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Cheryl Elinsky: First Vermonter to Swim the Channel

continucdfronz front page

unaffected by technology," swimmers
are restricted to wearing just a swim
suit, a swimming cap, goggles, and
grease.

In March of 1996, Elinsky, a physi-
cal therapist and teacher at Springfield
College in Massachusetts, began com-
municating with one of the four boat
captains, called "pilots," authorized by
the Association to accompany swim-
mers across the Channel. Among the
requirements for approval of her appli-
cation to the Association to attempt a
crossing, Elinsky was asked to submit
the times and circumstances of previ-
ous long-distance swims. Already on
her impressive resume were a 12 _ mile
swim around Key West in 1995, and a
28 _ mile tidal-assisted swim around
the island‘ of Manhattan in 1996.

A final requirement was that
Elinsky complete a 6 hour swim in wa-
ter 60 degrees or less. Elinsky devoted
herself to cold water swims in 1997, in-
cluding a 3-hour swim in New Hamp-
shire, a 5-hour swim in the mid—west, 7
hours in Lake Champlain, and a 6-hour
swim in a river outside Bath, Maine.
Elinsky noted, "I spent over 60 hours
acclimating to water 60 degrees or less,

and I was still cold!”

Elinsky knew she had done ev-
erything possible to get ready for the

swim. She put on 8 pounds as protec-

tion against the cold, but though she
swam as much as 40,000 yards a week
for week after week.

The week of July 27, 1997 was
chosen for Elinsky’s crossing, based on
the tides. On» the first day of good
weather during that week, the attempt
would be made. On the second day,
Elinsky and three other swimmers
(women from Connecticut and South
Africa, and a man from India) got their
chance. ~

At 5:46 a.m., Elinsky started
swimming. She knew she was fortu-
nate to get this early morning start, as
the tides might just as easily have
forced a night crossing. Her pilot set the
course, and Elinsky swam roughly ten
feet from the side of the accompanying
36' motor cruiser for the duration of the
crossing, allowing her father, accompa-
nying her from Maryland, and her part-
ner Kim Parent to shout their encour-
agement along the way.

For the first two hours Elinsky ad-
mits to having been somewhat scared,

‘though the swells were consistently a

moderate 2-3 feet. In hours 3 and 4, she
became very relaxed. ”Things were re-
ally going well. Kim and Dad provided
really good support." The pilot, who
had accompanied many swimmers,
gave her confidence that she was per-
forming well.

Twice, large ocean—going vessels
changed their course in deference to the
4’ 11" swimmer ("Very cool!"). And ev-
ery half hour Elinsky paused to drink
a carbohydrate / electrolyte mix, ensur-
ing that she consumed 500 calories an
hour. Despite the investment of 2 years
of study into how and what to eat dur-
ing the swim to meet her body's needs,
Elinsky abandoned her plan upon ar-
rival in Britain when she was encour-
aged to rely on a powder mix that
would be easier to digest than what she
had planned to consume. Her flexibil-
ity paid off, as she credits this regimen
as ”a big reason why I made it.”

After four hours the wind picked

up more than expected. The tide and
winds were moving in opposite direc-
tions, creating 5 — 6 foot swells, which

persisted for much of the rest of the I

swim. If these rough conditions had

been anticipated, the Association I

would not have allowed the attempt on
that day. Elinsky persevered. "I kept
telling myself, This is why it's The
Channel. I can do it. I can make it."’

Around the 12th hour the water
started to calm, but tides again become
a consideration. The high swells had
slowed Elinsky, and she was in danger
of having to fight the outgoing tides as
she approached France. Despite any
swimmer’s best efforts, the tides can
simply sweep them up and pull them
out to sea.

At this point Parent shouted to
Elinsky, "It's really important that you
swim really hard right now." Elinsky
understood. "The biggest reason
people don't make it is the cold. Sec-
ond reason is that they can't fight the
tide. I was not going to let that happen
to me. I pulled it out of every cell in my
body — Ijust blasted!”

Still, not content to confine her
encouragement to the boat, Parent
donned a wet suit and jumped right in
to swim alongside Elinsky as a pacer
for the first 30 minutes of what they
both knew would be the most difficult
part of the swim. Elinsky found
Parent's participation, "...comforting.
Even though the boat is ten feet away,
it's a very lonely and vulnerable place
to be."

By this point, Elinsky’s back and
hips had become very painful. "I swal-
lowed a lot of cold, saltwater.”
Finally, 45 minutes from the French
shore, Elinsky knew for sure that she

would make it. "I was very, very, very’

happy! There might have been some
warm tear drops in that water when I
realized I would make it."  '

Present French law prohibits
making the swim from France, to En-
gland. And despite a history of notable,
successful landings on French beaches,
the French are apparently not very keen
on having folks just swim on over.
Luckily, Elinsky came ashore on a beach
and, after a single stumble, enthusias-
tically accepted the warm greetings of
a gathering crowd. "I told them I loved
their country!"

Once Elinsky was ashore, Parent
swam in to join her for some serious
jumping up and down on the French
coast. And then, as anticlimactic as it
sounds, they picked up a single stone,
swam back to the boat, and began the
3 hour ride back to Dover!

Elinsky trusted heavily in the
abiding presence of her father and Far-
ent. "With all the homework and train-
ing, it's critical what the support team
does for you‘ and gives you." For her
part, Parent declared it "an honor to be
a part of this. I learned a lot about my-
self. When it was hard, I grew, too. We
both had our Channels. They were dif-
ferent, but we both had them."

Back home, Elinsky has been hon-
ored as the first Vermonter to swim the
English Channel with a proclamation
from the Town of Brattleboro. When
asked what a Channel Crosser, who
swims around Manhattan for a warm
up, plans for an encore, Elinsky smiled,
”This was my goal — fait accompli - it
feels very complete, very thorough.”