BLDSA Lake Windermere

Bldsa lake Windermere

I do bang on about the past when it comes to swimming but that’s because, looking at past data, swimming is very much something of my past. I kid myself that I can just jump into any water and swim how I used to but I’ve come to realise how much hard work and dedication I put into swimming the channel and the associated events almost a decade ago.

Fast forward to 2022 and I’ve entered and event that is firm favourite in the open swimming world- Lake Windermere.

Results for this BLDSA(British Long Distance Swimming Association) event date back to 1958 and the Association and event are steeped in history. 

It came as a great surprise when I went to enter that they had a wetsuit category as, in the past, all swims had to be completed under Channel Swimming Rules meaning no neoprene!

I didn’t consider wearing a wetsuit until a few weeks before the event and I saw the air temperature dipping well below 20 and the water temperature slowly decreasing from a very unseasonable high of 22. 

With the heatwave we had experienced over the summer, along with many other factors, the sea in September was still a balmy 20 degrees and the air temp had barely dropped below the low 20s.

Forecast in Windermere was 16-17 degree water and an air temp of 13 with a northerly breeze. I swallowed my pride and vowed to don the wetsuit!

I travelled up with Sally who has realised she is actually quite good at swimming in open water and wanted a challenge this year(spoiler alert: she aced it and without the wimp suit!)

A 7 hour drive with service station dinner then a 7am cab to the start at Fell Foot made sure the start came around quickly enough! Sally was going in Wave 1 at 9am and I was in Wave 2 at 10.30am.

I was thrilled that clearly although we have all aged a decade, the same people were still hanging around the cafe at the start line! It was wonderful to catch up with old friends Kate Robarts and Adrian Rotchell(whose daughter Holly, aged 15 came in 2nd overall) and it felt like 2012 was merely a year ago. 

Entry pays for a kayak support and my kayaker Darron was super experienced having swum Windermere around 20 times and paddled some epic events. He was so solid and we stayed side by side for the whole swim really efficiently. 

The first wave went and then there was a bit of hanging around and chatting before I went in. 

After being ribbed for the wetsuit-wearing I entered the water as my number was called, along with the other 9 or so in my wave. The starter blew the whistle and we swam off, navigating through the boats whilst our kayakers waited to one side, following us until we spread out and they could join us as individuals. 

My swim went as follows:

Hour 1: wow it’s warm- maybe I shouldn’t have worn my wetsuit. But I am smashing this, I’m going to be so fast. Definitely will break 5 hours. Maybe even under my PB of 4.45.

End of hour 1: I think my watch is broken- how have I only swum 3.3km in one hour? Bugger, this is going to be at least 5 hours of swimming. 

Hour 2: Cool. Second hour, feel good, have made peace with my wildly inaccurate speculation at a finish time and can settle down and have a lovely time.

Hour 3: Man. 3+ hours of this? My shoulder hurts. Actually they both hurt but this one hurts more than the other. I really should take up ultra running again, you can sit down and have a break in those events.

Hour 4: Sod entering Round Jersey for 2024- I definitely have not got a 12 hour swim in me. Definitely running. Or short swims like this. But train more, must train more. 

Hour 4 and a bit: Kayaker: “3 miles to go” 

Great, I think and sing ‘just a parkrun… ‘

Nope, doesn’t have the same ring to it when you’re swimming… 

Hour 5: Another swimmer came up beside me and we swim together for a bit- definitely speeding up my slowing stroke.

Then up ahead I see Sally. Get a bit excited and lift my chest up to kick forward to see here, getting a massive calf cramp in the process. Stretch out calf and then go to give Sally a whoop and a wave before carrying on towards the finish. 

Hour 5 + 15 minutes: 1200m to go. I am so done with this but 20 mins max to go. 

Hour 5 + 23 minutes: that looks like a pub. I am definitely going to the pub after this. 

Hour 5 +25 mins: Stagger onto the pebbles. Can’t quite make my legs work. Thanks to the kayaker. Happy to have finished. Must do more swimming. 

All in all a successful weekend 🙂