Relay Swimming the English Channel
My written record of swimming a four-person relay across the English Channel last year vaporized with a bad computer, so I’m going to log a few memories here and now before they fade into faint recollections. Let’s just say right here I am not—nor have I any desire to be—a marathon swimmer. I am a perfectly happy middle distance open water swimmer, not the fastest and not the slowest but always up for an adventure and the challenge of working through tough tides. My friend Kate had originally signed up for a solo EC swim, until she realized she wasn’t up for a solo. She invited her best friend Curtis, and my swim buddy, as well as Randy, another Alki swim buddy (who’d had to abort his EC solo swim the prior season). With team secured with a “special” relay of four people since six swimmers are standard for a relay, we commenced several months of cold water training in the Pacific Northwest. Our boat was Sea Satin with pilot Lance Oram, three crew and observer Irene. We