Embracing rubber (and pain)

I'm swimming one mile in a cold lake next month.  It's going to be a major challenge for many reasons despite the lake being freezing cold;

-My front crawl up until about two months ago was nothing less than a thrashing, drowning-type scenario ending in a mouthful of water and minor indecent exposure.

-I don't know about you but I tend to panic when my face is in water and I can't breathe.

-As a general rule I usually try to avoid wearing rubber clothing but in this case the rubber is avoiding me wearing IT - goddamn this kit is an effort to get into/out of.

My training started about two months ago and I'm improving slowly.  It's all so painfully new.  The goggles, the swim cap, the breathing... the one-piece speedo suit.  It's a challenge.

I'm doing all of this mostly for my own pleasure (/pain) but also to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.  They help improve the lives of people affected by cancer.

So if you'd like to get involved in my challenge, you can sponsor me on my sponsorship page.  If you'd like to be entered into winning a kitty tote bag, just take a guess at my finishing time for the swim and put it in the sponsor note.  You can pledge as much or as little as you'd like.

Provided I don't get eaten by a lake monster, I'll announce my finishing time and the winner of the goody bag on June 24th! In the meantime, stay tuned - I may show you a photo of my sexy wetsuit.