20 Bridges Manhattan Island Swim – circumnavigation Manhattan Island
Ah, Bright Lights, Big City. A year after my English Channel (EC) crossing, I found myself in New York City ready to take on the 20 Bridges – the circumnavigation of Manhattan Island. How in the world did I get here?
I hadn’t really thought about whether or not I would continue long distance open water swimming once I had completed the EC. The plan in my head was really to just get the EC done and then think about whether long distance open water swimming was something I could see myself continuing with. More importantly could I ask my family to continue to support me if I committed to further swims and the training required. To give myself breathing room, I stepped away from the pool for 3 months – I needed to regroup, recover and spend with my family.
The more I spent away from the pool the more I realized that long distance swimming was something I wanted to pursue. So I started to think about what other swims were out there, where those swims fell within the year and how that might work for me.
20 Bridges circumnavigation of Manhattan was not on my radar initially; however, the swim was mentioned in conversations and it dawned on me that I might not get any resistance at home if we could turn the swim into a swimcation – a family holiday plus me taking on a swim – a big bonus and selling point to the family.
After researching the swim, registration and possible swim dates, I locked in the 20 Bridges as my next long swim. Convincing my family that New York as a summer holiday was not difficult – let’s face it, who doesn’t want to explore NYC – the city that never sleeps.
Coming back to training after 3 months off is not something I will ever do again. It was tough I’m not going to lie about that and there was a lot of frustration coming out of most of my swim sessions. While we need time away to recover both mentally and physically, 3 months was probably too long (hindsight is wonderful) and I don’t think I would do that again. I struggled to find my fitness and it was as frustrating as hell but after a few months back I found my groove and just got my head down and the work done.
11 days out from leaving for NYC, my husband caught COVID. Here in the UAE testing (and quarantine) requirements were very strict. Not an ideal time for him to get it as not only were we travelling, but our eldest 2 children were returning home for the trip (they were on school holidays) and we had to juggle rooming etc in the house in an attempt to make sure none of the kids caught it…incredibly stressful. I was concerned about my upcoming swim and the effect it may have on me if I caught it. Well the inevitable happened – I caught it. I am very thankful that I really only had 1 day where I felt terrible and the rest of the time I just felt a bit under the weather. Being sick and in quarantine and not allowed to train wasn’t ideal but I had no control over this and had to learn to park my stress and frustration fairly quickly. I knew that as I was still a few weeks out from swim day, that my final sessions and taper would pay off and that we had done all of the work earlier in my prep.
I had a plan in place for NYC. Family time plus training. For the first week I trained at a YMCA off 49th Street Hell’s Kitchen while everyone was still asleep. After refuelling, we would hit the sights of NYC. We then went across to New Jersey. We have close friends living there and the plan was to work remotely, train at the local YMCA (25 yard pool) and enjoy the taper period. A few days out from my swim, I left Stu and the kids in New Jersey and headed back into NYC to meet up with Kate who was flying in from the UAE. Leyla was due to meet us, but unfortunately the band couldn’t be together this time round as Leyla had COVID and couldn’t travel. We held out hope that she would make it for swim day but sadly that didn’t happen.
We stayed in an apartment down near Battery Park. I was starting and finishing my swim at Pier A, Battery Park and I find it easier to prep for my swims in self contained apartments rather than hotels. An apartment allows you to have your space, cook your own food (making sure I am getting everything I need in by way of food before I swim) and also allows you to prep your nutrition.
Feeds this time round were going to be a little different to the EC. For 20 Bridges, you have a pilot boat and kayaker. Your kayaker is experienced with the waterways around Manhattan and they are responsible for your feeding and general well being. As my kayaker only had a wet bag in the kayak the logistics of feeding became important as he could only carry a certain amount of nutrition at any given time. This meant that we needed to prepare my feeds differently as my kayaker would not be going back to the pilot boat after every feed so we needed to ensure that we had several feeds (of the same nutrition in one bottle). I left this to Kate to work out and prepare – the beauty of your support crew!
On swim day Kate would be on the pilot boat with the observer. Unlike the EC, Kate was quite far away from me and while she was in-charge of ensuring nutrition was on point, rotating the bottles and getting them to the kayaker and keeping an eye on me, she had little to no interaction with me during the entire swim. From Kate’s perspective she found this a challenge as she couldn’t talk directly to me during the swim and had to rely on information being given to me second hand through my kayaker.
The day before my swim, I was able to see off Jamie (my friend from Muscat) as he was also taking on the 20 Bridges. It was great being able to wander down the morning before and get a feel for what tomorrow would bring. I also had an immediate source of knowledge of the swim from Jamie and he gave me some good tips on the swim. The swim association provides a briefing during the year for the swimmers but it is always good to hear it first hand and Jamie’s thoughts and advice were invaluable for my swim the next day.
As Kate does, in the lead up to swim day, my well being was front and centre. Kate (and Leyla) are great at taking care of me which allows me to get my head in the game, relax and focus on what I need to do in the coming day(s). I cannot say enough how important your support crew are for these big swims.
Before I talk about swim day, a little bit of info about the swim:
Named 20 Bridges Manhattan Island Swim is a 45.9km circumnavigation swim around Manhattan Island NYC and is traditionally completed in a counter-clockwise direction. It is part of the World Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming (the other two being EC and Catalina Channel swim). The circumnavigation sees you swim under 20 Bridges – hence the name. Got to say, I counted 5 before losing count and only knew I was on the home straight as the George Washington is the last bridge and is at the start of your descent down the Hudson.
You swim through 3 rivers – East, Harlem and Hudson – they are all tidal straits or estuaries – not freshwater
Start of the swim occurs just after the Neap tide and you swim with it for most of the circumnavigation which then makes the swim a fairly fast swim given the distance. The exception to this is in the Harlem River where you hit the change of tide and you swim for a small time into the tide. I can honestly say though I didn’t really notice the change, but then again I wasn’t focusing on that and my mind was a bit of a blank to be honest.
When you hit the top end of the Hudson, you see the big old George Washington Bridge and you can see Freedom Town (One World Trade Centre) rising above the skyline…your beacon to the finish line. The GW Bridge is about (again timing given in the briefing based on the ‘average’ swimmer) 45 mins so I knew that once I had turned into the Hudson, I should be under the GW not too long after and then down the home straight you go. It’s not quite that easy once you have gone under it, but you are definitely heading in the right direction.
There are several places you may start the swim. I started at Pier A Battery Park although you load up elsewhere in Lower Manhattan – this is why we chose to stay close to the start and loading place – we were a short walk from each.
The start time of the swim was very decent – 10 am – well that was when we were scheduled to start. I say were, because the pilot boats were running late. No one seemed stressed, well aside from me. I knew from the online briefing that an ‘average’ swimmer needed approximately 3hrs 30 mins to be up and through the East River before the tide changed. I knew that if the tide changed, completing the swim was next to impossible so I was starting to sweat it. I had no idea if I was the ‘average’ swimmer they talked about in the briefing, was I slower, faster – who the hell knew. I just knew I was starting to stress – deep breaths.
We were finally loaded onto the boat and after a very short journey around the corner to Pier A, final intake of pre swim nutrition (and a nervous wee – yep our boat had a loo onboard – one very relieved Kate Turney!) I was in the water waiting for the start hooter to sound. Another swimmer was swimming on the day – both of us solo swimmers – I didn’t have a lot to do with her prior to the swim and I hardly saw her at all during the swim – our kayakers had us in very different places in each river.
Within the first 5 mins of the swim, I had to stop and tread water and a Staten Island Ferry was coming into the Pier. A bit frustrating to lose all of the nervous energy you have after just starting. Nonetheless I knew to expect this, although had hoped that on my swim day it might have been avoided. Anyway onwards and upwards and we got back underway once the Ferry had passed and we could safely proceed.
While I knew that the East River had ripping currents, I had expected to feel the effects of those currents while swimming through it, but sadly I did not notice it at all although video proves otherwise and shows that I was swimming at a cracking pace. The in-water experience was different to the optics I have to say. The East River is choppy and with the wash coming off the retaining walls you feel like you are in a washing machine with a strong underwater pull dragging you into those retaining walls. Not just in the East but also in the Hudson I felt like I fought with the water as the chop would come in from all directions, either side and over my head. It was a very different swim to the EC in that respect. I was in a good head space and just put my head down. My kayaker asked prior to my swim whether I wanted to stop in any particular places and have my photo taken – err Nope! Not here to sightsee. I just wanted to get the swim done – in and out as quickly as I could. Having my kayaker next to me proved to be a great distraction. I was able to just focus on him, check out what he was up to in the kayak. The focus wasn’t on how I was really feeling – which was great!
I didn’t pay attention to my surroundings all that much. I tried to count the bridges but failed miserably. It’s a great game to begin with but then I lose focus on the things that don’t matter and after 5 bridges I gave up as I couldn’t remember what number I had counted up to. Oh well. I didn’t see the big ‘C’ for Columbia nor did I smell the poo farm which generally denotes the change from the East into the Harlem River I had read some horrible stories of how bad it smells when you swim past it). At some point I put my head up and asked my kayaker where we were as I had started to wonder as to whether I had made it out of the East or how much further we had to go. Like the EC, I had no idea of time – nor did I ask (its one of my rules – don’t ask just get the job done it doesn’t matter the time) Surprisingly he told me we were well and truly in the Harlem and would soon be coming up to the turn and moving into the Hudson – wowzers…all of that stress worrying about whether or not I was still in the East River was for nothing.
The Hudson was tough. You turn and you see the mighty GW bridge and further down you can see the buildings near the finish line, but man there is still a long way to go. I knew from Jamie’s swim the day prior that it would take maybe 3 hrs to get down the Hudson and I also knew from the briefing not to continually look at the GW bridge once you’ve turned as it just never gets closer (a bit like the French shore – you think France is a lot closer than it is! The same applies to the GW bridge). So I made a commitment to myself to not look up and to keep my head down – hard to do than to say but I did try. The Hudson was incredibly choppy – so much boat traffic causing the water to feel like a washing machine on crack. I was tired of fighting the water by this point but it just doesn’t let up. It felt relentless and there was no rhythm to my stroke, I just had to work with the water – definitely easier said than done. Finally under the GW and after that is where the wheels fell off for a bit.
Funnily enough, Kate will tell you that as I was slowly losing my shit, she knew it. Kate had commented to the observer that she had noticed a change in my stroke and that I was starting to come undone and I was starting to get into my own head. It was about the same time in my swim as I lost it in the EC. Something for future swims to be aware of! What set me off (aside from fighting the chop) is that my kayaker had said to me at the feed after the GW bridge that if I could I needed to pick up my stroke rate as I had dropped my pace. I questioned whether I was in danger of not finishing (No) and was left wondering who had sent the instruction…I put my head back down and was fuming and also disappointed – disappointed in myself as I questioned how good a swim I was having – was I too slow, had I let Tim and the team down, was I having a shit swim. I ran through my head why the instruction was sent and who sent it…I nailed it down to Tim (poor bugger wasn’t even there) and raged at him in my head. Needless to say at the next feed I put my head up to Kate and yelled at her to ‘tell Tim to get in here and do the swim himself’. Kate just looked at me and basically told me to get over it and put my head down and get on with it. Righto then, wind out of my sails, I muttered a few choice words, put my head down and focused on getting home.
Aside from boat traffic, I had to play frogger with big lumps of floating wood hurtling their way down the Hudson. Man, if any of those had hit me, I’m not sure what the outcome would have been. The value of your kayaker is they are right next to you directing and maneuvering you around the obstacles.
8hr 5min after I started my swim, I finished back at Pier A. As I came in the finish I could see Stu, Chlo, Tbone and an American school friend of mine (who came up from Arizona to support me) cheering me on from the sidewalk and of course Kate in the boat. Gotta say, having my family there cheering me in was awesome, super emotional.
Once we got the all clear, I was back on the boat and into the arms of Kate – incredibly grateful for the support she has and continues to give me and a big hug from her was what I needed at the end of that swim. Our pilot boat took us back to the loading point and it was there that I was presented with the biggest medal I’ve ever seen. Totally worth it!
20 Bridges Manhattan is an amazing swim. Very different conditions to that of the EC but nonetheless one that you need to bring your A Game too. It is not an easy swim – distance or swim conditions, but one that is achievable if you put the work in prior to swim day.
Having completed Manhattan I had decided that I would attempt to complete the World Triple Crown with a long goal of completing the Ocean 7. So where to next? Catalina Channel (SolCal) was the swim next on my radar however given I hadn’t planned to swim Catalina until Oct 2023, I looked for an early 2023 swim and settled on going back home to complete the Rotto Island Crossing – a 19km crossing from Cottesloe to Rottnest Island.
