Farewell Melbourne/feats of madness

So that's it, a month of antipodean culture and sunshine has come to an end, and what an end! Nearly 4 hours in the bay this morning with Kevin and Paul (fellow channel swimming aspirees). I think about 16km in total, not quite half way across the channel but not too far off it! Water temp 17.4 degrees (63 degrees Farenheit for those stuck in the dark ages). Cool but not unpleasantly so and although the muscles were tired by the end it was not exhausting.

A little over 30km in the last 3 days is a good finish to my Melbourne stint. I was a little worried at the start of this trip that work might seriously impact on how much training I could do but fortunately the boss was able to give me enough time off to fit in a good deal of training (the benefit of being self-employed).

One of the sunbathers at the Brighton sea baths was very complimentary of my swimming as I launched myself in for my final 2.7km lap, apparently I had been spotted churning up the waters these last few days and had been suspected of training for a channel crossing. Most people (me included) think swimming the channel is a pretty wild thing to attempt. It seems to be one step beyond the sort of feats of endurance that people would consider laudable and possibly 'if only I was fit enough I would like to attempt such a thing'. Instead it falls into the realms of why on earth would you do something so daft?

Maybe that's part of the appeal, to achieve something that is so beyond your own and most people's expectations that you fall into the niche of madness or incredible or possibly incredibly mad. Whichever I am I hope I can rise to the challenge, better to attempt at madness than to be left wondering if you ever tested the limit of your sanity...................maybe.

(Check out the link to the aerial photo of Brighton sea baths and marina - below right)