2SWIM4LIFE - 2015. Tony Marshall.

 2.5.15

Swim a Mile on the Hour Every hour for 24 Hours !!!    YIKES.  Time to get serious.

This has to be one of the hardest swim challenges of all time.  Some say it’s tougher than the channel crossing.  At least with the channel, you can get in and hopefully stop when you get to France.   With 2swim4life, it’s relentless, swim, stop, rest, swim, stop, rest, swim……., in the cold, through the night, for 24 miles, for 24 hours. 

I managed this challenge in 2011 and the full gory story is recited in my blog of April 2011.  Tears flowed through the night as I froze between each mile.  The video of me falling to pieces seems to continue to find its way back from UTube to Facebook bi-annually for a grim reminder.  Throughout today and this evening, I would compare my attitude towards the challenge to Tony’s attitude.  I had the focus and determination but so does Tony, but I was soon going to realise that we both had completely different ideas of how to handle it.

Really, all for one night !

I asked Tony to enter this challenge as I felt it would be a good tester for the mental focus required to swim across the channel, not to mention it is 24 miles, 3 miles further than the channel as the crow flies.   They say crossing the English Channel is 80% mental, 20% fitness.  That if you have the mental attitude to get across, then that’s half the battle.  Well, Tony certainly has this alright! 

His determination to swim the channel has been a true inspiration to me right from the start.  He has never once doubted himself.  Never once asked me whether I think he would make it.  He knows he has what it takes to make it.  The rest is down to Mother Nature.   And that’s what has made this whole experience so enjoyable.  The fact that I know I have a true believer with me and the fact that he pushes himself through the pain barrier every week when we train together.  Like I said, right from the start, I have the comfort of knowing that unless he is ill or the gods are against him, he has the determination and tenacity to nail this thing.

Tony’s other buddy is Matthew Skidmore.  And what a great buddy he is.  I can’t think of a better bloke to help me get Tone through this challenge and he is also part of our boat crew.  Phew, thank god I have some sanity on board, not to mention that both Matthew and I want to swim that last mile into France with him as much as he does.  Failure is not an option unless ‘The Mistress’ has other ideas.   

The most uncomfortable ride ever

So after months of preparation and constant phone calls, emails and lists being prepared of what to take, how we should play this, the day has finally arrived.  A little bit of me was worried that he would forget something despite the amount of lists I had sent across, but I needn’t have.  He comes across sometimes as not giving me the confidence that he has it all in order, but underneath that bubbly, jokey surface, he’s definitely under control.  He never forgot a thing.  How on earth we managed to get everything in Matt’s car, I will never know.  And so we set off on a somewhat very squashed and uncomfortable drive to Guildford. 

 

I have to say that from the moment the three of us got together, I cannot recall laughing as much, ever.  I started to refer to the two of them as Laurel and Hardy as the banter between the two had me in hysterics from the off. 

As much as Matt and myself tried to advise on the best way to handle the challenge and as much as we tried to say “Seriously Tony, we need to talk about the best way to get you through this”, all Tony could do, was talk over us and say, “Look, stop worrying, I’m gonna GET IN, SWIM A MILE, AND GET OUT AGAIN – REPEAT X 24. SIMPLES!   So, that was it, the only way to handle this challenge was Tony’s way.  Fun, laughter, micky taking all the way.  No more professional coaches, just ‘DO IT TONY’S WAY’.  And god did we ‘micky take’.

The fun was there right from the off.  The two of them in the Jacuzzi at The Manor House comparing the size of their woggles and putting the world to rights like a married couple.  Tony chatting up the receptionist who was so not interested and didn’t speak a word of English anyway, to not being able to operate his door key, too many incidents to recall.

Then came the next Act on Britain's Got Talent.  This was none other than Tony playiing the guitar, whilst swimming down a stream, singing and selling books.  The least said about that act, the better!  Four buzzes and he was out straight away!.

Danny Bunn is a great friend of Tony’s, and was also doing the solo challenge.  He is pitched right next to us.  Unlike Tony, he was taking it deadly serious having bailed out in 2011 at the half way mark, and just buddying in 2013, so this year his tactics were well documented.  So without prejudice in anyway whatsoever, Tony took comfort in each time he referred to Danny Bunn’s name, he realised that if you extended the surname, Bunn, to Bunnnnnnnnnnn, then it was almost like he was being hypnotised into being serious too.  So another way of getting through the night when things got tough was to meditate at poor Danny’s expense.  Danny Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn,  Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.  Matthew and Tony would join fingers, Tony would close his eyes, Matthew would go cross-eyed and Laurel and Hardy were at it again, causing me further stitches. And no, I don’t expect anyone that wasn’t there to find that remotely funny, but we did, so there.

Tony takes full credit for this erection!

Back to unloading the car and pitching the tents.  Hello – unload the car and pitch the tents please.  OK, so Matt and myself unloaded the car and pitched the tents.  Tony was busy doing his media thing but then posed in front of the finished article like he actually had something to do with its miraculous erection.  Another hysterical conversation that really has to remain in Guildford I’m afraid.

Junk food for emergencies

Whilst Matthew and I went over the seriousness of the nutrition for the challenge, Tony continued to be Tony and either play his pretend guitar or meditate, Danny Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn, Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnn.  

Professional Coaches

We were testing, as much as was practical, his channel nutrition, which we still have not finalised just yet.   Herbalife has been his main source of nutrition throughout his gruelling training programme but as all aspiring channellers know, it’s personal, it needs to be tested to the limit and options need to remain open.  Not to mention this 24 hour challenge was entirely different.  He gets rest bite in between miles and therefore, it’s worthwhile nibbling on a few treats that are easy to swallow and require little, if no, chewing, in order to see how his stomach stands up.  So the idea was to get through as much of the challenge as possible on fluids and if he gets bored with the fluids, then we had a mountain of treats for him to snack on between miles.    For me, it was all about 2 things.  How his energy levels faired on Herbalife alone and his stomach.  Even after this challenge, despite the results, there is still work to be done.  Adjusting the electrolytes to compensate for the salt water intake needs serious consideration.  I’d been fortunate that my Herbalife sponsor is in direct communication with Herbalife’s Sr. Director of Sports and Fitness, John Heiss, Ph.D., who is the brains behind the Herbalife Sports 24 range and was happy to relay my constant worries across to the States with numerous twitter messages regarding weight, salt absorption, protein, etc for channel swimmers.   Tony needs to be confident and happy that he has the right product to get him through both these challenges.  Any illness/sickness will immediately have the sceptics questioning his food as people are like that!!  Nuff said. 

We were off.  9.30am, sun is shining and it’s going to be a beautiful successful day.  As each

Tony dropping his trunks without warning.

mile was ticked off, Tony just took his H30 or Prolong and an offering of jelly babies, minstrels or a piece of cake.  He turned his nose up most of the time and seemed happy with just the fluids.  All he really wanted to do was entertain his coaches!  

  

How on earth I managed to get through 24 hours without seeing his bits, I will never know.  In he came, dropped his trunks whilst chatting gibberish without a care in the world.   Wowa, hold on, as I speedily turned round.  I tried my damnest to ‘get serious’ with questions as simple as ‘How are you feeling’ but the simplest of questions just resulted in more meditating, farting or playing the guitar.  It was relentless and under any other circumstances, one would have been forgiven for yelling ‘ENOUGH WAS ENOUGH’, but this was Tony Marshall.  It never became boring because it was so damn funny.

He constantly asked whether his bum looked big in his trunks, he must have asked me a zillion times.

Did you take a picture?

Have you updated Facebook?

What are my work mates saying on Facebook?

Take a picture now!

Danny Bunnnnnnnnnnnnn, Danny Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Strum strum strum fart!

And all I kept shouting was - TONY, WHERE'S YA GOGGLES, YOU HAVE 3 MINUTES TO GET YOUR ASS TO THE POOL, DRINK THIS NOW.  
    

Danny Bunnnnnnnnnnnnnn………… 

GOD, GIVE ME STRENGTH.

And so it went on.  He knocked out his miles at 30minutes pace for all and the only 33’s, 34’s were where he was chatting up the ladies in the lane or fiddling with his damn goggles.  Thank god he’s swimming the channel solo and thank god he won’t have anyone to talk to. 

Get a photo of my bum going over!!  Yes Tony.

And don’t forget to put it on Facebook, Yes Tony

Tony, please put your socks on and take your feet away from the heater, you will get chilblains. 

Please can you warn me when you will be dropping your trunks next time? 

Please can you exit the pool and get back here a bit quicker, and stop chatting to everyone in sight.

Please can you drink up and get to the water a bit quicker next time.

I started to wonder whether this actually was the right way to go about this challenge.  Exchange the pain, boredom and tedious relentless swimming with fun and laughter and it will be over in a flash.  Well, it was certainly working for him.  OK, yes he had a couple of moments where he said, “Well this is getting serious now isn’t it?  I’m starting to realise how hard this challenge is.  But then, low and behold, a fart or a sudden urge to meditate soon took over and Matthew and I just exchanged glances, rolled our eyes and dragged him out of the tent again as this was obviously going to be the pattern from hereon.  

Danny & Tony - both just kept smiling

This was it for the night.  We were going to be laughing all night long.  Each time he walked past Danny, Danny asked what’s your tactics for this mile then Tone?   And Tony would say something on the line of, well, this time, instead of getting in, swimming a mile and getting out, I’m going to get in, swim the mile and then get out.  ???????????????

Even Danny had time to squeeze into his fancy dress costume at the half way mark.   Danny was a great inspiration to Tony, his lane and team mates.  Forever encouraging, cheering and clapping and I never once saw him without a smile on his face.  This really was the way to nail this thing.  Enjoy it and you can’t fail.  The only failure is failing to try.   And I have to say that in the end, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.  We had a ball and we can’t wait for the channel experience.  Matt and I make a great team and we will do our damnest to try to help Mr Marshall become the first Redcap to swim the Channel Solo. 

This man is a legend to which I thank you for a truly unforgettable experience.  Well done Tony.   You may have the rest of this week off, and get back to mine, 11am Monday please!    Video link below under the picture.  

2swim4life - Tony Marshall - 2015