Adirondack Sports August 2023

AUGUST 2023 25
SWIM PREP.
ONE OF LEWIS’ TRAINING
TIPS IS TO GET OUT OF
THE POOL AND INTO A
RIVER OR SEA.
WHEN HE CAN’T
SWIM A SECTION,
HE’LL RUN IT.
This current endeavor might seem
extreme to some, but after looking at
Lewis’s prior accomplishments this might
just be considered fun. At age 10, he moved
from England to South Africa. It was there
that he learned to swim at the age of 17. A
mere month later he swam from Robben
Island (where Nelson Mandela was
imprisoned) to Cape Town. After moving
back to England for law school in his 20s,
he continued his swim career. In 1992, he
swam across the English Channel. In 2002,
he broke the record for the fastest time
for swimming around Robben Island.
Extreme cold water, the most remote bodies
of water, and even long-distance swims
in all five oceans of the world litter Lewis’
resume. Countless times he has been the
first or the fastest. Now he will be the first
to swim the length of the Hudson, unassisted.
In 2004, a fellow environmentally-minded
swimmer, Christopher Swain,
swam from the headwaters to the harbor,
in a wetsuit.
Before he embarked on this journey he
met with local press and encouraged people
to follow his unassisted swim. While
he will have a kayak alongside where the
water is deep enough and a support boat
as he gets into the lower Hudson will boat
traffic, he wears only a speedo, swim cap
and goggles. A wetsuit would give buoyancy
and protection, but these are not
allowed. He will be taking Pepto Bismol
before and after swims, daily mouthwash
for bleeding gums and frequent showers
with antimicrobial skin cleanser.
Why these precautions? “In 36 years
of swimming, I have only done four river
swims because on three of them, I got seriously,
seriously sick,” Lewis said, recalling
a terrible experience running into a
patch of polluted water in the Thames. “I
remember getting out the river and vomiting,
and my teeth were actually wobbling
in the gums.”
When he stopped in Albany, he met
with Mayor Kathy Sheehan who said,
“when the Clean Water Act was passed in
1972, swimming in the Hudson River was
not even imaginable. Today, after years of
collective efforts, the river is swimmable,
but we know there is still more work to do
to return it to its former glory. That is why
the City of Albany is investing $50 million
as part of the Beaver Creek Clean River
Project to help screen and disinfect more
than 300 million gallons of combined
sewer overflows that end up in the Hudson
annually. We know this project alone will
not be the end of our efforts, and we are so
thankful that Lewis Pugh is drawing even
more attention to the Hudson River and
rivers like it across the globe. Lewis continues
to ‘be a voice for the world’s oceans,
and all the magnificent wildlife that live in
them’ and we cannot thank him enough
and wish him the best during his journey.”
Here’s his timeline – August 13,
Expedition starts at Lake Tear of the
Clouds; Sept. 13, Expedition finish at
Battery Park, Manhattan; Sept. 13-17, post
swim media engagements;
18 - 24 Sept. 18-24, UN General
Assembly Week and Climate Week NYC
2023; Sept. 20, UN Secretary General’s
Climate Ambition Summit; Sept. 24,
World Rivers Day.
#hudsonswim2023. You can follow
his journey here: lewispughfoundation.
org/hudson-swim-2023. And, listen to
his TED Talk: ted.com/talks/lewis_pugh_
my_mind_shifting_everest_swim?language=en.
Kristen Hislop (hislopcoaching@
gmail.com) is a USA Triathlon and
Ironman U coach, and race director
for the Freihofer’s Run for Women. The
Hislop Coaching motto is “Do - Believe
- Achieve” because she feels everyone
is destined for greatness. She is proud
mother to two boys who run in college
and a husband who recently completed
his first 70.3 triathlon.