Jane Tranberg - Questions and Answers

Jane Tranberg - Solo Swimmer 2010

I completed the 20km Rottnest Channel swim and thank you for all the support and donations – I've nearly raised $2000 now.

In answer to the most commonly asked questions:
 
So what's next, the English Channel? No way, unless I can somehow change my ability to deal with the cold as no wetsuits allowed for that swim either. I'm thinking somewhere much more tropical- Hawaii perhaps!

What about sharks? There were 2500 people in the swim (including solos, duos and teams) and many many boats so it is not a problem. But Gus did see a big dark shadow resembling a shark go under the boat, followed by some fast moving bait fish. By that stage, I was so cold, I really didn't care if there was a shark and thought it may put me out of my misery!

What did you think about? I did 20 strokes for all of you, and thought of nice stories to go along with each person as I did their 20 strokes, At one point, I was going around the world with my friends in Sweden, Denmark, Wales, England, Scotland, Singapore and Hawaii. I enjoyed my music (I have already started to make a greatest hits cd from the eclectic selection of music- anyone want a copy?) but it failed at about 15km. I pretended the seaweed/reeves were blankets to keep me warm and also pretended the swim was actually 18km not 20km- not sure why.

How did you eat/drink? With alot more difficulty than in a swimming pool, I tread water while drinking/eating, but with the chop in the water, it lead to some nasty inhaling of salt water and a whole lot of coughing to follow.

Did you ever think of giving up or that you weren’t going to make it? Absolutely! Once I found my paddler and boat at 1.5km, I had a great time for the next hour or so, but then the cold set in, my hands went numb and I was just freezing, and with over 15km to go, I thought I was in trouble. But thanks to my great support crew, Gus, Derek, Carly, Danny and Lois, I got my hot ginger tea delivered, along with gels, red bull and coffee, and I warmed up enough to keep going. At 10km, I knew that there was no way I’d be giving up and I could clearly see the island by then.

Would you do it again? At the moment, I would definitely say no, but I was crazy enough to do it once! And there are so many things I could do better in this swim, but it was a huge event to organise and there are many more events out there. But Gus and I may do it in a 4 person team next year, anyone else interested??

Plus, there is a guy who has a Guinness world record for being the only male to do long distance swims in every ocean in the world, so that has got me thinking...
 
So overall it was alot tougher than expected but such an amazing even to be part of and I was touched by all the support I was given on the day- Danny the skipper, Lois his wife who made the flag "Go Jane Go", Carly and Gus, my support crew, getting up at 3am and Gus taking such good care of me both during and after the race, Derek the paddler, guiding me and being courier of all my food and drink (lifesaving relief from the cold), I couldn't have done the swim without these awesome people, it really wasn’t a solo effort. Also thanks to the rest of Carly's family, Phil who helped courier our luggage over to Rottnest and Peter who helped us get such awesome accommodation, people I only met through the Rottnest Swim website but were so generous with their help.

Rottnest Island is such a beautiful special place to visit and I recommend a trip over for anyone who loves beautiful beaches, a bit of exercise, good food and wine. It is truly unique, 11km long, 4.5km wide, with beautiful bays/beaches at every point. We rode around the entire island, went surfing and snorkelling, and had some well deserved afternoon nanna naps!

We spent 3 nights on Rottnest Island and then 5 days in Margaret River. We got great waves in Margs and enjoyed wine, cheese and chocolate tasting. What more could you want on a holiday!
 
For Challenges February was definitely a memorable month, now it is onto media month as I try to sort out all my photos and videos, it's about time! And due to this pesky cough, I will have a bit more time on my hands as I plan to have a few weeks in recovery mode, its hard to stay away from the ocean though... 
 
Hope you had a great February and have an even better March,
 
Jane 
 
If you still want to donate, please go to: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/jane_tranberg
For more information on the swim, visit http://www.goldcoastmail.com.au/story/2010/02/26/jane-does-swim-for-best-friend/