The Run Up to Windermere: Windermere One Way

“You may leave the Lake District, but once you’ve been, it’ll never leave you…”Anonymous

30th August - 2nd Sept 2019.

The run-up to Windermere wasn’t perfect, but life isn’t perfect is it? What with family emergencies, last-minute camping holidays followed by dashing around visiting loved ones. It was not great final preparation for a mammoth challenge like Windermere. But you've got to roll with them punches haven’t you?

In all honesty, I did need a little rest, I wasn’t going to improve at all in the last few weeks. All my previous training was going to have to count.

This year Windermere was going be a family event, it was the first time my family would be able to cheer me on. In the past, with such a young family it just wasn’t practical. Having my family there was a chance to, hopefully, inspire them in the future.

Travelling up north from the south of England was a nightmare, there was nothing for it we just had to grind it out. The traffic was horrendous. Eventually, we arrived at the Lakes, we became a little geographically challenged in finding where we were supposed to be staying, as I remember we found it by complete accident. 

A few miles outside Ambleside, at the northern tip of Lake Windermere was the perfect place to stay. Ambleside is a beautiful town with shops and lovely cafes with amazing food to eat, it was also the event finish line. I wasn’t sure I would actually see the finish line come race day. 

The day before my race we went for a tasty breakfast. We had been recommended trying out The Apple Pie Bakery, this cafe was a winner with the kids by the time we left they were stuffed. The rest of the morning we mooched around some of the shops buying clothes and shoes for the kids. 

Around lunchtime, we headed back to our lodge. We rested a bit, had some lunch and then jumped into the hot tube for a splash. The kids loved it.

Late in the afternoon, we headed back out to meet up with the team, they were staying at a hostel called Brathy Hall which was just the other side of Ambleside. Mark, our team leader had arrived with the rest of our group.

Whilst the kids played everyone settled in for a brief from Mark. We found out who was supporting us during the race, every swimmer needs to be escorted by a proficient paddler until the end of the event. They were there primarily to physically mark our position in the water, navigate the route, make sure we didn’t get lost or drown. They also act as a sort of cheerleader to offer much-needed encouragement, I relied on my paddler a great deal indeed. In all honesty, I don’t think I would have completed the race without Dan, he was invaluable.

Mark set out his plan for the next day, as I was on the way, he said he would come and pick me up on the way to Fell Foot National Trust. 
Fell Foot is at the southern end of Lake Windermere and the start of this epic event. We finished our brief with all the information we would need. Before heading back to our lodge we spent a while relaxing and chatting, the kids were still having fun chasing each other around.

It was to be an early start in the morning, that night my wife and I didn’t have the best nights sleep. Which is standard for an event like this, I’m sure others will relate this lack of sleep. I kept waking up to check the time throughout the night convinced I would sleep through my alarm which was set for half-past four. Of course, I woke up at four, I had a quick breakfast which I didn’t want, got dressed and then headed out the door. As I left in the dark I got a quick kiss from my biggest (press-ganged) supporter Marisa.

It was pitch black that morning, but Mark soon found me waiting in the car park. The team were jammed in the back of a massive minibus, they looked like I felt. I loaded my kit on to the bus and jumped on board, off we went. We joked nervously as we made our short journey to Fell Foot. When we arrived, there was no time to mess about, it wouldn’t be long before we had to get in the water. Before all that, we had to get into our wetsuits and have a race brief. The last time I took part in this race we may have forgotten to attend. This was the first time I met my paddler Dan. My one-man support crew helped me sort my kit and grabbed all my hydration and nutrition for the race. I had a secret weapon, hot chocolate. This warm treat had been invaluable the previous year.

We had our pre-race team picture before getting in the water. It was all a little underwhelming, I didn’t think we were actually starting. Although I had started my watch, which I used to track my pace and work out when I needed to feed. I hadn’t given my watch enough time to find its position via the satellites. I had planned my food stops with Dan, which was a combination of time and distance. This threw me a little bit, but I had to get on with it and wait until I had my first stop to sort it out. It was mildly annoying, but I cracked on, I tried not to let this bother me. As any athlete will attest, if you haven't recorded on your watch, did it even happen?

The next few hours were relatively uneventful, was face down in the water. Breathing, occasionally checking where I was in relation to Dan. Bizarrely, I would look up it would be perfectly sunny, then without warning, I would look up and Dan would have his hood up because it was raining sideways. It probably wasn’t that way it just seemed like that at the time.

Before I hit the halfway point I had an issue with the Windermere Ferry, if I didn’t stop swimming it was going to run straight over the top of me. I thought it prudent to wait a few moments. The ferry passed, we got a wave from the passengers, I continued to on with my swim. 

We soon reached the half waypoint. Dan needed time off his Stand Up Paddle Board (SUP), I forgot to mention this ‘minor’ detail. Out of the corner of my eye occasionally I would see Dan stretching on his board, he had been on there for hours at who could blame him. Dan was probably used to going considerably faster, not today though, he was having to look after me.

I’m not sure how long we stopped for but it seemed like around ten minutes or so, many of the other teams would have swum straight though. I had been looking forward to this break, it was good for Dan too he needed to get off his board for a proper leg stretch. I quickly ate a jam sandwich, an unexpected bonus. Dan soon finished up sorting himself out, jumped back on and we headed off. 

I felt strong and rested, well I thought I did anyway. Periodically I would check my watch to see how I was getting on. It started to become clear that my pace was dropping off. Up until this point, I had been counting my strokes. Sixty completed strokes equalled about one minute, I figured that I needed to do forty of these before my next food stop. However, this wasn’t going to work for me, I had to break out the psychological big guns. My family. Each arm stroke became a name. Marisa. Sophia. Leo. Emilia. They became my left and right arms in the water. I kept this mantra in my head for hours. Marisa. Sophia. Leo. Emilia.

As I was beginning to feel sore and tired Dan noticed that I didn’t have my tow float, I had managed to kick it off. Disaster. I must have been using my leg stumps to give me an extra push. I never do this, things must have been desperate. As a result, I must have slipped off my waist which was strapped around me. This was not great at all, my timing chip attached to it as well. 
I panicked, without a word Dan immediately turned around to go and fetch it. By this time it was easily a few hundred metres back. I had to stay put and wait for him to return. I now knew that my aim to get in a sub-six-hour swim wasn’t going to happen. Eventually, Dan returned with my float and my timing chip, he had just paddled an extra 1000m to get it back. 

The last hour and a half was pure hell on earth. We came around a headland, I could see the finish line, it never seemed to get closer. Every time I looked up my heart sank, it seemed a small dot in the distance and remained that way. I thought I would never get there if I’m honest. I was spent. Keeping my head down in the water and keep my arms moving I made progress towards the finish line.

I’m not really sure how I got to the end but I did. As I crawled out on tired arms over the rocks I had nothing left to give. Having my family there at the end of the race meant the world to me. I would have cried, but I didn’t have the energy.

I managed to crawl up and beyond the rocks on to the mat and across the finish line. Smiling as pictures were taken with my family a medal was put over the top of my head. Marisa helped me on to my wheelchair, she then pushed me to the van through the rain. I passed two of my teammates who had come in way before me, they had totally smashed it. 

Getting into the back of the van, I quickly got out of my wetsuit and into some dry clothes. Marisa raced around to help me sort myself out. The kids were starting to get restless, I couldn't blame them it was cold and wet. I slowly got myself warm in the back of the van. Luckily the rain stopped and the sun came out from behind the clouds. 

Taking this as a sign I whipped around into the front of the van and we headed off back to our accommodation. 
At some point my hands started to swell up, they became itchy which made me want to scratch them violently. I was desperate to dig my nails into them but I managed to hold off. As soon as we got back I jumped straight into the hot tub. The warmth of the water along with the relaxing bubbles seemed to settle my hands down.

The kids chilled out in front of the television while I had a cup of tea and got dressed before heading back out again. We made a plan to meet up with the rest of the team at a local pub for some we deserved calories. 

This race is hard but achievable. In my opinion, anyone can complete the Windermere swim. Of course, you have to practice for an event like this, consistency is the key. Building up to longer distances in open water is how I managed to finish this race. 

Visuals - James Kirby