8/24/08 Sunday: Why swim? There are perfectly good Ferries and their cheaper!

It was a great morning. We got up, had breakfast and headed down to the Harbour for a swim. George bailed on getting in once we got down there (that's the luxury of finishing your swim!) But I got in and did what I had to do. Conditions were a bit rough down on the windy side of the Harbour but I went down anyway (twice actually). I like to practice in the bad stuff in case that's what I get out there in the Channel...I would rather be prepared. Had a great swim. Felt good and was pretty fast today. After the swim we found out about the swimmers that went last night...

Kikko (Japan): Had a rough first 5 hours but hung in there and ended up swimming a 13 hour and 43 minute (unofficial time) swim to France. She came down to the Harbour this morning and was SO excited. I was really glad I was there to see her. She was thrilled and we were all SO excited for her.

Three other swimmers went out at the same time. Two of which finished in the 15-16 hour range. The swimmer second in q in front of me got out after 7 hours. It just wasn't his day.

After the social part of the post-swim we went shopping for English Tea sets and each of us found one that matched our personality. Everything was deeply discounted with the bank holiday tomorrow so we got good quality china for 1/4 of the price we would get at home. That's about the only thing that was cheap here. Our dollar is so weak right now we are all running out of money. It's so sad!

I talked to my boat captain tonight and got very disappointing and frustrating news. I was told to back up our flights because the winds are picking up and the front is moving very slowly. He thinks there is a possibility I won't swim until the Spring Tide (post-Thursday). That was a real kick to the gut. Especially because I'll lose my crew. The wind website looks promising late in the week (Wednesday through Friday) but there are just no promises. I really want to be able to do this swim while my sisters and mother are here but they can only stay through Saturday. So we decided to think positively and just take one day at a time right now. It definitely helps when you deal with what is directly in front of you instead of speculating. I know I will swim, it just might be a longer wait then I was expecting. I'm not really all that concerned because I have a feeling I will get out Wednesday through Friday. We'll see how the weather plays out.