Folks sorry to say I didn't make it, to cut a long story short the weather forecast was wrong and I endured 7 hours of rough seas before it died down,  I swam another 4  hours so I swam 10.5 hours in total in the cold rough North Channel, I  could have swam another five hours, but the bad weather had prevented me making my tidal window and I had to concede. Continuing was futile I missed the tide and was looking at another ten hours. They said on another day with better conditions I would have made it. That is life.
On the plus side I have had a remarkable journey met some truly amazing people and we have all smashed the total for the hospice.

How did i end up attempting this. (Why?)

Ten years ago my cousin died from depression, it hit me hard, and i realised I at times could have been in the same boat. I ran the Dublin marathon that year for four  reasons

in memory of Paul

for my own physical and mental health (i was smoking 20 a day at the time)

 for charity (the samaritans portadown) and also to raise awareness.

A couple of years later i ran another marathon for Pips.

I gradually got into triathlons and then open water swimming. I swam across lough neagh for children in Crossfire this was a 12 mile swim, raising £4,000
some people commented that i was wearing a wet suit. so being a stubborn git i did it again in my togs.

This brought me into the sphere and attention of some famous Irish channel swimmers, i was doing ok for someone with no swimming technique, I had never been coached, apart from my da teaching me the doggy paddle in Brownlow pool.

They told me to try the channel and they would help me with technique and anything i needed. Thats just what the open water community is like,the English channel is easier than the North Channel but was expensive beyond my reach, and if your going to do a channel might as well do the toughest.

Only  52 people in history have done the north channel, my coach Chris Judge was the 52nd i aim to be the 53rd person in history and only 10th Irishman to do the 25 cold jellyfished miles. It has been estimated that by the time i get in the water in donaghadee  i will have swam  around 1000 km this year alone in training. The picture on this page is of me swimming in ice cold water which i do all winter, i have been training for two years already for this. January 2018 i had a major confidence booster by completing a full km in icewater (3 degrees)in the Irish open iceswimming championships I placed in the top ten in the event which draws swimmers froom all over the world.

This one will be for the newry hospice, but also as a message to others to never ever give in to depression,speak to people, open up. But also in memory of My Aunt Viv who fought her own battle so hard for so long against cancer.

(all donations go to Newry hospice swim costs have been covered by myself and some generous local businesses and friends)