Conquering the Channel Andrew Crozier

“But in deciding to do the English Channel, I started with the most iconic one first.”

Hatching the idea is one thing, however, actually taking on the challenge is not a straightforward process.

“It takes the average person two to three years to make everything come to fruition in terms of logistics and booking spots,” Andrew explains.

“You’ve got to book an escort boat and there are only five or six of them that do the crossing. The swim can only be undertaken within in a three-to-four-month period each year and the boats are only allowed one swimmer per day, so there are not many spots available every year.”

Fortunately, things fell into place quite quickly for Andrew and he was able to fast-track his way through all the logistical aspects within just nine months.

“I reached out to one of my swimming friends who put me in touch with UK swim coach Tim Denyer who had secured a number of channel crossing spots which he can allocate to whichever swimmers he chooses,” he says.

“I had a first meeting with Tim in November last year and was lucky enough that he handed me one of his spots which was scheduled for 7th July this year, so it worked out well for both parties.”

The Preparation

With less than nine months to prepare for the swim, Andrew quickly got into a solid training regimen. It was particularly advantageous that his work base is at Gippsland’s premier aquatic centre.

“I was able to train in the pool at GRAC before and after work and during lunch breaks,” he explains.

He also spent many hours training in the waters of the Thompson River at Cowwarr Weir.

The intensity of Andrew’s training increased in the first half of this year as the Channel swim drew nearer.

“My training in the final three months included frequent swims over distances of sixteen, eighteen and twenty kilometres. The longest open water swim covered twenty-two kilometres at Black Rock,” he remarks.

In June, Andrew then swam 30 kilometres in the pool at GRAC three weeks before departure for the UK.

“Doing laps up and down the pool for eight hours was purely a psychological thing to toughen myself up mentally and prove I could swim for that long,” he explains.

“I was anticipating if I got favourable conditions for the Channel crossing that I’d be able to complete it in under eleven hours.”

With his preparation completed and timed to the minute, Andrew flew to England around a week before his scheduled swim, accompanied by wife Narelle. Their children Vivienne, 9 and Sebastien, 7 remained at home and were cared for by Andrew’s parents.

The Swim

When Andrew and Narelle arrived in Dover on 3rd July the weather was terrible.

“You have a two-week window in which to undertake your swim and the go ahead is dependent on conditions including wind direction and swell,” Andrew says.

“My window opened on Friday, 5th July and after the weather cleared up it looked like I’d be swimming three days later on the Monday.”

By Sunday, Andrew was physically and mentally ready to swim the next morning.

“I had tapered for the following day and went to bed at lunchtime. My bags were packed, and I was all set to go,” he notes.

“But at 8pm the phone rang, and I was informed by my UK crew that the swim had been postponed and they’d be back in touch in a few days. To be told this unexpected news was a real hammer blow because to me the weather had looked perfect, but the problem was that the wind direction from the previous few days had created rough conditions in the water. Psychologically, it was one of the biggest hits I’ve ever had, but the crew who make the decision are able to take the emotion out of it and you have to trust their judgement. In hindsight, it was the right call despite how disappointing it seemed at the time.”

Andrew’s wait for his next opportunity was just three days, with his swim rescheduled for Thursday, 11th July.

“I was up at 2am and on the escort boat at 3am,” he says.

Joining Andrew on the Viking Princess II were wife Narelle, his longtime friend Drew Berryman who recently moved to the UK, Drew’s partner Kate, swim coach Tim Denyer, boat crew Reg and Ray, and an observer from the Channel Association.

“We headed out on the water in total darkness to Samphire Hoe, just south of Dover. As the boat is approaching the start line, you get a tenminute warning which allows time to strip off into bathers and Narelle had the job of covering me in lanolin which is done primarily to guard against chaffing,” Andrew explains.

“I then got into a rubber inflatable tender which took me as close as about 50 to 100 metres from shore. From there I swam the short distance to the shore and once I was fully out of the water and onto land, they blew the horn on the boat to signal the official start of the swim.”

Andrew describes the early part of the swim as being cold, dark and rough.

“After a couple of hours, the sun came up and conditions in the water flattened off during the middle of the swim which enabled me to get into a rhythm. About two-thirds of the way across I was making good time and going through the various zones of the channel really well,” he says.

The situation changed dramatically when Andrew reached what is known as the channel’s 4th zone.

“The tide turned and really started to hit me, and the currents started taking me a bit off course to the south,” he recalls.

“When I reached French waters and was about six kilometres from the coast, I could see the lighthouse at Cap Gris-Nez which a lot of boats use as an aim point. By then I had been swimming for about 8½ hours and in my head I thought my finish time was going to be under 10 hours. But because of the currents, those last few kilometres seemed to take forever, and I ended up finishing in 10 hours and 50 minutes. That final part was very challenging mentally. I could see land but just wasn’t getting there.”

When Andrew did eventually make it to the French side it was not quite the manner of finish he had hoped for.

“I landed south of the lighthouse in a rocky section of coastline and was getting smashed by the waves into the rocks,” he says.

“It was too dangerous for me to climb the rocks, so the boat blew the horn to signal the finish of my swim. It was a little deflating not finishing on a beach, but I couldn’t control where the currents took me.”

Andrew had successfully completed his mission but was not given long to savour his moment of triumph in French territory.

“Technically, you only get five minutes on French land then have to get back in the water and return to the boat for the trip back. I finished around 3pm and was back in Dover by 5pm,” he says.

Andrew believes the level of attention he focused on training and nutrition during his preparation aided his quick recovery from the swim.

“Although I will say the next day it did feel like I had been run over by a bus,” he concedes.

“I had pain in the joints in my shoulders, hips, knees and elbows. Pretty much everywhere in my body felt like agony, but that only lasted two days and then I was fine. I had some blistering inside my mouth and on my tongue from the salt water but that cleared up after a couple of days as well. I saw hundreds of jellyfish while swimming but fortunately was able to negotiate my way around or over them without being stung at all.”

Having safely returned home to Traralgon in late July, life has returned to relative normality for Andrew, but he is maintaining a steady training base and already contemplating his next bucket list swim in 2025.

“I am going to keep up my training, although not at the same volume as I was for the channel swim, over the next few months in the build up to the Summer swim series events in Victoria,” he says.

“Looking further ahead, there are a few swims from the Oceans Seven list that are on my radar. I just need to weigh up the different options and decide which one I might be able to tick off next year.”