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MINUTES OF CS&PF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
HELD AT 1400 ON SATURDAY 3rd MARCH 2007 AT
DOVER TOWN HALL
PRESENT
Kevin Murphy- President, Alison Streeter- Chairman, Charlie Gravett- Vice Chairman, Mike Oram- Hon Sec, Angela Oram-Ass Hon Sec, Derek Carter- Treasurer, Freda Streeter-Training Liaison Officer, Committee - Wendy Coles, Cliff Golding, Lance Oram, Tanya Harding, Jane MurphyCo-opted committee members – Frank Richards, Laura Lopez-Bonilla
Cathie Slevin, Colin Overy, Nick Adams, Brian Bewley, Sally Minty-Gravett,Wendy Prunty, Stuart Buffery, Patricia Buffery, Chris Osmond, Dave Whyte, Joan Beech, Lynne Smith, Roberta Bernet
1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Sue Pepper, Ros Hardiman, Stephen Posnett, Lee Wakeham
2. MINUTES OF LAST AGM
The minutes were approved & signed.
(Prop. – S. Minty-Gravett, Sec. – F. Richards - carried)
3. MATTERS ARISING
None
4. CHAIRMAN'S REPORT - Alison streeter MBE
(Prop. – C. Gravett, sec. – K. Murphy - carried)
5. HON SECRETARY'S REPORT - Michael Oram
(Prop. – W. Coles, sec. - S. Minty-Gravett - carried)
S. Minty-Gravett gave a vote of thanks to Mike & Angela & all pilots & crews.
6. HON TREASURER'S REPORT - Derek Carter(Prop. – F. Richards, sec. – A. Oram - carried)
7./8. ELECTION OF OFFICERS & COMMITTEE
There being no new nominations the Officers & committee were re-elected en bloc
(Prop. – S. Minty-Gravett, Sec. – B. Bewley - carried)
9. MOTIONS
MOTION 1
CS&PF Administration & Swim fees for 2008
Solo swims Code A - administration fee £100
Code B - 1 way attempt £100
Code C - 2 way £200
Code D - 3 way £260
Relay swims Code E - 1 way £100
Code F - 2 way £200
Code G - 3 way £260
Swims greater than 3 ways, or for other swim courses not by the “direct route” are to be determined by the General Committee on their merits & the duties of the Observer.
(Prop. – D. Carter, sec. – M. Oram –carried)
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MOTION 2 -- Ref. the clarification of rule 11(c)
Original wording – “On receipt of a time signal a take-over must be made within 5 minutes of the ending of the preceding swimmer’s leg. In a take-over the new swimmer shall swim up from behind the preceding swimmer”.
This season saw some confusion over the exact interpretation of this rule & what was allowed on the change-over. The problem was with the possible interpretation of the 5 minutes being allowed to start before the full 60 minute period had been completed. To clarify the rule the following amendment is proposed. There is no change in the intention of the rule, just a re-write to eliminate any future confusion.
New wording – “The change-over/takeover from one swimmer to the next in a relay should take place every 60 minutes with the new swimmer entering the water on a signal given by the observer. During the take-over the new swimmer must enter the water from behind & swim past the preceding swimmer. The previous swimmer must then exit the water as quickly as possible. The change-over should take no more than 5 minutes”.
(Prop. - K. Murphy, sec. - M. Oram – carried)
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MOTION 3
"The use of MP3 players shall not be allowed by the swimmer while swimming during any English Channel swim attempt”
(Prop. - D Carter, sec. – C. Golding. 15 for, 2 against, 3 abstain - carried)
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MOTION 4
Rule 11(a) as it stands at the moment
“Each standard relay team shall consist of 6 swimmers each swimming for 1 hour. The names of the 6 persons shall be given to the official observer before the actual commencement of the swim. Thereafter there shall be NO changes in order or substitutions whatsoever.
Swimmers in Junior teams shall be over 12 years old by the 1 st of May & under 16 years old at the end of the swim.
In no circumstances shall more than 1 team be allowed to make their attempt escorted by the same pilot boat”.
Propose an amendment to read –
“Each standard team shall consist of 6 swimmers each swimming for 1 hour. The names of the 6 persons shall be given to the official observer before the actual commencement of the swim. Thereafter there shall be NO changes in order or substitutions whatsoever.
Swimmers in relay teams shall be over 12 years old 3 days before the relay swim starts, and for registration purposes the beginning of the swim period their team is booked to swim in. They shall be under 16 years of age for at least 24 hours after the swim finishes for it to be classified as a Junior Relay team swim.
Junior swimmers (over 12 & under 16 years of age) will only be allowed to swim in standard 6 person relay team swims.
In no circumstances shall more than 1 team be allowed to make their attempt escorted by the same pilot boat”.
(Prop. – A. Streeter, sec. – M. Oram – carried)
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MOTION 5
The rule on “support swimming” is rule 10(p).
The motion below is proposed to replace it.
“During solo swims a swimmer maybe accompanied in the water by 1 person only & not accompanied at all until after the first 3 hours. This accompaniment will be for a maximum of 1 hour & cannot be repeated until at least 2 hour have elapsed after the cessation of the accompaniment.
The second swimmer may swim alongside, but not in front, of the solo aspirant & must not impede the solo swimmer.
For health & safety reasons the pilot must agree to any request for a support swimmer before they enter the water to accompany the swimmer.
The pilot may, at his or her discretion, request that a second swimmer join the solo aspirant outside of these times for a short period on the grounds of safety. (i.e. if a swimmer suffers severe cramps). Similarly the pilot may ask for accompaniment at the very end of a solo swim if the conditions dictate. This is to be allowed even if the request is within 2 hours of a previous accompaniment.
No support swimming is to be allowed on a relay swim”.
(Prop. - C. Golding, sec. – L. Lopez-Bonilla)
Discussion followed
D. Whyte – a support swimmer may do more than an hour at the end of a swim if needed for safety at landing.
C. Osmond – what about more than 1 swimmer swimming ashore at the end of relay swims?
M. Oram – the pilot has the last word for safety reasons. Personally, would rather only have 1 swimmer in the water at any time as there is only one person to worry about.
K. Murphy – What about at the end of relay?
M. Oram - at pilot’s discretion, but they must stay behind the swimmer.
(For – 23, against 2 – carried)
K. Murphy – we recognise CSA Ltd swims. How can we do this if our rules are different to theirs?
M. Oram – we recognise the CSA Ltd swims and the Butlins swims. The word is recognise not ratify. If we get too involved and ratify other swims we will open a political minefield.
W. Coles – can we put an amendment “at the pilot’s discretion”?
M. Oram – we’ve already voted
C. Gravett – we should debate for the future.
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MOTION 6
This could not be put forward as a motion as it is not a change to the rules or to the constitution. It was carried over to any other business for consideration and acceptance.
“It is proposed that a working group be set up within the membership of the CS&PF with the express purpose of examining ways in which the members of the CS&PF can better understand & streamline some of the everyday workings of the federation. This should be a small working group made up of committee members & selected CS&PF members with the aim of investigating the ongoing development of the federation and administration work that is involved in running the federation.
The sub committee should work within a time scale of 6 to 12 months. It should update the committee on a regular basis. The findings & recommendations of this sub committee should then be circulated to all members before the next AGM.
A report should then be presented to the floor with the recommendations at the 2008 AGM.
(Prop. – Nick Adams, Sec. Cliff Golding)
M. Oram – we are always saying that we should look to the future – no need for a motion and not possible to be dealt with as a motion. Form a sub committee by all means but if you don’t know about the day to day running & working of the committee how can you suggest alterations to it?
W. Coles – this should not be a motion. It is not a constitution change & should be dealt with in Any Other Business. We have the ability for sub committees in our constitution.
M. Oram – One thing that we do need is a proper dinner committee that should start organising the dinner straight after the AGM.
The motion was withdrawn and moved to Any other Business.
10. ANY OTHER BUSINESS
The proposal for a working party/sub-committee was agreed. Cliff Golding will coordinate & Nick Adams will help but not run it.
C. Osmond - we should look at the observers’ expenses.
M. Oram - If we raise them too much we will run into tax problems, employment law etc. We need to take advice on this reference what is expenses. We can do this in committee.
N. Adams - minutes of all committee meetings should be put out to all members.
W. Coles - all minutes should be in the public domain
C. Gravett - we should draw a line under this now. Suggest we have a good supply of regalia for sale at the next dinner.
M. Oram - the evening is not really for selling regalia – should be an evening off. We are organising mail order for regalia.
D. Carter - last time we had regalia at the dinner we hardly sold anything.
Meeting closed at 15.50
-----------------------------------------------------------------------Summery of the database statistics of all the combined recognised Successful English Channel swims to 6th June 2006
(Including Nancy Dogulas & David Walliams 2006 swims)
Total crossings to date 1171
916 crossings - England to France
255 crossings - France to England
(including 33 2-way swims & 3 3-way swims)
completed by
544 male swimmers & 262 Female swimmers
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SWIM RESULTS for 2005
In 2005 the CS&PF had a total of 113 official Channel swim attempts.
There were 77 official solo attempts of the Channel by CS&PF members in
54 were successful ------------ 23 were unsuccessful
Christof Wandratsch from Germany
set a new World Record for the fastest ever English Channel Swim on the 1st August 2005
The New Record time was -- 7 hours 3 mins 52 seconds
There were 20 official 1-way relay swims by CS&PF teams
17 were successful ------------ 3 were unsuccessful
(All of these unsuccessful relays were completed but outside the Federation rules)
There were 8 official 2-way relay swims by CS&PF teams
6 were successful ---------- 2 were unsuccessful
( The 2 unsuccessful 2-way relays were completed but recorded as successful 1-way swims as one leg of each swim was completed outside the Federation rules)
There were 8 official special category 1-way swims all were successful
There were 6 other swims/Triathlons escorted but not listed here as they were completed outside the CS&PF rules.
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SOLO SWIMS England to France
95 Stephen Landells ( UK ) 21hours 15 mins
96 Yvonne Mooyman ( New Zealand ) 18hurs 27 mins
97 Sophie Mitchinson ( UK ) 09 hours 58 mins
98 Annette Stewart ( UK ) 19 hours 52 mins
99 Diarmuid O’Brien ( Ireland ) 15 hours 21 mins
100 Anna Hillyer ( UK ) 17 hours 32 mins
101 Forrest Nelson ( USA ) 10 hours 33 mins
102 Bonnie Schwartz ( USA ) 13 hours 28 mins
103 Sakura Hingley ( UK ) 11 hours 08 mins
104 Miyuki Fujita ( Japan ) 17 hours 03 mins
105 Mark Rosenberg ( S Africa ) 15 hours 08 mins
106 Michael Cross ( UK ) 15 hours 25 mins
107 Peter Thompson ( UK ) 17 hours 00 mins
108 Ronan Joyce ( Ireland ) 12 hours 54 mins
109 Karteek Clarke ( Scotland ) 13 hours 31 mins
110 James Scott ( UK ) 14 hours 52 mins
111 Peter Jurzynski ( USA ) 15 hours 30 mins
112 Lisa Howley ( Ireland ) 13 hours 22 mins
113 Tom Hecker ( USA ) 15 hours 21 mins
114 Sally Minty-Gravett ( Jersey ) 13 hours 31 mins
115 Dion Woodborne ( S Africa ) 13 hours 44 mins
116 Ilse Eiselen-Botes ( S Africa ) 12 hours 57 mins
117 Carina Bruwer ( S Africa ) 12 hours 03 mins
118 Sarah-Jane Stirling ( Jersey ) 11 hours 24 mins
119 Beate Kunze ( Germany ) 14 hours 06 mins
120 Christof Wandratsch (Germany) 07h 03m 52secs
121 Ian Jones ( Jersey ) 11 hours 49 mins
122 Miyuki Fujita ( Japan ) 13 hours 41 mins
123 Pingtjin Thum ( Singapore ) 12 hours 24 mins
124 Matthew Eckford ( Australia ) 16 hours 41 mins
125 Patrick Turner ( UK ) 14 hours 12 mins
126 Frank Chalmers ( UK ) 16 hours 48 mins
127 Neal Rayner ( USA ) 13 hours 50 mins
128 Andrew Hewitt ( USA ) 17 hours 55 mins
129 Jose Serra ( Guatemala ) 12 hours 12 mins
130 Timothy Cheesman ( UK ) 16 hours 14 mins
131 Brian Herrick ( USA ) 12 hours 58 mins
132 Joseph Wolf ( USA ) 12 hours 29 mins
133 Peter Tanham ( Australia ) 09 hours 04 mins
134 Tom Keller ( USA ) 11 hours 22 mins
135 Xanic Jones ( UK ) 15 hours 03 mins
136 Tim Strange ( UK ) 16 hours 24 mins
137 Jamie Thomson ( UK ) 17 hours 25 mins
138 Victor Malwa ( Zambia ) 13 hours 00 mins
139 Anthony Smith ( Jersey ) 14 hours 08 mins
140 Kevin Murphy ( UK ) 13 hours 35 mins
141 Lucy Biard ( Jersey ) 11 hours 38 mins
142 Kristin Ekstrom ( Norway ) 12 hours 35 mins
143 William Ferguson ( UK ) 16 hours 11 mins
144 Nora Toledano Cadena ( Mexico ) 10 hrs 04 mins
145 Imelda Lynch ( Ireland ) 14 hours 34 mins
146 Sarah Hamer (Wales) 14 hours 00 mins
147 Owen Sisk ( Ireland ) 16 hours 26 mins
148 Ned Denison ( USA ) 12 hours 47 mins
RELAY SWIMS England to France
33 Cuchulainn ( Ireland ) 14 hours 32 mins
34 Black Lion Masters ( UK ) 10 hours 36 mins
35 Southern Right Aquatics (3) ( Australia ) 13h 20 m
36 Southern Right Aquatics (2) ( Australia ) 12h 45 m
37 The Jitterbugs (UK/USA) 14 hours 09 mins
38 Channel 6 ( Australia ) 08 hours 45 mins
39 Charlie’s Channel Chicks (UK/Russia) 12h 42 m
40 Western Counties ASA ( UK ) 09 hours 06 mins
41 Dover Lifeguards ( UK ) 09 hours 47 mins
42 Credit Suisse First Boston (UK/Italy) 12h 08 mins
43 Morgan Stanley (Int.) 13 hours 44 mins
44 Manchetout (Int.) 11 hours 19 mins
45 Lido Legends (UK/USA) 09 hours 40 mins
46 Beach Party (Int.) 15 hours 21 mins
47 Oceans 7 ( UK ) 17 hours 25 mins
48 Eltham Training & SC (2) ( UK ) 15h 52 mins
49 RAF Honington ( UK ) 12 hours 03 mins
2- WAY RELAYS E/F/
6. Femmes de la Manche (Int.) 30 hours 40 minsFirst leg England / France 13hrs 27mins ------- Second leg France?England 17hrs 13mins ----
7. Fionn Uisce ( Ireland ) 30 hours 23 mins
First leg England / France 14 hours 50 mins --- Second leg France / England 15 hours 33 mins8. Finn McCool ( Ireland ) 31 hours 56 mins
First leg England / France 14 hours 14 mins --- Second leg France / England 17 hours 42 mins
9. Lir ( Ireland ) 33 hours 05 mins
First leg England / France 13 hours 12 mins --- Second leg France / England 19 hours 53 mins10. First Mexican Relay ( Mexico ) 20 hours 14 mins
First leg England / France 10 hours 30 mins --- Second leg France / England 09 hours 44 mins11. Eltham Training & SC (1) ( UK ) 31 hours 36 mins
First leg England / France 15 hours 37 mins --- Second leg France / England 15 hours 59 mins
SPECIAL CATEGORY RELAYS E/F
S11. Team Prendiville 7 person relay (Australia) 12 hours 33 mins
S12. Epping Forest Flotsam 4 person relay (UK/S. Africa) 13h 17m
S13. Southern Right Aquatics (1) 5 person relay Australia) 12h 46m
S14. D-Day 3 person relay (International) 11 hours 21 mins
S15. Queens Park 4 person relay ( S Africa ) 10 hours 07 mins
S16. The Young Ones 5 person relay ( UK ) 11 hours 23 mins
S17. Six Jersey Beans with a hint of Ginger 7 person relay ----(Jersey / S. Africa) 11 hours 01 mins
SPECIAL CATAGORY REALYS F/E
S10. Grainnuaile 5 person relay ( Ireland ) 14 hours 01 mins ---- (This was the Second leg of a 2-way relay)
Trophies and cups
The Gertrude Ederle Award - for the most meritorious CS&PF swim by a woman in 2005 - was given to -- Miyuki Fujita from Japan for her 2-way attempt when she swan for 13 hours 41 mins.
(Rick Selway met Miyuki at Tokyo airport and presented her with the "Gertrude Ederle award while on his way back to Australia after the Annual Dinner. )
The Des Renford Award - for the most meritorious CS&PF swim by a man in 2005 - was given to --- Christof Wandratsch from Germany for his NEW WORLD RECORD England to France swim of 7 hours 3 mins 52 seconds on the 1st August 2005.
The Eurotunnel Trophy - fastest CS&PF swim 2005 Christof Wandratsch from Germany for his New World Record England to France swim of & hours 3 mins 52 seconds.
The Peter Adams trophy & Cup - For the CS&PF successful endurance swim of 2005 - were given to -- Stephen Landells from the UK for his England to France swim of 21 hours 15 mins
The Frank Richards Endurance Award - for the CS&PF endurance swim of 2005 - was awarded to -- Sally Goble from the UK for her 21 hours 1 min swim before aborting.
The Audrey Scott Award - for the youngest successful CS&PF swimmer of 2005 - was given to ----------- Sophie Mitchinson From the UK for her England to France swim of 9 hours 58 mins.
The Ray Scott Award - for the oldest successful CS&PF swimmer of 2005 - was given to ----------------------- Kevin Murphy from the UK for his 33rd successful Channel swim England to France in 13 hours 35 mins. This makes him joint "King of the Channel".
The Alison Streeter MBE award - for the fastest CS&PF 2- way swim of 2005 was given to ------------- The First Mexican Relay Team for their England / France / England swim of 20 hours 14 mins 43 seconds. England to France swim was 10 hours 30 mins ---- France to England swim was 9 hours 44mins 43 seconds. Team members - Patricia Guerra - Patricia Kohlmann - Nors Toledano - Ana Paula Escobar - Monica Ramirez - Minerva Mertinez.
The Barrie Darling award - For the CS&PF pilot / crew member of 2005 - was given to the pilot & crew of ---- Dave Whyte and his boat crew on Ocean Breeze
The CS&PF Observers award - for the observer of the year 2005 - was given to ------------------------------- Simon Mitchinson
The Dover Straits award - for the fastest CS&PF relay crossing of 2005 - was given to ---------------------------- Channel Six relay team from Australia for their England to France crossing of 8 hours 45 mins 27 seconds ---- Team member - David O'Connor - Blair Redfern - David Watts - Rory Pilgrim - Katerina Dodds - Harriet Morley
The Longest Relay Crossing award of 2005 was --- Team Lir from Ireland for their second leg (France to England) of their 2-way swim 19 hours 53 mins. --- Team members - John Kenny - Joe McGoldrick - John Daly - Pat More - Declan Proctor - Dan Smyth
The CS&PF "Special Thanks" award - for the supporters/volunteers work for 2005 - was given to -- Barrie & Irene Wakeham
There were 3 new awards introduced as of 2005 -
The "Seafarers award - for the fastest British swimmer of the year 2005 - was given to - Sophie Mitchinson for her 9 hours 58 mins"For Special Recognition"..... swim.
The JLDSC "For Special Recognition" award and cup - for the most successful CS&PF swim completed under exceptional circumstances and was given to ---------- Lucy Biard from the Channel Isles. for her England to France swim of 11 hours 38 mins.
The Cape Storm Award - For the successful Channel swim with a touch of "something different" to it's credit that makes it's completion memorable as well as meritorious. This was given for the first time to ------ Annette Stuart from the UK for her England to France swim of 19 hours 52 mins. It was declared by her pilot and support crew that Annette "talked her way across the Channel".
Frank Richards was presented with an engraved glass bowl for his work and support while serving as our Inaugural President over the past 3 years.
Zak Evens (Neil Streeter's son & Freda Streeter's grandson) was presented with his 25 metre swimming certificate by our new President Kevin Murphy. Zak is 4 years old and in training for his first Channel swim in around 2014
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The CS&PF growth rate never ceases to amaze me. Everything is moving at such a speed one wonders when the bubble is going to burst. The 2004 season was our busiest yet despite a season of unkind weather. We managed to get 65 swim attempts away out of 71 producing 42 successful swims and 46 successful crossings.
There were –
25 successful solo 1-way swims 2 successful solo 2-way swims
9 successful 1-way relays 2 successful 2-way relays
4 successful special category swims.
For those of you interested in statistics that’s a 66% success rate for the year on successful swims – and a 71% success rate on successful crossings. (crossings are counted in 1-way swims and each leg of a multi swim is counted as a successful swim)
To date the Federation has had a total of 194 swims of which 151 of them have been successful. Our overall success rate is 78% since our inauguration
This coming 2005 season we have about 120 swim attempts confirmed to date and we are still booking. Every year we try to plan ahead but the response is turning out to be much greater than we ever anticipate. We seem to be approximately doubling the swim booking of the previous year. One has to ask “where are they all coming from” and when will it slow down? Doubling the swims more than doubles the workload and that means we need to find more helpers, observers and boat crews. Expenses are paid and we can offer you long hours, early starts, coffee and tea in abundance, wind, rain, tours of the Channel - and a great bunch of people.
Volunteers needed – if you would like to help and have spare time let us have your names – get in touch with the office.
At the beginning of 2004 we had 4 pilot boats registered for the season with Neil Streeter joining the ranks of the pilots along with his boat “ Suva ”. Out of the 15 swims Suva escorted 12 were successful. We would expect nothing less from Neil and his crews as he has been crewing for over 10 years now and has always set his target at owning and running his own pilot boat. Hope that does not change now he is paying the bills and working around the clock between the weather windows. Eddie Spelling brought himself a new boat “Anastasia” and had another successful year. Alison Streeter has qualified as a pilot now, although she is doing another season as crew when she finally retires from the city - she is after our spare boat for the occasional run now that we have bought another one. (I have bought another sea school boat “Gallivant” a twin engined 36 ft Pedro). Lance and I have three boats at our disposal but unfortunately we can only drive one each at a time. Chris Osmond with “Seafarer” and Dave Whyte with “Ocean Breeze” joined the Federation’s list of recognised and registered pilots list in November so we now have 6 active full time pilot boats and pilots for 2005 – all booked with swims. Chris and Dave were working under the CSA Ltd banner before they asked if they could join us and both are experienced pilots who have done a good few swims over the years. We have come a long way in the since 2000 and now have the members, the team, the experience, the bank account plus the recognition and status of a Governing Body for Channel Swimming. All this means we are now well established and here to stay.
The “chat” site is increasing almost daily as new swimmers hear of us, find us and join so that they can communicate with like minded people and enter into the spirit of our sport. I think the last count was 305 members with about 20 invitations to join in the pipeline. Never before has there been such an easy and open place to make contact and get help and air all the different opinions – as well as have a laugh and a chat. It seems to have become the hub of a world wide club and open water information centre. Both The chat site and its web pages are open to all, not restricted to CS&PF members, and it’s free, although becoming a member is by invitation only. Hopefully it is going to be used for fun as well as for serious comments and as such we ask you to both -- use the delete button if you are not interested -- and to remember that it is “open to all” -- when writing your messages. It should be noted that you can also be a member of the chat site and not have each e-mail sent directly to your address. (Some people find the messages are excessive and to many to cope with, especially during the swim season). If that is the case then you can still be a member and access the web site to just read the messages that you are interested in. If you know anyone who would like to join send us their e-mail address to michael.oram@btinternet.com.
As I said earlier the weather was not kind to us this year but we still managed to get the swims out on the water and collect an impressive list of successes. Both Anne Cleveland and Marcy McDonald completed 2-way swims. Anne stepped off the plane and phoned me as soon as she reached the Victoria Guest House. “I’m here and ready to go” she said. “Tomorrow” was my reply. --- “but it’s the top of the Spring tides and I am not booked for another week” came her reply. “Looks like it is now or never with the next lot of wind on its way and Lance has a spot empty.” – “OK”. On the 30 th of July Anne successfully completed her swim to become only the second American lady to do a 2-way. She took 28 hours and 36 mins and finished at Kingsdown just before the bad weather arrived. Her last few hours were cold and hard but mentally she got there.
We have awarded Anne the “Gertrude Ederle Award” for the most meritorious swim by a woman in 2004.
Marcy McDonald was the first American woman to complete a 2-way swim in 2002 and this year she came back to try and do a 3-way. The weather was not kind and the weeks passed until we finally had a weather gap. But - It was also on the top of the Spring tides. The waiting was worse than the task ahead so off we set on the 3 rd of September. The conditions were good and 11 hours 14 mins after her start from England she landed at Cap Gris Nez. The return swim was hard but good and we landed on Shakespeare beach in 11 hours 46 mins and in perfect time for the third leg to France . A little bit of persuasion was needed at this turn around but not a lot. What Marcy did not say was that her shoulder was playing up. 40 minutes into the last leg the shoulder problem was showing and a brief discussion on the damage that could be done if she continued persuaded her to get out. She had achieved a good 2-way in 23 hours exactly.
Marcy receives the “Alison Streeter award for the fastest 2-way swim of the year.
Two lessons to learn for all you keen “newbees” (as they were addressed last season). 1. Plan your swim with plenty of time spare to fit into the weather gaps – you could be on standby for days or you could swim as soon as you arrive. 2. Safety first – and that means do not persist and be stubborn if you suffer a serious strain or injury. The Channel will always be there for another try.
George Brunstad swim the English Channel on 28 th August in 15 hour 59 mins. A good swim by any standards that finished on the French coast at Sangatte (between Calais and Cap Blanc) just after midnight . Both Marcy McDonald and Alison Streeter swam the last 50 metres to the beach with him to celibrate. The amazing thing is that George had just celebrated his 70 th birthday 4 days earlier – That made it a great swim by a very special person. To cap it all it was Alison’s birthday and she celebrated that as well on the beach with George and a small group of French people who appeared out of nowhere to shake his hand.
George receives the “Ray Scott” award for the oldest successful swimmer of 2004.
Josiah Bunting from the USA had the fastest swim of the year with 9 hours 44 mins – he just beat Lennard Lee’s time (9 hours 45 mins) to win the “Eurotunnel” trophy for the fastest CS&PF swim of 2004. Just goes to show how every second counts – even on a Channel swim.
The “Des Renford” award for the most meritorious swim by a man goes to Veljko Rogosic who at 63 year old completed his swim on water only without any food as he was being continuously sick after the first hour. He refused to give up until he reached French soil – and became the first person from Croatia to swim the Channel.
Mandy du Feu battled the seas and made a successful landing in France – just in time to get the plane back to Jersey for her wedding. She has the “Peter Adams” endurance award for a successful swim.
The “Frank Richards” award for the endurance effort on an unsuccessful swim goes to Rick Selway. Rick is registered blind and had a lot of problems working out where he was going but he stuck it out and was in reach of the French coast when he retired. He had a very good year though and ended it by proposing to our Queen - Alison Streeter – who accepted. Now they are planning the wedding. The date is not set yet and I did hear that it is dependent on a successful Channel swim by Rick this year.
The “Audrey Scott” award for the youngest swimmer went to Astrid von Linde who made it in 13 hours 38 mins
The Western Counties relay team won the “Dover Straits” award for the fastest relay.
And – guess what – Eltham Training and Swimming Club have won the longest relay swim award yet again. This year they cut nearly 8 hours off their last record and did a respectable 16 hours 16 mins.
The list goes on and every swim has a story. – Vijaya Claxton returned for another attempt and put in her best swim yet – 18 hours 41 mins and she reached the French inshore traffic zone, about six miles from Calais. It’s always a pleasure to take Vijaya and her little bunch of happy faces (sorry helpers). Each attempt she exceeds herself previous one and gets closer to the French coast. Success can’t be to far away now.
This report would not be complete without us recognising all the work put in by the helpers, and the observers. Without them there would be no swims.
“Observer of the year” goes to Billy Beadle for all his effort and dedication. Billy had a busy season and often slept onboard for a few hours before he was of on the next swim. Our thanks go out to him and all the other observers who worked so hard to make other peoples dreams come true.
The “Barrie Darling” award for the pilot/Crew member of the year this year has been awarded to a pilot boat – “ Suva ” – They started as a team, worked as a team and it turned out to be a very successful first season.
I know that Alison has mentioned and thanked Freda, Barry, Tanya and all the rest of the beach crew but they still need a mention for their dedication and persistence.
There is a lot more I could and should say but I am on a deadline here and it is gone midnight already. A couple of last minute things though -- Please remember your committee, officers and helpers are all volunteers and most have full time jobs - this means that sometimes it takes a little longer to get results. The size of the Federation is demanding a lot of work for all the members behind the scene and we are trying to do our best for you.
I personally would like to say thank you to everyone for making the Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation such a great success. It has gone far beyond my expectations. We have had our disruptions from outside the Federation but this just seems to have made us stronger and gelled us into one big swimming community that stretches around the World. I do not know what the future will bring but I’m sure it will be nothing but good news. Just to confirm - That’s a thank you to all the committee members for their help and support, to all the volunteers who are observing the many swims, to all the other helpers who gave their time and assistance and to those who help the swimmers on the beach at Dover . Thank you to all you swimmers who swam with us. Most of all thank you to my wife Angela – your Assistant Hon Sec - and the person who has kept the office and me in order up till now. Not an easy task. And last, but not least, thank you to the dinner committee for the work that’s been put in to make tonight’s dinner possible
Michael Oram
Hon Sec CS&PF.