lido

Somehow Sarah has become an open water swimmer and is training for the (8km) Coniston race at the end of August. She certainly didn't get this from me - I couldn't swim until the age of 12 and have horrible memories of being ducked in the crowded public pool by nasty boys. I'm also a person who likes my environment to be warm and cosy.

So it was definitely a move outside my comfort zone to contemplate a a) cycling in London and b) swimming in an unheated pool at 8 o'clock in the morning...but wanting to live adventurously and not to look like a cowardy custard, I agreed to both these things.

Yesterday we went down to the bike shed where Sarah's old bike has been resting for the past year or so, brushed off the cobwebs, pumped the tyres and pimped the brakes. Sarah rode before me on her smart racing bike and lent me her helmet (no, I wasn't happy about that, but she insisted - I know why). It wasn't really any different from riding at home except for the parked cars on either side of the road. As I know only too well, you can come to grief on a country road just as well as on a city one.

I waited until Sarah was having her lesson with amazing Kiwi coach Dan and then got changed behind one of those bright doors (a red one). I got into the water as quickly as I could, but was shocked by how difficult it was to breathe evenly when your face goes into cold water. It took about 4 lengths to get used to that.

In the end, I did 10 lengths, almost 1km, so was very pleased with myself. It only started to rain after we had finished our swim (see extra). The Lido is a great place and Sarah has found a nice community of people here, too.

I'm leaving London this afternoon and will be back in Dumfries just before my train has a chance to turn into a pumpkin :-)

Here’s the Lido in all its glory: https://youtu.be/niUPP5MPAow