September 2011 will see Kedington Woman Tracy Van Dyk taking on one of the classic challenges of swimming and attempting to swim The Channel between Dover and France.Tracy says there is no exact reason for facing this daunting challenge beyond the "personal challenge" which she is using as an opportunity to raise money for a worthy cause; the Multiple Sclerosis Trust.
Apart from the stamina needed to keep afloat and moving forwards for the estimated 14-18 hours it takes to complete the swim, Tracy will have to contend with cold of the channel water. On the day the picture above was taken at Holkham Bay in Norfolk back in March this year the water was just six degrees celcius. Even by the time Tracy started training in earnest in May the waters in the Harbour at Dover were still only 10 degrees. For this reason Tracy will spend her spare time from May till September (When the water of the channel is at it's warmest) acclimatising to the conditions.
When asked how the thought of crossing the channel made her feel Tracy said "I am determined to become one of the 'channel swimmer' family and once I set my mind to do something, I have to do it. There are a lot of things that could work against you and the final decision is not your own, it all depends on the conditions during the day and tides etc etc. The pilots who escort you across are very experienced and know when to call it a day or not. It's just a matter of expecting the worst and hoping to get the best on the day." It costs £2250 to swim the channel so although Tracy is raising funds for the Multiple sclerosis Trust she is also trying to raise funds for herself to cover the costs involved. People wishing to Sponsor Tracy can do so either by depositing money in to Tracy's Sponsorship bank account (Nat west account number 90088425, sort code 60-10-21) or by going to the Little Tracy's Big Swim website where there is also a link to the MS Trust. Also there is a collection box at Kedington Butchers. All funds left in the sponsorship account after the swim will go strait to the MS trust.
Tracy is also holding a fund raising South African Sokkie Dance on the 4th of September at the Kedington Community Centre. Details can be found on the Kedington News Events Page.
Article by M.P.Upton - 17/8/10
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