Limelight Utd News Article

With months of Triathlon training and a keen eye to experience a mass-participation swim event outside the realms of Swimathon, Limelight’s very own Diccon Loy enrolled himself in the inaugural Great London Swim. The swim, part of the Great Swim series, sister series to the established Great Runs, involved navigating the murky depths of London’s largest dock for a mile with only a wetsuit, a pair of goggles and a whole lot of splashing to see you through.

The reason for Diccon dropping out remains as unclear as the waters he was set to take on. However, with less than a week to go, Tim Morgan stepped up to take his place...following in the footsteps of other great swimmers in Limelight's hall of fame, our president of Swimathon and Olympic gold medallist Duncan Goodhew, and of course none other than Swimathon 2008's ultimate water babe - Nick Thompson.

With a wetsuit ordered and a half mile goggle-less training swim under his belt, the big day came and it was time to take the plunge.

Upon arrival, the challenge of donning the wetsuit was not to be underestimated. The dress rehearsal had not been entirely successful but, with the aid of two carrier bags and a pointer or two from Limelight’s resident Ironman, the suit was on and Tim looked as much the part as he ever could. Thanks must go to Kara for completing the zip closure and for the support she heaped onto our intrepid athlete.

We were called for warm up and the big toe was pleasantly surprised by the non-Baltic water temperature. Ten seconds later Tim was immersed and demonstrating to the rest of the 100-strong wave how not to prepare for a 1600 metre swim. After much posturing and a touch of front crawl, we exited the water to enter the start funnel. Having ben told to hang back and to the side to avoid the melee of heels and elbows that is synonymous with such events, Tim duly pushed as far forward as his competitive streak could carry him. They were off and, within sixty seconds, Tim was rewarded for his delusional aspirations with several heels to the face. Undaunted, he eventually found his rhythm and was alone – one man against the dock.

About of a third of the way into the swim, Tim was startled by the sound of an engine. Convinced that the QE2 had found its way into the dock and had not seen the green cap until it was too late to manoeuvre, Tim was certain his days were numbered. Before long, the aeroplane, departing from nearby City Airport had passed and it was business as usual in the water. Unsettled by this near death experience, Tim’s inbuilt GPS suffered a temporary fault causing a route deviation that must have left the water marshals amused, if not a little confused, as to how a swimmer who is attempting to travel in a straight line can turn almost 180 degrees in a few short strokes. Back on track and in the groove, the final orange buoys were in sight. With a sprint finish and the racing line of a pro, Tim’s next memory was being effortlessly plucked from the water by a burly fellow and having to remember how to walk. Once this had been achieved, Tim crossed the finish line and the event was over.

A goodie bag and photo were closely followed by an unofficial timing of 35 minutes – some fifteen minutes quicker than anticipated. It was an enjoyable experience – one that would no doubt be enhanced by a little Limelight camaraderie. A group entry next year is strongly recommended.

Chip timing later revealed an official time of 37:41. A personal best that no doubt he’ll be bragging about for some time to come…..