Stepping up the training...

In January, I knew that the training that I was doing wasn't enough, but I wasn't sure either how much or what type of training I should be doing. So when Ned, e-mailed me to see if I would like to do a 20km swim in Source Pool, I was delighted. I would get one big pool swim in and get to meet coach Eilís Burns. Eilís has coached 8 out of 8 successful Cork Channel Swimmers. She was the person to put me on the right track.

When I told her that I was only doing 25km a week, I'm sure she was appalled! I was a bit surprised when she said that I should be doing 45km every week and 60km a few weeks in March, but after a few more of the 20km pool swims, I thik it sounds alot more achievable. This week however I have no long swim in Source so I will have to slog it out in Fermoy. I have the free training, so I better make use of it.

The last two weeks I dis 48.5km and 47.2km so this week I am aiming for about the same. Will be updating again soon....

Oops... I almost forgot I had a blog!

Ok, it has been a fairly long time since my last post. Firstly, on New Year's Eve there was a charity swim in Garryvoe in East Cork. One of my friends who goes to Coláiste an Phiarsaigh in Glanmire is going to Kolkata(formerly Clacutta) later in the year with the Hope Foundation. He and a few others decidi to run a charity swim in Garryvoe to raise funds for the trip.

There was a good crowd turned up. Even with all of the planning, one important detail was forgotten, the tide, wich if you get it wrong in Garryvoe means that you have a long trudge out to swimmable water. It was windy and rough, but the swim was very enjoyable. I say the "swim", for most people it was more of a splash and dash event. Except for Maria Sheehan who managed to stay in for a minute or two. I managed to do 11mins after the horrible twisting injury I did to my knee on entering the water. The beacjh is covered in little craters and it's easy to fall into them when they are submerged. Alltogether it was a nice event to pass away New Year's Eve and to raise money for charity.


Also, last weekend my family went to Dublin for my Dad's birthday. While we were there I decided that it might be a good idea to go to the National Aquatic Centre. I got to have a good swim in their 50m, 10-lane Olympic sized pool and later I went with my brother and sister to the leisure part of the Centre. The 50m pool was fantastic, and I didn't get stuck behnd lots of slow people and have to turn every 20secs! Since I am still a child I get to enjoy things like waterslides, and the NAC had really good ones! I also got to try out the "flow-rider", a kind of artificial wave for boarding on. It's a bit tricky at first but once you get the hang of it it's great fun.


The NAC is a truly magnificant faclilty, it's a sort of Croke Park of Irish swimming. I do hope that it survives long enough for everyone to enjoy it. And I promise, it won't be too long before my next post!

Some sponsorship...

When I first decided that I was going to swim the Channel I realised that it was going to be a very expensive goal. I thought that it would be a good idea to get alot of the funds I needed from a corporate sponsor. I recently wrote a letter to Riordan's SuperValu, Fermoy, explaining what I was doing and that I would be very happy if they could help me out a bit. Two weeks later, I got a cheque for €1,000 in the post. Since then alot of people have said that they would like to sponsor both the charity and my own expenses. So with a few extra hours at work I should do fine.

So it's thanks a million to the Riordans and evryone who has helped me out so far... Also, I would like to wish everyone a [belated] Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!

SAVE FERMOY WEIR...!

Everyone, please help save the weir that makes the beautiful River Blackwater what it is! Without our weir, Fermoy would never be the same. No more swimming, no more rowing, no more diving, etc, etc, etc... We have to stop the Dept. Energy, Communications & Natural Resources before they take away our beautiful river.

The proposed plans for the weir will destroy everything that makes Fermoy special. For one, my training for the Channel Swim will be severly hamperred and many fond memories will be lost. There are far more practical, cheaper and above all, safer allternatives available. Check out the website: http://www.fermoyweir.wordpress.com/ for more information...

Don't make us say goodbye to this...!

November...

With winter beginning to set in the time has come to start into some serious pool training. It is also time to start bringing all of the l;ogistics of making a Channel Swim together. One of the things that alot of people choose to combine their swim with is raising money for a chosen charity. I had always intended to do this but was having trouble picking out the charity that I wanted to support. Well, on the morning of Thursday 6th November 2008 my mind was made up for me.

On the 1st October my Grandmother was informed that she had cancer that had spread throughout her body and that there was no treatment available. The only thing to do now was to bring her home and make her as comfortable as possible. There were a few people who this would not have been possible without. My Grandfather, her husband of 44yrs who gave her 24hr attention, my mother, who was able to understand and administer all of the medication, our family doctor, Dr. O'Grady, who came at least twice every day, and the Irish Cancer Society, who's Night Nursing service proved to be invaluable.

The Irish Cancer Society is funded totally by voluntary donations and receive no government funding. They are committed to finding new ways of preventing and curing cancer and providing the best care possible for those who are terminally ill. By being in the house at night, the night nurse gives the family a chance to have some rest and are there to support everyone when death is near.

I am swimming the Channel in memory of my Grandmother, who was looking forward emmensly to the event, and to raise funds for this worthy organisation. You can see their website by following this link: Irish Cancer Society, and you can visit my fundraising page at http://www.mycharity.ie/event/ec4cancer. All donations made on the MyCharity.ie website are very secure and are very much appreciated.

Thanks for your support.

Party in Monkstown...

Last week I went to a party in Ned's house for all of the Cork people who swam the Channel in 2008. Aside from all the previous Cork soloers, there were some very distinguished guests. I got to meet David Yudovin IMSHOF, I won't even go into all of the amazing swims that he has done, I'd be here all day, let's just say that it was amazing to meet him. Also Dave Whyte was there, he piloted all of the previous Cork swimmers but unfortunately he is retiring this year. He is also the newest inductee into IMSHOF. It was great to meet someone who had so much experience in Channel swimming. David and Evelyn of Varne Ridge Caravan Park were there also. They were very nice and I am looking forward to meeting them in Dover next year.

As part of the evening we also got to see all the inspirational photographs in Rob Bohane's swim from Sceilig Mhichíl and Ned's swim around Valentia Island. Eilís Burns, who coached all of the Cork soloers, gave a nice speech about all of her swimmers and gave them some amuzing presents that represented there character. Rob received a certificate form IMSHOF recognising his Sceilig swim and I also got one for my Crosshaven to Blackrock swim. Overall it was a fantastic evening, and needless to say, Anne's cooking was top notch!

Blackrock to Cobh Swim...

Last Sunday saw the second annual Blackrock to Cobh Swim take place under beautiful sunshine. This year Fergus Galvin organised the swim. The course measures over 12km but due to a strong tidal push, the actual distance swam is much less. The swim starts from the slipway in Blackrock, quickly passing the Blackrock Castle Observatory and into Lough Mahon(boring), then it turns south into the Passage West channel(strong tidal assistance), around the Cork Dockyards and into the town of Cobh.

On the morning of the swim the sun was shining and the water was a balmy 14 Celsius. Due to some wind there was some chop on the Lough and out in the Harbour. However, as the swim progressed the conditions improved. The start of the swim was delayed by the late arrival of two large Japanese trawlers and a small cargo ship. Once the boat traffic was clear we got the go-ahead from the port authorities to proceed with the swim.

Mike Harris and Róisín Lewis started on go, followed by more swimmers on 10mins, more on 20mins and finally myself, Julianne Galloway and Colm O'Neill, North Channel Swimmer, on 30mins. From the beginning the assistance from both the river and the outgoing tide were noticeable. Almost immediately we passed the impressive Blackrock Castle jutting out into the river, then it opened up into the vast expanse of Lough Mahon. Here I managed to pull ahead of Colm but Julieanne was steaming ahead. This section of the swim was very long and drawn out, the monotony broken only by the occasional passing ship and one feed of High5.

Once the corner of Cobh Island appeared in front, I knew that we were getting close the Passage West. Once we rounded the corner we were flushed down the Channel passed Glenbrook, the Rushbrooke ferry and into Monkstown. I followed my tactics of keeping a wide corner around the Dockyards so as to avoid the eddies and avail of the current. However, a marauding tug-boat put that plan to bed and I was forced to take a tighter line around the final corner.

Once Cobh Cathedral was in sight I searched below for the line of blue barges and tugs where I knew the finish was. I sighted the entrance to the finish area and put my head down and swam hard. I could see that I was making good progress as the Cruise Terminal and train station flew by. Between the last two tugs we tuned in to the little alcove to finish. All that was there was very high walls and a long flight of steps to the top. After a long swim there is nothing more relieving than a good flight of steps to climb.

There were lots of people at the finish, as there always is in a seaside town on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Once I managed to haul myself to the top of the steps I got dressed, the sun made this a whole lot easier. Once dressed it was great to watch the other swimmers finish. Last in was Mike Harris, this was a big swim for him, he seemed quite disorientated at the finish. When I went to congratulate him on finishing his only words were, "Come back in another fifty years and you try it!"

Thinking back on the swim, I realise how important it is to know the course. Although I had Donal Clancy, an excellent kayaker, with me I still had to have my own ideas which made the swim alot easier. Last year I did crewing for this swim. I learnt alot that I was able to put into practise this time round. For example, I knew that it was not a good idea to stay in close to land when rounding the last corner just after the Dockyards, last year, lots of people got caught in a negative flow here and made very little progress. Also, I knew exactly where the finish was for the swim, most people would not have had a clue as it was a very unusual spot, I was able to make a good line for the finish from the last corner.

There was also a great gathering of swimmers at this event. Julieanne Galloway drove down from Dublin that morning and still managed to finish in under 2hrs 15mins, she is signed up for the English Channel next year. There were also two other Cork swimmers there who are signed up to swim the Channel on the same week as me, Lisa Cummins(who feels no cold) from Sunday's Well and Sylvain Estadieu. Colm O'Neill from Dublin was also there, he swam the North Channel a few years back and also Charles Harper, who one the Liffey Swim and is swimming the Channel next year.

News from the Pool...

Well the summer is pretty much over now. It's time to start putting in some serious work in the pool. Since the beginning of September, I have been training with Fermoy Swimming Club, but it's not really enough hours, though it is very good quality training. With the help of my coach and the manager of the swimming pool, I have managed to secure free swimming until this time next year. So, anytime that there is a public session on, I can just swipe my card and swim... This is fantastic news as the cost of all of the pool sessions starts to mount up and it can get hard to finance when you're only fifteen!