Around the Isle of Wight at 2 knots - on TV tonight

[Nick_H]

A week ago I helped out with boat support for a charity swim around the Isle of Wight. The team were from the Met Police, and were swimming to raise money for treatment for the seriously ill daughter of a colleague of theirs, and research into the type of cancer affecting her.

I signed up for 12 hours, although ended up doing about 20 non-stop with no break, as there was no other skipper to helm my boat, and the swim took over 30 hours in total. The team of 8 swimmers dropped to 3 at one stage during the night, as the others suffered from sea sickness, but they all recovered to varying degrees to play some part the following day. A number of previous attempts at such a swim have failed, and this bunch are not accomplished swimmers, so I have great admiration for their resolve in finishing the swim, despite spending many hours going backwards in the tide to make it a continuous swim. I can also tell you it's pretty hairy swimming across the entrances to Ryde, Fishbourne and Cowes in the dark, with ferries, fast cats and hovercrafts coming in and out, even with the full knowledge and permission of the harbour master, and 3 boats in support.

There is a feature on ITV London Tonight at 6pm tonight. Robyn has now had the first round of treatment and has apparently responded well, and there is every possibility that further treatment could save her life, so if anyone wanted to donate, they can do so at:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fun...ndraiserProfilePage.action?userUrl=swim4robyn

 

[Hurricane]

Presumably good use and planning of the tides then.
Whe I ran an RTI sailing race, I always selected the direction of circumnavigation and the times etc to give the best chance of the competitors achieving their goal.
But swimming! - that’s takes some planning.
We used the concept that you can wash out on the tide one way then wash back on the next tide round the back of the island then (for us) it usually meant a fight against the tide to finish but from an organiser's point of view, I didn’t want my competitors round the back in open water for too long.
Planning an RTI race is challenging and in today's litigation climate, a bit foolhardy.

So, I’ll watch with interest – I take my hat off to the organisers as well as the swimmers.

 

[Nick_H]

Yep, we had detailed info on tidal flows (books kindly donated by a yacht racer), and the skippers worked between ourselves to guide the swimmers to make best use of them. The event was planned for neaps, and the start time and location carefully chosen.

I thought the TV report was good, and there was even a fleeting glimpse of the back end of the Windy

 

[[2068]]

I didn't get back in time for the 6pm slot. Is it being repeated?

 

[gjgm]

Ah, we wondered if it was the previous w/end.
Ok, that was a long stint, Nick.
20 hours on one tank... must be a record for the boat .

 

[Nick_H]

I have to mention this - Fairview Yachting lent the team a bareboat charter yacht for the whole swim at no cost. As the yacht returned to the marina after the swim, with an exhausted skipper, he lost control and crashed the boat causing about £300 in damage.

I heard today that the staff at Fairview have all chipped in to cover the cost of the repair so as not to deplete the fundraising! - What an amazing gesture, well done Fairview.