Back to reality before the summer disappears.   Time has marched on pretty swiftly over the last couple of weeks and LOTS has happened in my life, not a lot of swimming but a lot has gone on. Since the summer started in the northern hemisphere, I have been eagerly and jealously following people on […]

The call of the River again!!   We are now just under a month away from my next little challenge – OH BUGGER! That means we are just over a month away from the Hippo Hitchup. Where, the Slimhippo will hopefully NOT turn into the runaway bride and agree to be my wife. Best I […]

A different way to spent 24 hours On so many levels this was a truly enlightening and inspiring swim for swimmer and support folk alike! Going back a while, I noticed the entries to this event had opened and I was discussing doing it as a solo affair. Life got in the way, I was […]

Over training! Physical or mental? Part 2 Now that the Hippo Pod have started a new chapter by moving from the Idyllic river location and into the Forest for the foreseeable future. No I am not being put out to pasture just yet! I can do a follow up to the hugely popular post of […]

Over-training and the pitfalls of it with regards to Endurance events Recently and in the distant past I have come across a fair few English, and other Channel aspirants who, coming up to their year of opportunity to gain the coveted title of being a Channel swimmer, are getting very despondent with their efforts to […]

It has been an interesting start to the year and this year, I did things a bit differently and booked a challenge very early on in the year. Yes, I opted to swim at PHISH this year – in the endurance event. Ingredients needed for this: 1- 1 x 61 m pool with a steel […]

Coldest dip yet! An interesting week with a bit of swimming done, not as much as I would have liked but good all the same. Slowly eating away at my 430 km target for the year – now only 422 to go before the 1st December. So on a grey morning in West London, 5 […]

Lets Get Challenged!! A new day and a new year, and already the year is getting off to an interesting start. As it is a new year, there is only one thing for it, a New Challenge! 2016 was a great year in a lot of aspects of my life but this blog focuses on […]

Steve Wand Memorial The morning arrived and I was up with the sparrows after  a pretty late evening chatting with the Slimhippo. She has this innate ability to bring up a discussion topic which I call “it’s not about the Nail!” – one which is not going to be solved by a short few words […]

Just under a week to go to the big day The original Group and Steve at their 100x 100m swim at Charlton Lido. It has come around really quickly since Mark Invited a select group of swimmers from around the country to Honour Steve in this momentous event. Amoung the swimmers are some pretty heavy […]