In a moment of madness (or perhaps weakness) last October I agreed to join a team of six parents from my boys' school for a relay swim across the English Channel from the diesel-filled waters of Dover Harbour to somewhere (hopefully sandy) on the French coast - exactly where we end up depends on how we swim. 

We'll be making our attempt in September 2020. 

I still have no idea why I have signed up to do this. I've never even particularly liked swimming - but I'm training hard and I'm determined to rise to the challenge. I'm even starting to enjoy swimming.

The Swim: the English Channel is 21 miles wide at its narrowest point, but we will be battling the tides, current and shipping lanes, so we will be swimming a lot further than that (potentially up to 30 miles). The rules of channel swimming are strict, we must have one swimmer in the water at all times, with no assistance available other than the pilot boat, and we will be swimming day and night. No wetsuits (or goose fat) are allowed, which means we will be swimming in cold water of around 15C (59F) in nothing but a pair of swimming trunks whilst we try our best to avoid the jellyfish.

We will be aiming to complete the crossing in around 18 hours or so, which will mean multiple swim legs per person until we reach France.

This video shows what swimming the Channel will be like https://youtu.be/u5Crn7hBd_w

Why: we are planning to raise over £12k as a team for Aspire. Every four hours someone is paralysed by Spinal Cord Injury and Aspire provides the essential equipment, advice and housing, plus assistive technologies to allow people with spinal cord injuries to live their lives independently. This is a big challenge, but the more we can raise, the more of a difference it will make. Please be as generous as you can with your sponsorship no matter how big or small.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

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Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.