Tag Archives: support

I need a buddy

This isn’t just a desperate plea for friends to go down the pub with*.

There’s an event on May 2nd – 3rd next year that I’m really keen to enter, but before I can I need to nominate a ‘buddy’, someone that will support me on the day.

The event is the amazing 2swim4life event in which you swim 24 miles over 24 hours at Guildford Lido. The idea is that you start on the hour (or half hour), swim your mile and get out, then repeat on the next hour and so on until you have done 24 miles/hours.

Screenshot 2014-10-05 18.24.39As you can well imagine it’s pretty brutal and this is why the buddies are so vital. To have someone that can offer you a warm cup of tea, remind you to get warm and changed and just be there for chat/support during the ‘dark’ hours (in more ways than one) of the early morning is vital.

Unfortunately I’m not in a position to ask a partner/parent and I don’t have any training partners, so I need to ask around. If you’ve ever done any marathon events, or supported others doing them, then you’ll know that it is bloody hard work (I’m not going to lie), but equally, bloody rewarding.

So, got any plans for May Bank Holiday weekend next year?

– – –

* If anyone fancies going down the pub then let me know that as well. I said it wasn’t “just” a desperate plea for that!

– – –

UPDATE:

As a friend pointed out on Twitter, being a buddy and offering support for 24 hours is a long time and would end up being as tiring as actually doing the swimming. The ideal solution would be for two or three people to take turns or shifts at this. Once I’ve entered it would be my intention to recruit a support team. The reason I’m asking in the singular at this stage is that I need to name a person on the entry form and I can’t enter without listing someone as my buddy.

Advertisement

6 Comments

Filed under Swimming

The kindness of strangers

Just a quick note to say thank you to everyone that has followed, commented and liked all the channel relay posts. It’s amazing how a community can form online when we all have such a strong shared interest – especially one that is slightly outside the norm of most people’s expectations.

While we were on the relay I was trying to update this blog and Facebook a little – and received a lot of comments and likes. Then when I’d finished I posted in the Did You Swim Today (DYST) Facebook group and have so far received 250 likes for that post. And that’s not to mention all the support from the Dover Training group on Facebook.

Thanks all good luck with your own challenges.

Leave a comment

Filed under Motivation, Swimming