successfully crossed the Channel last year and Chloe is attempting her 2 way crossing in a coule of weeks. Had a lovely swim at Inchadoney in Clonakilty with Chloe and Derek and a great chat afterwards. Great to get the Aussie perspective on things!
Looking forward to the weeks ahead with a coule of trips to beautiful Kerry, and warmer water ahead!