Swimming to Antarctica

By Lynne Cox

Lynne Cox is not your average person. She is a swimmer but not for her your backyard swimming pool. Nope, she swims in the open ocean. But even beyond that she swims in places where people are not supposed to be able to survive, like the icy waters of the Bering Strait. She has even swum off the shore of Antarctica, which would probably kill a lesser person. But Lynne has managed to condition her body to survive the freezing temperatures, but not without some toll to herself.
She began her long distance swimming career as a teen off the coast of California when she and the other members of their high school swim team swam the Catalina Channel, a swim that took them about 12 hours. She followed that up with a record-breaking swim of the English Channel. She had terrible cramps following that swim, not knowing at the time that she was becoming dehydrated on her swims, something she later learned to prevent. Since those early days she has broken and set numerous long distance swim records and has swum in places no one else had ever tried to swim. Her life has been one continuous adventure as she proves that the human body is capable of coping with extreme conditions, given the right preparation and training. Her story is amazing and inspiring and just plain unbelievable and I really enjoyed reading about this remarkable woman. An excellent read.