Dear Friends,
1 mile is 1.6km
1 mile is 1609 metres
1 mile is 5280 feet
1 mile is 1769 yards
I did not know these facts until I went and googled how far I needed to swim in order to finish the Midmar Mile. The Midmar Mile is held at the Midmar Dam north of Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu Natal. It is the world's largest open water swimming event and can draws thousands of competitors each year, both serious international athletes and Olympic medallists to recreational swimmers. This year I decided I needed to be a part of it and just do it, why, well it’s there so why not, but I also like to challenge myself and it seemed like a challenge.
George Mallory was once asked why do you want to climb Mount Everest?
Mallory’s reply was
“Because it’s there.”
Mallory wasn’t being entirely flippant. He went on to explain:
“Everest is the highest mountain in the world, and no man has reached its summit. Its existence is a challenge. The answer is instinctive, a part, I suppose, of man’s desire to conquer the universe.”
No I don’t want to conquer the universe just yet, but I do suppose this is in the right direction, it’s like baby steps towards bigger challenges out there for me physically.
The great thing about doing this swim is I get to swim with people I would never ordinarily meet, for instance, Craig Deitz. He has no arms or legs, just check out this article (click on the link below)
and I am sure many more I will meet on the 9th February when we take to the water and just be athletes whether we have a disability or not, it’s all about heart and just going that one step further by doing something that challenges our ordinary existence.
I have or am coming to see how being disabled is not the end of the world but actually a stepping stone into challenging my ordinary existence.
Don’t settle for ordinary, find a challenge!
Will keep you updated on how it goes!
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