I am attempting to swim the channel in the second week of August.

It is around a 21 mile swim in a straight line - however the tidal conditions often add much more to the journey. Given my ropey action and suspect endurance I think this will probably take me around 13 - 16 hours, although it might be a tad longer as I seem to slow down more than others as the distances increase (not a great asset in this pursuit!).

I have setup a blog which I will continue to populate as the swim draws nearer , with which you can follow my training progress (should you so wish!) - http://rufuschannelswim.blogspot.com/

A major motivation for this endeavour is to raise money for my 2 charities Plan UK and Cancer Research. Plan UK operates a programme to offer people like us who squander hundreds in over priced London bars the opportunity to channel some of our earnings in a more beneficial way by sponsoring young children in less affluent countries (http://www.plan-uk.org/becomeasponsor/). My second charity is Cancer Research due to the history of the disease in my family.

If you wish to take the opportunity to sponsor me it would be much appreciated - everyone who does sponsor me will go into a draw with the winner drawn at random being invited to come on the boat if they fancy it!

Many thanks for your support.

Cheers,
Rufus

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Quote for the day: It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." Teddy Roosevelt