Biography

Swim history before SwimTrek I’ve always been a bit of a water baby, and have trained with Shrewsbury Masters for the last 20+ years, but only really got seriously into open water relatively recently. When I say seriously, I’m not a competitive person and swim very much for the social side and to enjoy being in nature. I mean seriously in the way that barely a day goes by when I’m not in the water….at least once. I dabbled in triathlons, but that’s not for me. I’m now very active in my local open water communities, meeting up for long swims, dips and introducing people to new bodies of water. I particularly enjoy river and estuary swimming. I’m known for my cold water tolerance, and have really enjoyed encouraging some of my fellow guides to embrace the cold during lock down! My first encounter with SwimTrek was in Oman in 2019…and there’s no going back now! Most memorable swim moment Swooshing down the River Tweed at 5.30am on 1st May. Mist over the water as it was 5c in and 1c out. You can’t beat a bit of cold to make you feel alive. Top swimming tip Do what makes you happy. If you like to race, race. If you like to dip and explore, do that. If you like wetsuits, wear them. Life is too short to do what other people think you should - in swimming or any other part of life. Interesting fact I spent 2 weeks recce-ing and crewing the support vehicle in a cross-desert car rally in Qatar when I was 23.