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Swimmer strokes successful lake trial
Napanee Beaver
Adam Bramburger
July 4, 2003
Adam Bramburger - Staff
Local
Hero — John Munro smiles at well-wishers and shakes hands with
others as he steps out of the North Channel and onto the shores of Amherst
Island Tuesday. His swim from Bath, inset, was his official trial for two
Great Lakes crossings Munro will be attempting this summer.
Hero’s
welcome greets John Munro
at completion of Canada Day crossing
John Munro swam the final metres of his Great Lakes trial swim Tuesday amidst the sounds of nearly 100 people cheering and screaming him on, as he set his eyes on reaching the increasingly visible red and white dots that spread across the shores of Amherst Island.
While some would be quick to focus on the personal glory of being one step closer to reaching a long-time goal, Munro saluted his supporters upon walking onto shore.
“I’ll tell you something folks, I’ve lived in many communities, but this is by far the best I’ve ever Lived in,” he said.
Alongside the islanders waiting for Munro to arrive were members of the Y Penguins swim team he has helped wife Vicki Keith coach this year, along with a group of seniors from the Hallowell Health Centre in Picton. Munro’s sister-in-law works at the centre and he has been there on numerous occasions to speak about his swims.
The 52-year-old left another energized crowd at Bath Centennial Park shortly after 3 p.m. and braved the North Channel for two hours and 20 minutes before stepping ashore just west of Stella.
Early in the swim, Munro ran into some trouble as the water was choppier than he expected, though that didn’t break his stride.
“It was pretty rough that first half,” said Keith, who travelled alongside Munro in a kayak. “He was getting slapped in the head with all the waves, but he never slowed down.”
Munro said even the kayaks travelling beside him were being rocked back and forth in the rough waters.
Before the swim, Keith had estimated Munro would finish in 2:15. Considering he took some time to tread water and look at a tall ship that joined in to sail behind his crew, he was pretty much on pace at a little less than two miles per hour.
A number of other boats from crew members and islanders followed in Munro’s wake, encouraging him to keep working.
Despite the waves, the water was a warm 18 C across the lake, and once Munro reached the halfway point and had the current working with him, he said they was ideal conditions for the trial.
“It was awesome, warm all the way” said Munro.
“I didn’t even see a minnow out there, it was pretty quiet.”
He says it has left him well-prepared for the two final lengths of his fund-raising marathon.
“It was a good test for me today for Lake Erie and Lake Ontario,” he said. “I’m really looking forward to those swims.”
Unfortunately, he will have to wait longer than anticipated to reach the real thing. Munro has delayed his Lake Erie swim, which was to take place this weekend, until next Thursday due to the American long weekend. Munro said it was difficult to get emergency workers south of the border to commit.
“I totally understand,” he said. “I don’t know if I’d want to give up my long weekend either.”
His crew will monitor the weather on a daily basis between now and then to ensure it is suitable for the crossing attempt
Until then, Munro says he will continue to swim and train daily, though he joked that he’d have to sweet talk his coach, Keith, to allow him to take Wednesday off to recover from the trial.
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