Tom Durhsen's 2014 Channel Crossing

What a great honour and a memorable day this was going to be.  Tom had asked me in 2013 whether or not I could accompany him on some of his channel training and assist on the boat.
At the time, I reluctantly declined.  My job was 8-5pm. I was also trying to keep my Herbalife business going as well as continuing to write sessions and accompany the odd swimmers on training sessions, so my spare time was already limited.  I would have loved too but there are only so many hours in the day, and this full time job was taking its toll.  Not to mention, I already didn't have enough time in the week for quality time with the family.

Funny how things turn out.  On 16th August 2014, just weeks before Tom's solo crossing, I was involved in an accident and broke my leg.  And just prior to that, I had handed my notice in for the very reasons explained above.  If I don't break away from employment and get out there and do what I love doing now, I never will.   So I was now in a position to be support crew but unfortunately I am now in a bloomin plaster cast!

Tom's pilot agreed that I could be on the boat with my disability.  All that water and a rocking boat, conjured up all sorts of images of me going overboard and sinking to the bottom with this lead weight on my leg!

I was thrilled to be going and couldn't wait to be part of his epic journey.  I had followed his progress through training and I knew he had been working bloody hard.  I watched as his swimmers tan became deeper and deeper with all that open water training he'd done and as his body shape changed in those final weeks leading up to D'Day.

Word was sent around that he was off at 3.30am and we needed to report to the office by 3am.  Not wanting to risk any traffic jams or hiccups along the way, myself Tony Marshall and Matthew Skidmore headed off to Dover shortly after midnight and we arrived at 2am.  Caroline and Tom arrived minutes later and after a brief pep talk, we decided to retreat to our cars until 3am for 40winks.

At 2.55am we were up and about and headed down to the office, then the boat to load up the cargo. I'm not sure if anyone clocked the pilot's expression on his face when he saw me hobbling down the slippery jetty on my crutches, but I certainly did.  I never said anything and until writing this blog, remained silent, but I remember thinking at the time, Oh dear, he ain't happy.  It was just a feeling I had and the look he gave me. There was something about this man I already didn't like.

Anyway, off we shot round to the beach and it wasn't long after a quick hot chocolate that Tom was being greased up and ready to swim into shore.   I can't for the life of me think why anyone would want to do this.  It was freezing and pitch black, real spooky.  He set off with his glow stick protruding from his bottom into the night.  Even more spooky!  Then there was some more commotions from the pilot as he started yelling to turn the boat, turn the boat, get the torch on him. Again, I paused for a moment at this chaps attitude, but only having known him for 30mins or so, I dismissed it as a Health & Safety moment and forgot about it.

I hadn't seen Tom swim for quite a few weeks now due to my accident and when he pulled up alongside the boat, I instantly saw how his stroke had changed.  It was so relaxed and efficient and you could see he had really been putting the effort in.  Powerful, strong and long, he was looking confident and determined.

As the sun rose, the boat crew were relieved to get a bit of warmth on our backs.  Tom was feeding every hour, then every half hour and remained constant with his stroke pattern.  He was looking good.

Caroline had put in 110% with all the organisation as she had everything under control from the champers down to a mere safety pin.  We had it all and soon settled into a pattern of asking the pilot and co-helper every half hour, "hows he doing" so we knew what words to relay to Tom on his next feed.


After about 9hrs in, on one such chat to the pilot, he advised me that Tom needs to really dig his heals in as we are caught in a strong current and not making progress.  Well, as any channel swimmers will know, you have a 6 hour turnaround with the tides.  In simplicity terms, 2.5hours of tide coming in, approximately an hour of churning about whilst it gets ready for the 2.5hours to go out again.  It is so important that the pilot gets your starting time right as a missed tide can make all the difference in whether you make it across or not. I'll come back to this bit later.

So, we did what all crew should do, and encourage Tom to keep going.  We told him he was doing brilliant, but we had hit a difficult spot and he needs to dig his heals in and give it all his got for the next hour or so.

Half an hour went by and the same conversation happened again.  "hows he doing".  "Well, he really does need to pick it up.  He is not making much progress against this tide".  So again, we relay to Tom in our encouraging way that he was doing fabulous, was in French waters but its a killer tide so come on, really dig in mate until the next feed where we will be better able to judge things after an hour has passed.

Next half hour, at the signal to stop, Tom shouts up, "How am I doing now" and before any of the crew could answer, the pilot's voice came bellowing over the boat saying "Well you could do a lot better" !!  The tone and abruptness (in my opinion) was unnecessary.  Throughout the last 9 hours, I cannot relay how many times he had used the 'F' word just in general chit chat.  This man had a very aggressive mannerism.  I'm not easily offended so brushed it off, but like a lot of people, just thought, it was really unnecessary.   However, I had already been slowly getting annoyed at his mannerisms and I really didn't like the way he said this to Tom.  So once Tom was back on his merry way, I said.  "Would you mind not speaking to Tom in such a negative way".  To which he replied in his increasingly aggressive way, "Oh you want me to lie to him them do you"?    "No, I dont want you to lie to him at all, I am just asking you to be a little bit more diplomatic.  Tom needs encouragement and suppport at this stage and not such pesimism".  And again, to my amazement, the pilot then said "Oh I will shut up then".   Where did all that come from? I was gob-smacked.  I let it all pass as our priority was Tom but when the next feed time came around, I soon realised (sorry for this bit), what an arrogant, self opinionated, obnoxious man this pilot was.

As I was on crutches and the boat was rocking, it was so difficult for me to walk on what was now, an incredibly slippery floor.  So I said to the co-pilot, who was sitting next to me, my usual question "feed time about to come up, what's the situation, any progress?"  And this is where, for the life of me, I cannot absorb this response at all - "I have been told not to speak to you and I am not allowed to give you any information !!!!!!!  Jesus frikkin christ, what is this guy on.  Our swimmer has paid over £2,000 grand for this challenge and this sort of confrontation we don't need.

I was angry.  With the help of Matthew who held me up whilst I slid all over the bloomin floor, I hobbled into the cabin and how I managed to be polite I will never know, but as Tom was our priority here, I asked,  "Just about to do a feed, can you fill me in please on the situation.  To which this selfish man turned round and said to me, "I tried to tell you last time but you didn't want to listen".  Oh please, give me strength.    Not wanting to cause an argument, I calmly repeated, "No, I did listen, I just asked if you could not be so negative".    To which he said, "well if you had been here on time, this might not have happened" ??????   So what was all this about then.  Apparently, there seems to have been some confusion whereby we thought we had to be on the boat by 3.30am, but apparently, we should have been raising our hand on the beach at 3.30am ready to start the swim.  So, now I'm even more pissed off due to the mis-understanding and lack of correct communication, and the thought that the tides were against him from the off.

We argued for a few minutes and then I had to say, look we have a swimmer out there in the water and this is the last thing we need right now.  I apologise if you think I have spoken out of turn, but can we please put our differences aside and concentrate on our swimmer.

Thankfully, this was the turning point, as pilot proceeded to explain the situation and point out on the maps etc what was happening with this tide.  The awful news was that for the last  few miles, Tom had only actually moved forwards a couple of yards.  That was hard to take in.  So, with me and pilot on 'friendly' speaking terms again, Matthew and I called Caroline in who had remained by Tom's side to ask her what she wanted us to do.  She was the closest person to Tom and knew how it needed to be handled better than anyone else.  It was decided that the pilot (in his newly founded friendly approach) and Caroline would tell Tom the bad news on the next feed.

I cannot begin to explain how I felt at this moment.  I really thought he would make it across.  He looked so great from the start and his professionalism and confidence and attitude was top class throughout the swim.  I was devastated for him.  As pilot and Caroline told Tom that he would have to swim hard for another 10 hours or so, I felt the tears overcoming me.  So so sad.  They advised Tom to swim for just another 10minutes or so, to digest the news.  He could after all, still make it, if he had it in him to swim for another 10hours, but he had given so much for the last 10hrs that he was truly spent.

At the moment Tom climbed out, as a true gentlemen, he shook everyones hand and thanked us all for being on board and for the help we provided.  I gave him a hug and could not speak words as I was so choked up with sadness for him.

In my opinion, Tom would have stood a better chance if we had set off 1/2 hour earlier.  It may not have made any difference to the overal outcome, but I am cross that we are all left with this knowledge.  I'm not happy with the pilots attitude and constant swearing throughout the whole crossing but what's done is done.

I feel honoured and priviledged to have been party to his attempt and I know he has it in him to become a Channel Swimmer.  Very well done Tom, You were Fabulous.

So, roll on 2015.  Tony Marshall is attempting to cross the English Channel too.  And no doubt, Tom will be re-attempting it so I am sooooooooooooo excited for them both and can't wait to Bring it On.

The Bettsy, Ratty, Julie's Fault, Tony Melletts Memorial, Doggy Poo Bin Swim - 13.9.14

So, this time I am the one and only 'BAG LADY'.

Boring or what.  Cast not due off until 25th September so making the most of my final few days of no athletism.

Despite the beautiful sunshine, the wind was a bit nippy so I sat on my deck chair under layers and layers of dry robes and swimmers towels and took lots of photographs of my team mates.








Jane Bell and her lovely daughter Maisie who is definitely going to be an open-water star in her own right in years to come.












Frolics from Helen and Clare - never miss an opportunity to pose.

So lovely to see Sarah Mellett continuing in her late husbands passion for swimming.  So proud of you Sarah.

No photography please - Right Diva !

Not your finest moment Chris !

And off they go.

Right, thats the boring bit over, wheres the BBQ

Midnight Man - 16th August 2014 - More like Midnight Horror

TEAM DOE were back in action today for the 2nd year running.  We decided to up our game this year and enter Midnight Man 1/2 Iron Man distance. We had the same team as last year.  Colin Doe on the Bike, Kerry Marsh on the run and myself, the swimmer.

Having had such a great time in last years Clacton team triathlon, it's now officially an annual event.  The sun was shining and the weather conditions were perfect.

There were only 4 teams entered in the 1/2 iron man distance so our goal was to get in medal position!   We are easily pleased!. The safety briefing was called and at no point did the organiser say, "I know this is a race, but please do not run!!  It is common practise for swimmers exiting the water to run to the bike racks.  Well, anyone who knows me knows that I am a useless runner anyway, so to say I came out of the lake with all guns firing and sprinting is slightly over exaggerated.  A gentle jog more like it for me.   

Little known to me, my fellow supporters, Janet Doe and Kerry Marsh had already been discussing how the timing mat was appearing to be a safety hazard.  Although there were very few swimmers in front of me, the mat had already become a slippery ice-rink.  An accident waiting to happen said Janet to Kerry.  And yes, you guessed it, I was the accident!   The mat is only about 4ft wide but you had to step on it in order for the chip to register.  My right leg went from underneath me as I slipped and landed on my bottom.  Then to my horror I realised my foot was facing the wrong way! 

The pain was excruciating as I glanced down at the dislocation.  I shuffled off the timing mat on my bum, hands and one foot to get out of the way of the other swimmers and in true competitive style, before I let rip and scream out in agony, I ripped the timing chip off my left leg and threw it at Kerry saying "get the chip to Colin quick".  The organisers were OK with this since I had already completed my swim and therefore agreed we would not be disqualified.  So, once I had that in order, I could go back to quietly screaming.  

All I can is remember is saying to the St John Ambulance chaps, please don't do that pulley thing that I see them do on telly - please don't pull it to pop my foot back in place.  I kept on repeating myself but was soon shut up by the first aider telling me that if we don't re-align your foot asap, the circulation will stop and the consequences will be a lot worse. 

Oh crikey, this obviously means that they are gonna have to do that pulley thing they do on telly - now this is really gonna hurt.  Some gas and air arrived and Janet Doe came over, sat beside me, held my hand and told me not to look at the first-aider - just keep sucking the entonox and staring at me.  I do remember sucking a few, then still repeating, "please don't let them pull it, please", suck suck, please don't......   It seemed like forever that I was repeating this process.  I must have drifted off into a blissful pain free dream for a millisecond because I just then remember Janet telling me that my foot was now back pointing the right way.  

My new HUUB wetsuit was now completely sliced up my right leg and it wasn't long before I started to get cramp and suffer the cold so I had to ask them to slice up my other leg too. Poor HUUB - queue Christmas prezzie!

The ambulance crew couldn't reach me due to traffic and the 100's of cyclists bombing up and down each side of the dual carriageway but paramedics soon arrived and quickly administered the morphine so although cold, I was now pain free.

It took the ambulance over an hour to get to me but eventually I was on my way to Darent Valley hospital.  Kerry had already phoned Chris when I went down and it took him over 3hrs to cover the usual 1/2 hour journey to hospital.

Naively I thought it was just a dislocation.  That I would get to Turkey next week to race Hellespont and then the week after, attempt to complete the length of Windermere.  These had been my main focus events all season.  My Xray came back showing a broken fibula.  So that's it, gutted.  My season was over in a flash, I was now in plaster cast for at least six weeks.

I hold Bridge Triathlon solely responsible for my accident. The lack of care taken when witnessing the first few slips clearly should have triggered a change of mat.  Instead the timing mat was changed immediately after my fall as seen in the photograph.  The red mat was placed over the black mat after I fell.
5 weeks into recovery now, they haven't even rung me to see how I am, so when their email came through saying how much of a success the event was and asking if there was anything we would recommend to make it better next year, I couldn't help myself, I hastily hit the 'send' button advising them that 'a non-slip mat' would be an advantage.  I also mentioned how disappointed I was at not having any contact.  Sure enough I received a reply email and a voice mail within hours.  "Apologies but I was so busy after the event, then went on holiday, then was preparing for my own race".  oh please.......
Nuff said.  Oh and some mention of we've always used this timing chip company and its never happened before.  Oh so its my fault then is it???

So, I had my insurance and my claim is in.  Loss of earnings, equipment, entry fees, holidays missed and a few other bits and bobs so lets wait and see.

I am one frustrated swimmer at the moment.  Leg swells every day and I have not been allowed to even place my foot on the ground for four weeks.  The dog thinks its all a game with me on all fours all the time trying to get from A to B. The simplest of tasks like making a cup of tea or having a wash - well you try them all standing on one leg.

My new career move of swim coaching and Herbalife distributor is now on hold as my enquiries are stacking up but I cannot commit to anything until I know what the recovery/physio process is likely to be.  So I'm updating my blogs, writing sessions for my 2015 channel swimmer and trying to manage my Herbalife clients on crutches.

The dog keeps escaping but I can't grab hold of her, Ive got a bed pan under the bed coz apparently I make too much noise on the zimmerframe in the night and I'm putting on weight and becoming miserable.

BUT. yes I know.  I'm alive, I will come back stronger, healthier, fitter and there are a lot of folk worse off.

Yesterday I saw some postings re organising a swim from Fambridge to Burnham on 2nd October.

Oooohhhhh. I wonder.  I could feel my excitement at getting back in the water begin to kick in again.  This will be less than one week after my plaster is off and I have no idea whether or not I will be able to walk, but I am damn sure I am gonna try to swim.

And the great news was that TEAM DOE won the relay event.

Bridge to Bridge - 14k

O.M.G.

What an event this was.

The only time I have superceeded this distance was when I did CPCPCPC back in 2012.  And this year I've only met a 5k distance in one hit so this I considered a real challenge.

Very well organised and a really friendly bunch of emails coming through saying that if anyone had any dietary requirements, would they let them know so they could accommodate them.  Well, I don't have any medical dietary requirements, but for a 14k swim, I do need my Herbalife24 sports range rather than subject my body to the usual rubbish of bananas, cake etc.   They were very accommodating and said it was not a problem and please bring your own food, fully labelled and they would make sure it got to each section of the Thames ready for the next feed.

So we checked into a hotel on the Saturday.  A right dump.  3 star Travel Lodge in Reading Central.  What a dump - don't go there.  Only took it because they accommodate dogs.  Now I know why!  We had a nice meal in the high street and then headed back to the hotel for an early night.   7am registration!.

This was the weekend of all the storm warnings.  We were being threatened with the biggest storm to ever hit the UK.  The organisers weren't sure if the event was going to take place or not so we were on constant TWITTER watch throughout the night.  6am a final TWEET advised the event would go on but any sign of bad weather, they may have to stop it half way through.


Only other Redcaps I saw there were Tom Durhsen and Caroline Harvey, Julie and Rob Warren. Chris brought Millie with him and the intention was for him to travel to each food station to say Hi, before moving on to the next one.

We took this fab photo of Caroline, myself and Rob and it wasn't until afterwards that we realised we were a fabulous advert for HUUB wetsuits and we were standing right in front of the BLUESEVENTY stand.  Funny.



So, I queued for registration and then asked the question "where does the nutrition go for those people bringing their own".  The registration desk then went to enormous trouble to find out how they could get my bag to the 4k stop mark and then work out what POD I would be in, and then at that point, I could put my bag with the lead kayaker.  I really did feel a nuisance now.  And the ironic thing was, I had my CHILLSWIM with me but Chris had already taken my bag back the car, so if only I had known what a blooming nuisance I was going to be, I could have just carried my food in my CHILLSWIM.  I live and learn once again.

Yesterday had been a tough race and The Great Pier Swim had taken a lot out of me.  But I never realised how much until I started swimming. Hundreds of competitors and I was bruised and battered when the gun went off.  I immediately hated it and then when the heavens opened and I couldn't see a blooming thing for the rain splashes on the river, I hated it even more.  I'm not sure I've experienced this 'not wanting to do something' situation before, and I found myself talking myself into pulling out at the 4k stage.  Go home.  Crap hotel, doubt I will find my nutrition bag, been hit on the head and kicked several times and now its belting down with rain.  Just go home Lorraine.

I got to the 4k mark and struggled to find my bag.  No one knew where it was and the thought of cake now was Yuk with a capital Y.  When I eventually found it, soaking wet and most of the product in a sorry state, I got teary.  What a wimp!  At this point Chris located me and offered a cuddle and a smile and said those immortal words "No one is holding a gun to your head Lorraine - You don't have to do it".

That's all it took for me to MTFU (I just learnt this one recently).  Erm, excuse me. I am holding a Gun to my own head thank you.  I'm not a quitter, so let's get this job done. It seems that it's OK for me to decide to quit, but when someone else tells me to quit, my usual stubborness kicks in and I won't be told what to do!   My only issue was my bag to which Chris very kindly volunteered to get to each feed station for me (a decision he came to regret later on).

So, I was now in POD 3 with about 20 swimmers, much more civil and headed off with the instruction that one more clap of thunder, and please make your way to the nearest bank and then walk 4k back to the start!!!!    Wasn't looking forward to that one happening.

And so I pressed on, the stubborn swimmer that I am.  As each 2k feed station passed by, my hero for the day who was getting wetter and muddier each time, was there to meet me with my Herbalife.

























I gradually got into the swing of it so that by the time the last section came around, I was now up with the lead swimmers in my pack.   The finish was a site for sore eyes.  But, unfortunately Chris and Millie were not so happy this time to see me.  If you can imagine, whilst I was swimming down a tide assisted river, he was having to jump in the car, clean the mud off the dog, strap her in and zoom around the windy roads to find the next access point to the river.  Park up, Pay and Display and then get across muddy wet fields to see if he could spot me.   So when he finally found me, the dog and he were soaked and covered in mud so I won't go into the foul language that came from his mouth.   But he did mumble "don't ask me to come to Dartford with you next weekend"   Another decision that he would regret making - read Midnight Man to discover why !