The roots of 'Uswim' as an open water swim company can be traced way back to a six year old learning to swim in the canal near his Marple house. At that time the disused canals were my place to swim and play around, but, when barges were reintroduced in 1974, they became polluted and un-swimmable.

I swam in the local baths when mum was working and joined the Club. I was a 'bread and butter' swimmer and couldn't train at the big feeder club - Stockport Metro - because we didnt have a car to get me to sessions. The 'light-bulb' swim moment, however, was seeing the news that Alan Gregory, 13, had become the youngest ever swimmer to swim the English Channel. If he could do so could I!

At 13 years old that dream ended when I was told to stop swimming by an ENT Consultant or risk going deaf due to all the ear infections I'd been getting sonce i was a baby and aggravated by the pool. 

As many open water swimmers will testify the reality of training to swim the iconic 21 mile (36km) English Channel involves sacrifice and a fierce determination to do whatever it takes to succeed. As Capt Webb, first Channel swimmer in 1875 says "nothing great is easy". 

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