So as I’ve mentioned, there are a bunch of us LOSTies doing a Lake O Crossing this summer… and for the most part things are coming along swimmingly… (okay I couldn’t resist the pun)… as is often said about doing a Lake O Crossing… the training is the easy part… the hard part is meeting the exceedingly onerous requirements set by Solo Swims of Ontario… of getting 4 escort boats!
So if you have boat or know someone who does, let me or any of the swimmers below know, because even though everyone is doing really well in their training, some may not be allowed to go because of the 4 boat rule!
As far as the training goes, here are some updates:
Rob Kent: (Aug 13 – 14)I officially qualified on Monday by getting my 6 hour Test Swim in! One of my boat Captains, Tony, came out with his boat… as did Bill with his zodiac… for crew I had Shaun, my swim-master, coach Alex, manager Jenn and doctor John… great crew on a perfect day! Not a cloud in the sky, hot as hell, 32C, (let’s just say I had lots of volunteers to pace me!), pretty flat water… and warm… around 73F!!! We decided to do the swim near Niagara On The Lake, as Tony’s boat was there and the water was warmer… good choice. I swam just over 6 hours and covered about 19k… some with the current of the Niagara River… and a fair bit against it too! The long and short of it was… it was very uneventful… which is just how I like my 6 hour qualifying swims!
Michele Benoit:(Aug 17 – 19)this weekend was a great weekend for her too! She did over 8 hours (wow!) in the Welland Canal and covered about 21k. Great swim, Michele!
Colleen Shields: (Aug 10 – 12) she swam something like 20k in the Severn River recently… and this weekend she has her 6 hour qualifying swim too! She’s essentially going to do the LOST Race route… 4 times! I just spoke with Colleen… and even though she’s swum Lake O twice before, she says she’s really getting excited about this one… it’s going to be a good one! Go get’em Col!!!
Francois Hamel: (July 27 – 29) he did his qualifying swim the same time as me! I haven’t heard how his actual swim went, but I know he’s been training hard and is in great shape! Keep it up Francois!
Madhu Nagaraja: (July 23-31) he’s steamrollin’. He attempted his first qualifying swim… and didn’t make it. All he did was 4 1/2 hours in 55F water. And if that isn’t shocking to you… well then you’ve never swum in 55F water. No way in hell I could do that. Needless to say when the water warmed up to 65F the next week, he had no problem. The guy has a whole other gear of mental toughness that most people don’t. He’s ready.
Annalise Carr: (Aug 17 – 19) she’s attempting to be the youngest person to ever swim across Lake Ontario. Wow. I was chatting with her dad recently… and by the sounds of what she’s been doing… distance, time and temperature-wise… well, let’s just say I wouldn’t bet against her doing it! She’s going to crush it!
Amanda Lee Kelessi: (Aug 24 -26) we haven’t actually met yet, but she joined LOST while I was away, which I think is a good thing for her and anyone looking at doing a crossing… there is no experience better that time in the waters of Lake O. Good luck Amanda!