On Monday the 8^th of September British endurance Athlete Ross Edgeley completed his challenge to swim 1,000 miles around the entirety of Iceland, becoming the first person to do so. Starting and finishing in the capital city of Reykjavik, his incredible swim took 116 days. After becoming the first person to swim around the entirety of the British mainland and setting the record for the longest continuous swim of over 60 hours straight, Iceland presented a whole new set of challenges.

These challenges included freezing temperatures with water as cold as 1 degree centigrade, storms, huge waves, and even active volcanoes. There was also wildlife to contend with including sharks and whales. But perhaps one of the biggest challenges was the effects of saltwater constantly attacking his skin. Mixed with the chaffing of the extremely thick wetsuit to help him deal with the cold, it became a very uncomfortable undertaking. Adjustments had to be made to the wetsuits, along with bandages and strapping to try reducing the chaffing. He consumed a huge amount of coconut oil to help combat the effects of the salt water. The support crew on the boat following and supported him regularly suffered from sea sickness. But they were able to push through these challenges.

Ross employed a similar strategy to when he swam around the Great British mainland of swimming in shifts depending on tidal and weather conditions. Using this strategy, they made steady progress around the coast. Due to tidal conditions, he would sometimes have to swim through the night, having to deal with extreme cold, and a lack of visibility, relying on the crew on the boat to direct him through the night swim. However, since it was the summer months in Iceland there was a large amount of daylight in the day. Up to 22 hours of daylight per day at times depending on weather conditions, which did make it a little easier to navigate. But for the trials and tribulations of night swims he was rewarded with views of the Northern Lights and the stars on clear nights, but also the natural beauty of Icelandic fjords.

To ensure safety the crew conducted regular cognitive and dexterity tests on Ross to check if the effects of hypothermia were setting in. They used dry robes and many other techniques to ensure he stayed warm enough and functional enough to continue. There was a lot difficult balancing between checking safety but also pushing the boundaries, but again the crew and Ross were able to push through to keep making steady progress.

Another significant challenge was the diet required to swim the distances each day and stay sufficiently fuelled up to battle the cold as well the extreme hours and distances swum each day. Not only was the volume of food a challenge, but also the food had to be digestible to ensure he could carry on swimming each day uninterrupted.  

Ross’ swim was also partially disrupted due to storms and a lack of safe harbours along the south coast of Iceland. This meant that they had to sail ahead of Ross’ progress and find a safe harbour to wait the storms out. They found an unconventional solution to this problem. Ross had been swimming clockwise around Iceland. Due to the storms along the south coast, they found a safe harbour further along the coast and his there until the storm passed. At that point Ross would swim anticlockwise to cover the distance, before returning to the safe harbour when another storm was coming. Due to the nature of the storms and his ability to track his precise location as he progressed through the swim, the start and end points were tracked and he was able to swim the distance of the south coast while avoiding the worst of the storms. The World Open Water Swimming Association were consulted on this issue and allowed this method of tracking his swims to count towards the distance of swimming around Iceland. Once he had done enough anticlockwise legs to cover the distance of the south coast he resumed swimming clockwise out of the safe harbour and back towards the finish line in capital Reykjavik.

Perhaps the most impressive parts of this swim, besides the swim itself with all the physical and mental challenges that were involved, is the problem solving of both Ross and the crew to just keep pushing through the challenges that presented themselves and keep getting closer to the end goal. That is an important lesson for everyone.

If you are inspired to take up outdoor swimming at any level, SwimPath can help you with finding the ideal equipment for you to feel comfortable, warm, and safe while allowing you to train and perform at your best. Click here to view their wide range of outdoor swimming products and feel free to contact one of our expert team for help and guidance.