tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25868434067136186322024-03-05T19:06:34.883-08:00Channel-Triathlon Dover-Heidelberg 2008/2009"Dreams come true only if we dearly love them and proudly treasure them." - Sri ChinmoyVasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-30797245415550163572009-02-06T00:35:00.000-08:002010-09-13T03:52:34.369-07:00Updates for 2009 and 2010 on new BlogHi! For updates about my Channel-Triathlon project 2009/2010 please go to my new blog www.channel-triathlon.com. More background info will be added there gradually. My next training goal for now is the 12 hour indoors swim organised by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team in Zürich on March 1st. Have a great training - whatever you may be training for!Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-33468602083730675882009-01-01T11:19:00.000-08:002009-01-17T15:09:54.226-08:00A very happy and prosperous New Year- on the inner and outer planes of life - to everybody!Ice on lake Constance at Lindau - Dec. 31st, 2008After a few months of concentrating more on the first one of the famous 3 triathlon disciplines, which as you may know are eat - train - sleep, I took my forth winter water dip yesterday (about 3°C, maximum), on New Year's eve, in Lake Constance, closely monitored by some friends. It was Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-48184484704798559382008-09-14T14:52:00.000-07:002008-09-20T07:02:24.345-07:00My second Channel attempt, Sept. 11, 2008 - The long story“Not what happens to you, but how you accept it is of paramount importance” – Sri Chinmoy - Indian philosopher and respected spiritual teacher (1931-2007)RecapAfter my first training trip to Dover mid-July and my second trip for more training prior to my tide beginning of August and then waiting endlessly due to the bad weather I had to leave Dover without a chance to swim. I came back on the Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-26328834181730791082008-09-13T10:17:00.000-07:002008-09-13T10:25:23.733-07:00Hypothermia struck!Sorry for the late update, just a short note:Had to be pulled out of the water after 13 hours 40 min. after we had passed Cap Griz Nez and were already being swept by the counter-current back towards Calais, which would have meant about 5 hours more swimming. I looked a bit too blue, my speech got blurred and I had slowed down quite a bit. We had started at 9 p.m. (8 p.m. German time) and swum Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-54293412843716757202008-09-11T08:45:00.000-07:002008-09-11T08:46:36.020-07:00SurpriseSurprise when I came out the water from my training swim today: we are going tonight at 8 p.m. Dover time.My the Channel Gods be with us!Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-78543652021194645252008-09-11T02:58:00.001-07:002008-09-11T03:07:19.032-07:00Maybe Friday AND Saturday!We may start our swim on Friday night around 8 p.m. and swim into Saturday, if Alison's relay goes out tonight. Or we will start on Saturday morning around 10 a.m. and land late at night, maybe into Sunday. The wind starts turning tonight and will be coming from north-west, pushing the swimmers, finally!The good thing about swimming into the night: the night is usually calmer, you will have Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-31983977986063155792008-09-09T05:22:00.000-07:002008-09-10T01:39:05.147-07:00Saturday or Friday?The weather and the forecasts keep changing, but my guess is Saturday. Some people made it yesterday, some didn't, due to hypothermia, seasickness, lack of mental preparation etc. Today all the boats stayed in the harbour. The water today felt much colder, almost arctic, but it was quite calm in the harbour and the sun is out, warming. Swam with Rashmi again. Tonight Marie-Therese will arrive andVasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-18071848025096112732008-09-08T05:06:00.000-07:002008-09-08T09:00:42.233-07:00Exciting news: Swimmers are out - and more hope!Arrived in Dover last night by train and ferry - with an amazingly positive inner feeling, no matter the outer circumstances which only seem to be improving. Moved into a nice little attic twin bed room at Victoria Guest House WITH A VIEW TO THE HARBOUR AND THE CHANNEL! And with great breakfast and wireless laptop (if it works), with extremely supportive landlords and more Channel swimming Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-65027445136421427992008-09-05T15:18:00.000-07:002008-09-05T15:45:28.247-07:00Cosmic GameThe only constant thing is change - also in regard to Channel weather forecasts. Right now it looks much gloomier again for the tide starting today, but of course that could change again. And reality need not abide by the forecasts. Now there is only a relay and a solo swimmer before me. And there are new enthusiastic and experienced helpers confirmed: Marie-Therese, who helped Bea in 2006, willVasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-61609877134016686182008-09-04T03:58:00.000-07:002008-09-05T00:10:25.917-07:00Back to Dover on Sept. 7thWith a little help from my friends I will be back in Dover for the next neap tides (Sept 6-11) soon. Just checked the pressure charts: a high pressure zone is pushing its way up! High pressure usually means less wind, i.e. good swimming conditions. The first days of the tide still look not so good, but its getting better from Monday on and the 10th and 11th are looking quite promising right now Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-59129114951602633232008-09-02T03:06:00.001-07:002008-09-02T14:21:47.707-07:00Karteek did it again! Congratulations!Last Friday (Aug. 29) Karteek Clarke from Edinburgh, one of the members of the international Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team, has conquered the Channel for the 9th time since he got kind of hooked on the Channel in 1997! His intention was to never again go on a spring tide, but since Friday was one of the very few good days this summer, he took his chance and succeeded under the able guidance of Dave Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-35334198197565550582008-09-01T03:31:00.001-07:002008-09-03T08:01:57.093-07:00Last split Channel swim before the next tide (7 + 7 hours)Last weekend of August, after almost 2 weeks of just pool swimming, including a few "fast" 400 m lap-sessions under 8 min. and quite a few days off, plus a long bike ride (previous post), I felt the need for another, hopefully last LSD-swim (long slow distance) this year and did a 7 + 7 hour split swim in the lake. A bit crazy maybe so close to the next tide which is Sept. 6-11th, but I may only Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-60139949135489689022008-09-01T01:01:00.000-07:002008-09-02T14:22:13.696-07:00200 km bike ride to my mom's birthday partyAug. 24-26After coming back from Dover on the 18th, my energy and training went down. I planned another long swim in the lake but never made it that week. My parents live about 200 km away near Nürnberg and my mother's birthday is on the 25th, so I decided to go for a long overdue 12-13 hour bike ride on Sunday, stay for a day and take the train back home.On the way to my mom's birthday - NeckarVasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-25319559460246422332008-08-22T01:00:00.000-07:002008-08-22T11:57:26.399-07:00Believe in Your Dreams!(Photos by Prabhakar)Dreams may take time to manifest, but never stop keeping them alive in your heart! And never stop preparing! The time will come....One gigantic dream come true is a project of friends in Australia: running around the whole Australian continent with a flaming torch for world harmony with two international teams: 15,000 km in 111 days. Had I not had my own Dover-Heidelberg Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-71133156804619201802008-08-16T11:12:00.000-07:002008-08-22T16:41:29.395-07:00Gratitude and PatienceFrance in the distance, even visible from water level! So close and yet so far! (foto taken after my 7 hour swim on Thursday)One might think the Channel is there to teach a few things: patience, determination, humility, a never-give-up attitude, and that you have to put your heart 100 % into something, if you want to succeed. And even then there is no guarantee. (In regard to the mind-philosophy:Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-71843002434949395452008-08-14T13:29:00.000-07:002008-08-22T14:51:12.605-07:00Sadness and another 7-hour swimShakespeare Beach - just wild!Yesterday, after confirming with Alison that for me the tide is definitely over (Alison feels I can go on a good spring tide, but I couldn't now because of lack of helpers for the triathlon), I felt sad and empty. Went to the Euroline ticket center to check how I will get back, and then to Shakespeare beach again. The sea wasn't just powerful but violent, ferries Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-78575839378360974052008-08-13T05:33:00.000-07:002008-08-23T03:25:33.157-07:00Postponed until September At least now we know. Friday, the last day of the neap tide, will be a great swimming day, it seems, but the swimmer before me is going out. Good luck to you, Maggie, make the best of it and don't stop until you run out of water! I will go for a long training swim tomorrow and maybe again on Friday, just to make the most of my time here in Dover.Yesterday and today the wind has been up to gale Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-59574270872622749682008-08-11T04:26:00.000-07:002008-08-23T13:14:22.184-07:00... and waiting....Stuck in base camp, so to say. The Mount Everest of swimming is showing us its inaccessible side and has only allowed very few swimmers to cross this tide so far. Until Wednesday it will be extremely windy (25 knots and over from the south), Thursday getting slightly better but not great, still strong southerly winds, Friday is now looking like a swimmable day, but there is still one swimmer Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-33881533588817657972008-08-08T03:50:00.000-07:002008-08-22T15:01:49.309-07:00WaitingTuesday evening, biking by the harbour, I was almost shocked: for the first time since I was back in Dover, the French coast was visible again - so clear, so near, almost in grasping distance.Next day my two helpers for the boat arrived, Bea and Sumeru from Austria and Zurich, and we moved to Varne Ridge Caravan Park, where a whole Channel swimmer community is staying. A couple from Australia (Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-20067436692876724672008-08-03T08:02:00.000-07:002008-08-08T03:50:14.871-07:00Dover Training Camp, 2Dover Castle from the Marina Office area Sunny Dover HarbourJust a short update from the Dover Marina Office public computer. Photos will hopefully be added soon, in the meantime some Dover photos from a couple of weeks ago: Album DoverJuly482008FirstChannelTraining53 swimmers and relays (at least) have been successful so far in 2008! For details click: http://www.dover.uk.com/channelswimming/Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-14770496388631491522008-07-29T11:08:00.000-07:002008-07-31T14:03:10.731-07:00Dover "Training Camp", Part 1Sorry for the delay - laptop didn't work, camera gave up (I did exchange batteries, not knowing, however, that it only seems to work on accus or Duracell) - and now, typing away at the Dover Marina, I cannot upload any photos. (Pictures will be added later.)Otherwise things are great!Arrived on Thursday afternoon (24th July) by train and ferry again, totally enjoying the crossing and being out onVasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-57000859003534663782008-07-22T14:44:00.000-07:002008-09-06T14:26:39.481-07:00Things Get Rolling Tasty food - an important part of Channel training!Anticipation - talking to my gogglesToday, when I bought an extra pair of those Speedo goggles I have come to like so much, this time with a pale purple rim to distinguish them from the older bluish ones, it was so cute, I was talking to them with a deep inner conviction: "You are going to accompany me to Calais!" I know you have to be very Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-72764397641332447782008-07-21T00:53:00.000-07:002008-07-21T01:42:27.355-07:00Weekend-Triathlon (6:30, 6:30, 2:30) - and Getting Ready to Go!July 19./20.It will be VERY difficult - if not a miracle. But I believe in miracles. I have experienced them.Friday was my last workday at my part-time job, now I am going to concentrate only on my big event and getting things organised before I leave for Dover on Thursday. I will take some translation and web work with me, but I don't expect too much to get done over there.Saturday: Bye-bye Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-71480139237914451902008-07-13T13:24:00.000-07:002008-07-13T23:38:46.089-07:00July 12/13 Silver Lake - Power & PeaceFirst split "Channel swim" - 7 & 6 hours, plus 3 hours bikingThis week I felt so tired. After only one 45 min. swim since Dover (on Tuesday I was travelling, Wednesday evening pool, Thursday evening I fell asleep, Friday Kieser weight-workout, too much actually) - I finally did my first "split Channel swim" - 7 plus 6 hours over the weekend in the Silbersee / Silver Lake near Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2586843406713618632.post-66482791986841536522008-07-09T14:15:00.000-07:002008-07-18T00:17:01.828-07:00Dover, finally! 8 hours in choppy water (in 3 days, though...)When I arrived in Dover in the late afternoon of Friday, July 4th, for a 3 day training visit, it felt like coming back to meet an old friend. I hadn't had this feeling on the few other occasions I had come through Dover since 1985.I had taken the train from Heidelberg and the ferry from Calais to Dover, just to get a real feeling of the Channel and the distance. And I felt it embraced me like a Vasantihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09941831079691184628noreply@blogger.com1