Round-Trip Angel Island (RTAI) - First Brit - 22nd June 2026

 I was headed to California to complete the triple crown (see Anacapa blog)  but wanted to bookend the holiday with a swim near the start of the trip and notice acc. to the MSF database that no Brits had completed a Round-Trip of Angel Island (known as RTAI). I therefore connected with Erika Gliebe (the queen of Angel Island with 8x RTAIs to her name and my old buddy Tom Linthcum who is an experience pilot for the route (and Lake Tahoe) plus we had connected in 2022 as he kayaked for me at End Wet so this was to be our 3rd rodeo together!

The task at hand....according to the MSF website (RTAI), this swim starts and finishes at the same beach at Aquatic Cove near Fisherman's Wharf in the popular touristy part of San Francisco...it's 'only' ca. 10miles or 16.1km but swimmers generally have to face the challenge at night, there's often wind (at least to and from the island) plus there's marine traffic (at least 2 shipping lanes) and it's open water so wildlife considerations always prey on your mind. All that probably contributes to this swim being part of the Toughest Thirteen swims around the earth as declared by Evan Morrison who first presented the challenge. Before jumping in the water I had one of the toughest thirteen to my name as had done the Fermarner Belt the summer before (see separate blog). 

I had both girls, Sophia and Issy, along for the holiday as apart from 2 swims bookending the break we wanted to take in the magic of Big Sur and what Highway One had to offer. 

We met Tom (Reptile) and Erika at 23:20 on Sunday 21st with a view to 'jump' at 00:20 in the early hours of Monday 22nd given favourable tides plus the wind generally abates from the breezes typically found during the day. 

Taken during the day you can clearly see Alcatraz in the foreground and Angel Island behind from Aquatic Park opening....

Here's the view of the bay to Aquatic Park from the top of Mount Livermore which we climbed on the Saturday afternoon: 

Anyway the boat ride from the dock at South Beach Harbor to Aquatic Park (AP) was chilly and I had totally under-clubbed how cold I would feel prior to jumping off the stern of Reptile's boat called Ghostrider just to make the few meters to shore to start the swim. I was also conscious that observer Erika had 8 of these RTAIs to her name so no pressure! After jumping in I immediately felt warmer (the water was around 60c or 15c) and counted my blessings I wasn't spending the next few hours on the boat. 

I had split the swim into 6 sections to coincide with 45m feeding intervals. (I had also got the benefit of a day on Angel Island 2 days before getting my bearings and getting a general sense of the whole swim and how the water moved (alarmingly fast down raccoon strait!))

Section 1 AP to Alcatraz

Section 2 Alcatraz to Point Stuart

Section 3 Point Stuart to Point Campbell (1/2 way)

Section 4 Point Campbell to Point Blunt

Section 5 Point Blunt to Alcatraz

Section 6 Alcatraz to AP

Anyway, I cleared the water, gave the hand signal wave to note I was starting and slid into the water at AP determined just to get to the first feed. The wind was still blowing at a stiff 14mph and Tom insisted on my being to the left of the boat breathing to my right (which isn't my preferred option for these swims) as he was concious that otherwise the boat would be constantly being pushed into me. 

Although I was wearing clear goggles and LED lights I was struggling to see the boat clearly but hoped that would settle down. The sea state was very lumpy and confused and again was thankful the girls had taken some Kwells sea sickness tablets to keep any green feelings at bay. 

After 45 mins we reached just north of Alcatraz and I receievd my first feed. The shot is blury but you can make it out: 

The message from Sophia was clear 'you need to stay with the boat'....I replied that I was struggling to see them....This fired me up and I really got stuck into the waves, wind and chop and to my surprise we fed at 90mins just south of Point Stuart - I was thrilled in my mind to get here so quickly as that meant a calmer jaunt down Raccoon Strait where I could get my rythmn back and even take on board a salty potato which was impossible to administer in the first 2 feeds given the swell etc. 

We coasted down Raccoon Strait and fed on the north side of the island where the ferry docks at Ayala Cove and I couldn't believe in my head we were almost 1/2 way in just 2 hours 15 mins...there just had to be a catch.....

Taking on board a feed and well-earned salty new potato win the relative calmness of Raccoon Strait:

Anyway we rounded Point Campbell and the stretch to Quarry Point and onto Point Blunt was sheltered and I promised myself to save some energy and take on a couple of potatoes for the exposed section back via Alcatraz to AP. 

As we exited Point Blunt a couple of enormous shipping vessels bore down on us and we of course had to get out of their way...luckily there was a break in the shipping traffic after them so we could start to make a dash towards Alcatraz but it was also clear the incoming flooding tide was extremely significant. We were getting pushed eastwards by the flood which was running at 3.0 km/h. In the lee of Alcatraz, Reptile suggested I swim towards that island but after a period of time it was totally clear I wasn't moving at all but just swimming on the spot. We then tried to head for the Palace of Fine Arts way up to the west of AP but in some respects we had become victims of doing the first half too fast as now were waiting for the tide to abate. 

It didn't and next thing I knew we were headed for the Ghiradelli sign (above AP) but we still didn't make the entrance to AP but instead got dumped at Pier 39 which meant hugging the dock walls to crab our way back up to AP. Slow progress was made but eventually it was clear we would make it.

Heading towards the Golden Gate bridge (crabbing up the coast) - iconic!

Note the track impacted by tide and crabbing up the bay from Pier 39:

Eventually we hit the opening to Aquatic Park (where the boat left me to swim in on my own as there were other swimmers in the venue at 06:00). I really knew then I had cracked this swim and the first British swim of this course which felt amazing. Cathy Harrington was awaiting my arrival on the beach to the right of the Dolphin Club and she said to be it was 06:11 in the morning which meant I had cracked this swim in 5 hours 42 which is a time I would have bitten your hand off for beforehand (given the average is around 6 1/2 hours). 

I then went back in the water and swam to the opening of AP where Ghostrider was waiting to get into some warm clothes. Cheers all-round and it was then that I realised how cold it had been on the boat with Sophia borderline hypothermic herself. 

Never in doubt when you have the A-Team in your corner. From left to right - Tom 'Reptile' Linthicum, Issy Sheridan, Shez, Erika Gliebe and Sophia Sheridan. 

We then made it back to the boat dock, ordered ourselves a Waymo (driverless taxi) back to our accommodation, followed by a warm shower, breakfast and a sleep!

The 22.5km Beltquerung (Fehmarn Belt swim) from Germany > Denmark - A British First 12th August 2025

Labelled (by Evan Morrison of the Marathon Swimmers Federation) as one of the "Toughest Thirteen" swims on Earth (https://longswims.com/challenges/toughest-thirteen/), we clocked ‘only’ 22.5km when all was said and done (in ca. 8 hours 14 mins) - more than the MSF database, which has it as 19km (wide of the mark, as you really go nowhere near the ferry, which takes the shortest distance!).

I had never swum in the Baltic Sea before, but the name itself conjurs up a cold image, which I needn't have been apprehensive about tbh as the water was generally a perfect 18c! The other bonus was given my preference for fresh water over salt water, the Baltic sea offered a unique experience as it is barely salty at all at 1/5th of normal sea salinity (given >200 rivers enter the Baltic and only narrow Danish straits allow water in from the North Sea). See here to understand more: https://marine.copernicus.eu/access-data/ocean-visualisation-tools/baltic-sea-salinity. We even saw swans swimming in the sea (with their cygnets) and the only jellies were Moon Jellyfish, which don't sting.

The Fehmarner Belt or Beltquerung is the stretch of water which separates the beautiful island of Fehmarn in Germany with the island of Lolland in Denmark. There's not much tide, but it's notoriously windy, which accentuates unique local currents (or Strommungen in German) in the straits and around the islands. We had to reserve our slot for a week on Fehmarn which is no struggle as it's a peaceful place (mainly farming, cycling, wind farms, kite surfing) but if you want more action you'd be bored pretty quickly - luckily we got the swim away early in the week so we could just swan around and chill.

The actual swim route marked by the red line below (if starting in Germany) begins at the beach at Altenteil and finishes around the area of Kramnitse in Lolland. This adds about 3.5km compared to the route taken by the Puttgarten > Rodby ferry (which of course any pilot would be forced to avoid). We clocked the swim at 22.5km.

Ca. 40 people successfully completed (including one 2-way), but zero Brits ratified (to my knowledge) before getting into the water. At the start of 2025, I registered my interest with the Beltquerung admin (Jens Glaesser) here: http://www.beltquerung.de/en.html (they are in the process of upgrading the website to new code thankfully!)


Anyway, a 1:30am alarm clock on Tuesday 12th August for a 3am boat & pilot meet before a 2.5 hour boat ride to the start in the northwest part of the Fehmarn (as we swam Germany > Denmark given whatever wind that was forecast was set to be mainly southerly). The pilot's boat 'Rochen' is slower than any boat I've ever been on and quite exposed so if you do this swim in the rain it would be pretty miserable for your crew tbh!

Shock to the system at dawn-o-clock... a decent 250m swim from the boat to shore at Altenteiler beach just to clear the water to start…boat’s horn marked the off in the breaking dawn gloom.

Another moment where my brain said to myself "what on earth are we doing here?!".

But we were in for a proper treat... after a tough first hour with the entire swim ahead, we were gifted a stunning sunrise (pics below) and an eerily calm sea. It was so calm it looked like it was oil... I have never experienced such calm swimming in the open ocean.

The sun's dawn rays were dancing thru the sea in front of me and certainly helped to mitigate the daunting task ahead with a welcome distraction

My hourly feeds passed broken up by the odd super-tanker clunking past in front of us and we zoomed past the Fehmarnboje (pencil buoy) which meant we were almost 1/2 done.

However, weird local currents had moved us further east and Didi got on the rail with stern look and arms folded telling me to up my effort level to break it (and counting my strokes complaining to Amanda that I wasn't hitting >52 per minute which is tricky when you are 6 ft 3!). I insisted to the crew that I was pushing as hard as I could  & gave it everything until the end. (Observe the lucky duck hanging from rope in front of Didi - my lucky mascot on each swim!)

I fed every hour, mainly with cooked new potatoes (very easy to hand to swimmer from boat), alongside heavily diluted squash with maltodextrin. I then switched to flat coke and biscoff cream biscuits for final quarter. These biscoffs were great and ideal for end of swim - we smashed the rest of the packet before we got back to port (along with the remainder of the potatoes and the flat coke)!

Anyway, the finish never came closer but knew the end was in sight with Amanda putting on her cossie then jumping into the water with 1.3km to go….I swam like stink when she got in to leave her behind but she captured the money shot! (Clearing the water on a beach between Kramnitse and Rodby in Denmark)

If you ever want to look like you've done a few rounds with Mike Tyson, then spend 8 hours in the Baltic Sea!

Picked up a beautiful pink granite pebble - a huge mixed feeling of both joy and relief. Back to boat, handshakes with Didi and Kevin then 4 hour slow boat ride back to base in Orth. Long day out for just an 8 hour 14 mins swim!


Special thanks to my firm Berenberg for sponsoring my trunks and hat! Given our company HQ is ca. 2 hours down the road, this was special being the first Brit!

Complete with the Scharz/Rot/Gold-ribboned medal that was presented to me by Did post-swim:

The Crew (with the good ship Rochen in the background): (from left to right) Dieter 'Didi' Lorenzen (pilot), Amanda Bell (crew), Shez, Ursula 'Uschi' Lorenzen (admin), Kevin (local observer). I am fortunate that I studied German at Uni and lived in the country for 4 years so am reasonably proficient. Didi and Ursula don't speak much English and sorting contracts/wiring money/correspondence would have been tougher without that. They are a lovely couple with hearts of solid gold and only wanted me to succeed!

I even made it into various papers in the northern part of Germany and am famous with probs 5 grannies in Luebeck: https://www.bundle.app/en/breaking-news/weitere-beltquerung-brite-schwimmt-durch-die-ostsee-von-fehmarn-nach-danemark-17ED71D2-0FD7-40C7-9B73-83C437FC260F

Proof of completion here: http://www.beltquerung.de/de/Disziplinen/bestenliste.html

As ever, over 50% of this achievement is down to the crew. Amanda did all the driving, cooking, organising (you name it) on the trip so all I needed to do was to turn up and deliver. She's one of the finest crew members anyone could wish for so if you fancy this swim in the summer give her a nudge. Pictured with Amanda championing the Yorkshire flag (and before you ask it is the correct way up!)

Didi's boat 'Rochen' is not the fastest but is pretty stable, easy to feed a swimmer from and has a loo (ideal for female crew). However, a solid 2+ hours to the northern part of the island for a Germany > Denmark swim but easily 4 hours + to make the start-line for a Denmark > Germany swim in the event of predominantly northerly winds...

If you ever plan on doing this swim, I would absolutely insist you stay at the sweet little village of Marienleuchte (on the north east of the island) as that has the best jetty to get into and out of the water (I've exaggerated its welcoming with a filter but you can either dive in off the end of the pier or enter in a civilised manner down the ladder!):

This swim is dedicated to my Father, Richard Sheridan, who died on this very day 2 years prior. He ensured the conditions were propitious and pulled me all the way to the finish line.
(Pictured below with me in Feb 2023 boasting our Blackheath 'Club' blazers after beating Guernsey away en route to the Nat 2 East title. (We didn't miss a game between us that season (home or away)).

26.4km Lake Zurich Solo - Part 4 of the Stillwater 8 - Friday 20th June 2025

So the next leg of the Stillwater Eight beckoned... along with some unfinished business to take care of - the disappointment of an abandoned official race 2 years prior after just one hour (due to a storm force headwind).

On the menu for the day: a 26.4km solo attempt under the watchful eye of swim buddy/legend Martyn Webster and pilot Urs Gonzenbach. Martyn kindly sourced the boat and pilot so all I had to do was swan into town, eat some carbs, then get the show on the road the following morning!

We decided to make the attempt from North to East, which is unusual, but any wind that was forecast on the day was expected to be from behind us, and as a predominantly left-sided breather, I would be able to take in more of the sights.


We got ready and I set off from the steps at Tiefenbrunnen at 07:46 on Friday 20th June and finished at Rapperswil at 17:14. The water at the start was 21c and at the finish 4c higher, so with 30c air temps at peak this swim was all about skin care - I was ‘ghosted out’ with factor 50 creams and used sudocrem zinc in liberal quantities!

In my head I divided this swim up into 4 sections:
1. Start (Tiefenbrunnen Badi) to Kuesnacht (ca 5km) - warm up
2. Kuesnacht to Meilen (7km) - main set 1
3. Meilen to Staefa (7km) - main set 2
4. Staefa to Rapperswil (7km) - home straight/warm down

On the day, the conditions of the first half were unpredictable, with wind and chop not allowing for much rhythm. However, conditions settled down upon hitting Meilen (about half-way), and it felt like I was able to hold water and pace. Meilen to Staefa felt longer than it should have done, but before I knew it we were in the final bay with 7km to go.

I vowed not to look up until the final 1km (as anything can happen) as the finish just tortures you otherwise!

With my mascot the lucky duck looking on as usual, I thumped out the swim in 9 hours 28 mins, which was comfortably inside my goal of 10 hours. I was even more thrilled with the time given my year-to-date training was severely impacted by a nasty chest infection in February and Covid during a week's training at altitude in April (which lingered over 5 weeks). This meant that the longest in-season open water weekend was 2 x 9km on one Saturday and Sunday just 2 weeks prior!

Cracking pic below (credit: Martyn Webster) as we made our way within the 'golden' final km (awaiting a champagne finish at Rapperswil Badi), left of pic underneath the castle with the alps in the distance!

Feeding every 45 mins, I got through about 3 litres of heavily diluted maltodextrin with orange squash, 1.5 litres of flat coke, 4 potatoes, 1.5 bananas and 5 Kagi melted chocolate biscuits (local offering chosen by Martyn as an homage to the region).


Everything went reasonably smoothly, so experience counts for something! My training 


I would like to thank Martyn (right below) and Urs (left below) for looking after me on the day but also to Tony Ross for keeping me company in training and Kirsten White (Body Wellness Pilates) for Pilates sessions in the 6 months leading up to this swim.

Midsummer sunset the following evening from the finish-line at Rapperswil Badi:

#comfortablynumb

(21+km) of a 42+km Vidosternsimmet Viking Solo Swim (Sweden) 9th & 10th August 2024

A race where 14 people entered, all 14 technically DNF’d, 12 completed the overnight one-way of which 3 completed (including yours truly) sans wetsuit. Begs the question, where did all the hardy Vikings go? 

 

(Lake Vidostern is a 5 hour drive south of Stockholm, ca. 2.5 hours south east of Gothenburg and 2 hours north of Malmo)

(Closer inspection)

Fate led me here for my first Scandi adventure to attempt to become the 2nd person in skins to complete (after Henry Stockholm, a (great?) Dane) and to be first Brit teased by the organisers website suggesting ‘this event is probably not for you’ (https://vidosternsimmet.com/42km/)....talk about red rag to a bull! 

The basic blueprint for the 42km swimmers was simple: Enjoy the 'warm up' during the 21km+ overnighter benefitting from the feeds/support of a kayaker then do the return leg (ensuring to make the cut-off times) unsupported save for the check points/feed stations where one has to make the cut-off times. The +plus sign is to denote the fact that a one-way is actually OVER 21km.....I calculated 21,750 meters (minimum) and that's before any navigational errors of which there are plenty in the dark and waves. 

I was under no illusions whatsoever that EVEN in an idyllic flat calm, this was going to be one of the toughest swims I had ever undertaken and I have had some long day (s)/night(s) out….(most other swims of that distance are not races but ones where you go for a few days/week and pick the most propitious day(s)). 

 

Anyway, each of the 42km aspirants were put into groups of 2-3 on the basis of average km times. I guessed 3km per hour on my form and was thus paired with Marcel Poodt from the Netherlands who I had never met before and serendipitously was also swimming in skins but he had never done a stretch longer than 21km and yet was training for the EC in 2025! (We connected and had a quick 10 mins dip on the Friday morning to ascertain speeds - luckily he is a dominant right side breather which would compliment my dominant left therefore, in theory, we could place kayaker ‘Magnus’ in between us and get on our merry way). Turned out Marcel was an ideal co-conspirator for this undertaking. He's a top guy. The first available slot time of 22:00 was given to 3 wetsuit swimmers and at the launch of a firework plus claps and cheers of the 20-odd assembled, they were off. 5 mins later we were next. We lowered ourselves gingerly into the silky smooth ca. 20c water which hadn’t dropped much despite torrential rain which has been hammering at my bedroom window all day!…..I was so glad I got in slowly as almost tripped over an enormous log that was in the water. 

(We were given these fab orange tow floats which lit up and avoided the need for green goggle LED lights. Very neat invention indeed. I am the geezer on the right #204)

The first 5km was very exposed with a breeze blowing SW 15mph gusting 30mph sort of cross wind (from behind left) making it pretty uncomfortable for the kayaker at slow speeds and especially so at our 45 min feed intervals. It was also pretty awkward suddenly swimming right into some random shingle and getting cut up on a 20m stretch of reeds that came out of nowhere but we brushed them off and laughed thru it as the typical nighttime swimming fog of war! 

(Pic from the Sundet area (start line) facing north during daylight (the day prior) and, of course, a flat calm!)

Eventually we rounded a little island and entered into the shelter of the first major island on the left as we edged past Ekens camping (5 kms chalked off I thought!) which I had imprinted on my brain as a key checkpoint. We got into a nice rhythm (in the newly-discovered calm) and started to click off the KMs with each buoy beautifully lit up marking roughly every KM. We hit proper swim nivarna where we thumped out the mileage which was no bother at all given our dedication to training. 

Between the 1st and 2nd island we were all exposed again which threw the kayaker around and disturbed our swim rhythms totally until Magnus intricately led us thru a gap in the trees and past E4:ans camping area which must have had a stream entering as the water suddenly dropped a few degrees for a while. Now we were almost 10km down with the long stretch to Tånnö on the menu mainly in the lee of the big middle island but Marcel now began to tire (his whey protein feeds hadn't properly dissolved and got clogged up in the flask delivery mechanism of all 3 feeds) so he actually ended up doing most of the swim on water complimented by the odd enormous looking cookie and/or banana so I had to wait a few times for him to catch up. The water temp, thankfully, was a total non-issue. Had this been Loch Tay or Loch Ness my sense of humour might have deserted me! 

Eventually after a very exposed section we passed a buoy with 8km to go and the end of the 3rd Tånnö island in sight with then 7.5 km to go before the finish of the one way (oh only 1/2 of an entire 1-way Windermere I thought). I was impressing on Marcel to speed up with his feeds which were taking too long but it was hard for the kayaker not to drift when we were trying to feed. There was one feed where we had to swim 20 meters towards Magnus as he was drifting badly in the wind. Peak mayhem! 

As we passed the bathers beach at Tånnö in the pitch dark we noticed a group of 3 wetsuit swimmers and their kayak that had overtaken us during the night were now actually on the side of the lake. Maybe they were switching out kayakers? Who knows...but so much for charging ahead...the tortoise beats the hare right?….On we went! 

Now we had earned the right to be in the final stretch of the lake - very exposed at force 4 gusting gale force 7 but thankfully coming from our (sort of) left rear behind us rather than head on. Feeding off the kayaker was close to impossible....as soon as we got to Magnus for a drink he would be blown 5m backwards from us. It was properly tough. Each bottle I got handed to me got tossed back as he was immediately blown away.  I realised at this stage that we were gonna have to really pull our fingers out to make the 7am start of the return leg and impressed on Marcel to dig deeper (his belaboured feeding times were also creating some animosity). He responded magnificently with an increase in pace overtaking me forcing me to catch up!!! 

The buoys seemed really spread out now and very hard to sight in the waves (even for the kayaker as Magnus conceded) but we hugged the shore and they came gradually into view. We hugged the eastern bank and could see the reeds whizzing past us. I was really enjoying the feeling of speed and let out a hearty yell to the kayaker telling him how much I was enjoying myself 'I am having such a blast right now' I recounted. Love it when it kicks off and we were having a hoot! Think Magnus was enjoying the challenge (and probs looking forward to finishing so he could go for a pee!)

With 5km to go I realised then with perhaps 2 hours ahead of us it was going to be a tall order to swim our hearts out, make the turn and then self-support into the teeth of a gale force 7 return so it was there and then that I made my mind up that I wasn’t going to bother the safety team and knew the 1-Way would be the finish for me. (This was the correct decision as all those that did make the turn retired). Quite a relief really and meant I could get stuck in and just enjoy the rest of the swim. The formality in the now daylight was totally enjoyable. 

 (Baseline force 4 gusting 7. Thanks for coming. It got even worse on the Sunday!)

Anyway, Magnus hailed ‘just 3 kms to go boys’ in brilliant English! Despite having just passed buoy number 4 (which I of course questioned but he was insistent it was just 3km to go)….we held our pace beautifully (without feeds) and the final stretch came into view….with 300m to go I still couldn’t make out many people on land given the waves, I could barely see out of my right eye (goggle suction) and my right under-arm area was agonisingly raw from chafe (all the Vaseline had worn off). Then we noticed a few other finishers and we had caught up with the group of 3 who went off 5 mins before us and they were walking the final 150m in the shallows to the finish…..I shook Marcel’s hand (with a nod of mutual respect) and the timer stopped at 8 hours 22 mins. 3rd in skins and 6/14 overall in a very high quality field swimming mainly in the windy darkness. (It's worth me mentioning at this juncture that not only did Marcel finish the one-way, he managed to turn with the main event at 7am (unlike me) so he only had 40mins rest and made if as far as E4:ans on his return (over 35km into a massive headwind) before he was pulled due to the cut-off times. Respect mate - you are defo ready to take on the EC.

(Might need to zoom in to see the results)
 

Magnus was so proud of us and (not unlike a few people in recent weeks) declared me ‘officially insane’ as we shook hands. In excesss of 550km of training YTD (on top of a demanding full-time job) plus a 50km an altitude camp at 1800m in Livigno, Italy, a 24 km weekend, 3 lots of 100x100m interval timed sessions, and an 8 mile in 8 hour event had paid off! Never felt tired or empty once. 

(Jack Hawkins in 'The Cruel Sea' impersonation (for older film buffs!))

Our younger daughter, Issy, (now 20 yrs old and my executive chauffeur for the week as only need to be >19 to drive the hire car) scooped me up and we returned to our lovely Airbnb in Tånnö for a well earned rest. (She's off to study in Stockholm Uni now for her year 3 abroad so this week gave her a small taster of what is to come when she returns solo in 2 weeks time.

Further musings/consiuderations 

+The water is divine and makes your skin silky soft afterwards- I have swum in clearer still water (Tahoe or our local lake at St Andrews in Kent) but nothing leaves your skin feeling as conditioned as this. Most of the way it was 19-20c which is perfect for me 

+The area around Värnamo (pronounced var-na-mower (!)) breathtakingly stunning and peaceful. Really opened up my eyes and for someone who prefers non-sea freshwater swimming, nature and basics in life with grilling out, this place is right up my strasse and if came here on hols could go to a different lake every day of the month. 

+The briefings/organisation for this must make the D-Day landings seem like a spur-of-the-moment decision but the organisers led by Christer Ringholm deserve special praise especially in the gale of this year 

+When I finished there were 2 charming young men offering me various types of food and a sit in a warm tent (I politely declined both as just wanted to go home for a shower and kip). The area even had nice loos with hot water and changing areas. Sweden just does these basic things so well. 

+There was loads of parking and plenty of (free) places down the lake to spectate or swim. 

+We found the best restaurant in town to be the Italian (D8) which was good value and had reasonable portions. We stayed at an Airbnb in Tånnö and would defo stay there again. Supermarkets were very similar to U.K. prices. We hired a car (Kia EV6) from Stockholm airport which was maybe £450 for the week including 2 drivers and insurances plus there were loads of charging points along the route. Issy drove over 1200KMs and I’d be surprised if we spent over £100 on our 3 charges when petrol would have been at least 50% higher. Our Airbnb had a cheap (but slow) 2.5KW charger which was fine overnight. 

+Feeds of small new cooked potatoes with loads of salt complimented by 250ml feeds of heavily diluted maltodextrin with orange squash were perfect (similar to Lake Taupo in 2023 - see prior blog). Never got the chance to try the flat coke or snickers bars I had cached for the return leg. Probs worked by way thru the better part of 500g of salty potatoes...lol 

-Earliest set off time was 10pm. We didn’t hang around but would have preferred a 9pm off with 1 out of daylight before darkness blanketed. I got very lucky being paired up with Marcel (and kayaker Magnus). I’d very happily swim with them again any day of the week/year. Not everyone was so lucky. I heard a story (not confirmed personally) that a group of 3 set off and the fastest swimmer hared off with the kayaker leaving the slower 2 to fend for themselves. Not sure if/when they fed. I noticed one of them retired from the one way on the results page. The other tbf fair is a very accomplished swimmer and was the other one that did it in a basic costume but in 7 hours!! Imagine how terrifying that would be tho' for the better part of 21 km in the dark = fecking terrifying!! At the Teams meeting on the Monday of the race we were all told to stay within 10 meters of each other at all times otherwise we would be disqualified.....not sure why this swimmer wasn't disqualified if the story were to be true. 

-We set up for the swim in twilight. The start area was quite chaotic and hard to work out what to put where. No pens to fill out liability forms or feed bags. It came together in the end but some of the snafu could have been avoided with a hands-on greeting. The only time the midges came out (all holiday) was hanging around at the start area. Worth spraying legs with bug spray in this area if wearing shorts.

Finally, the distance between the buoys (mainly for the return leg) and cut off times to make the various feeding stations (3 of the 5 are on land and you'll need to exit the water to feed). Will need to zoom in:

Pay good money to create panda eyes like this!

(Special thanks to 2 swim buddies Kate Forgione (keeping people honest @ winter time swims at Charlton Lido) and Tony Ross (endured many hours of my summer lake sessions at St Andrews Lakes) which meant I didn't thrash around solo all the time. Also Kate recommended some brilliant (Aussie brand) goggles which I swear by now for open water! They even deliver to the UK and don't break the bank. Check them: https://fiski.com.au/product/fiski-flyers-bumblebee/