Holy bejeezus ...
Diana Nyad: I broke many records in my prime as a long-distance swimmer back in the 1970’s, in my twenties. For my world record—102.5 continuous miles from the Bahamas to Florida in 1979—and other swims, such as breaking the 50-year-old mark for circling Manhattan Island ... Yet my dream of swimming from Cuba to Florida was dashed in 1978, after fighting stiff winds and huge seas for 41hrs, 49 mins, and still not reaching the Florida coast ...
... Until a year ago, I hadn’t swum a stroke for 31 years. Swimmer’s burnout gripped me to the point that I could have sworn I would never, ever swim a lap again in my life. But approaching 60 last year threw me into the existential angst of wondering what I had done with my life ... I started swimming a few laps, just to take some pressure off the knees from all the other activities I enjoy.
My workouts escalated. My motivation started to burn like a fire in my soul. One day I was driving, after a long swim, and I stopped and looked hard in the rearview mirror. And I said to myself: This is one dream I actually could go back and achieve. At 60, I could swim from Cuba to Florida. This time, without a shark cage.
But first, a little warmup swim ...
AboutDiana: On July 10th, at the age of 60, legendary open-water swimmer Diana Nyad will attempt to complete her first marathon swim in over 30 years. Nyad's triumphant return to long-distance swimming till take her 50 miles off the Florida Coast to begin a consecutive 24-hour swim through the Gulf Stream's open-water and back to the Florida shoreline, without a shark cage.
CNN Health: Diana Nyad chases a dream
Diana's Website
Wow.
Nah, just a cool down. No jellies. No salt water. No waves. How hard could it possibly be? :)
To any of us, it DOES sound insane :afraid: however, to Diana, it will probably be nothing compared to what she just accomplished. You're right; there will be none of the uglies she experienced out in the ocean. In addition to what you listed, there will be no currents and the water temperature will be perfect. Feeding will also be a LOT easier and she won't have to wear a special suit or mask at night to fend off the jellies. Of course, she won't have to worry about sharks either! And, now that I think about it, she won't have to worry about following a line put out by a guide boat. She also won't have to organize kayak escorts or as large of a team of volunteers or doctors.
My guess is that Myrtha will be a sponsor and construct the pool at no cost to Diana and an airline will sponsor her flight out to New York. If I am a nutrition company like Hammer Nutrition, I would jump at the chance to sponsor her feeding needs during the swim. Heck, her suit, goggles, and cap will probably be sponsored, as well.
I sure hope ESPN or SOMEBODY runs a special on this and at least shows the last portion of her swim, so we all can have the opportunity to watch it. And, I hope it brings in heaps of $$$ for the relief fund!
So, should we start a "Guess the Meters Diana Swims in 48 Hours" contest? Sheeesh, knowing my luck pwb will guess it right and I will owe him a third :chug: !
Nah, just a cool down. No jellies. No salt water. No waves. How hard could it possibly be? :)
To any of us, it DOES sound insane :afraid: however, to Diana, it will probably be nothing compared to what she just accomplished. You're right; there will be none of the uglies she experienced out in the ocean. In addition to what you listed, there will be no currents and the water temperature will be perfect. Feeding will also be a LOT easier and she won't have to wear a special suit or mask at night to fend off the jellies. Of course, she won't have to worry about sharks either! And, now that I think about it, she won't have to worry about following a line put out by a guide boat. She also won't have to organize kayak escorts or as large of a team of volunteers or doctors.
My guess is that Myrtha will be a sponsor and construct the pool at no cost to Diana and an airline will sponsor her flight out to New York. If I am a nutrition company like Hammer Nutrition, I would jump at the chance to sponsor her feeding needs during the swim. Heck, her suit, goggles, and cap will probably be sponsored, as well.
I sure hope ESPN or SOMEBODY runs a special on this and at least shows the last portion of her swim, so we all can have the opportunity to watch it. And, I hope it brings in heaps of $$$ for the relief fund!
So, should we start a "Guess the Meters Diana Swims in 48 Hours" contest? Sheeesh, knowing my luck pwb will guess it right and I will owe him a third :chug: !
