Local tenor and swimmer Nathan Payas is all set to swim the English Channel as he waits for the go ahead. This week he has continued with his training and preparations in the UK training with Dover Channel Training in Dover Habour.
Emma France who manages the club was there when he swam four hours within the harbour and was only allowed a couple of small cups of sugary drink and two jelly babies. Apparently, he told the Chronicle, this teaches the body to use up its reserves. That is burn fat.
“The water was rather colder than in Gibraltar and a little uncomfortable for the first two hours. Surprisingly, it got better during the second half of the swim,” he said.
His English Channel challenge is in aid of Calpe House.
As yet there is no confirmed date for his swim he is expected to carry out sometime between this week and the middle of this month.
The swim is actually set some time by the 14th September although it is unlikely to happen before but and could be delayed even beyond. These windows are all based on tides.
Mr Payas is still hopeful it will happen on National Day.
Wet suits are not allowed in the English Channel, and if his swim is to count, he will be wearing only a small swimsuit.
Earlier this year he swam the Strait of Gibraltar from Tarifa Island ending in Punta Cires, Morocco. The swim was completed in 3 Hrs 14 Mins covering a distance of over 16km without the use of neoprene wetsuit. This was a new Gibraltar record by a very large margin as previously the records had stood at 4:18 with neoprene wetsuit and 4:43 without wetsuit. According to the ACNEG website, Mr Payas was within the fastest 10 times clocked ever in the non neoprene category. The swim was made official and chartered by the Asociacion Cruce Nado Estrecho Gibraltar.
Back in June Mr Payas completed his Swim Assessment for the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation which involved swimming six hours in 16 degree or colder water.
“That was probably the toughest swim I have done to date,” he admits.
“You need to get used to being in the cold water for that long and know what your feeding requirements are and what your body is able to take in terms of sustenance.”
Mr Payas began swimming at the age of six at GASA and would eventually compete in several local and international championships. He enjoyed his best years as a swimmer as a boy and young teenager and proved extremely competitive in Southern Spain in the 100m and 200m Butterfly collecting the team trophy on many occasions on behalf of our National Squad.
The Strait swim raised just over £2,000 for Pathway Through Pain.