HOW GOOD A SWIMMER DO I NEED TO BE?

33.3km over 4 days is a daunting challenge for most swimmers - but whilst good preparation is of course necessary (and our experts will support you in that), swimmers with an incredible range of experience and level have already completed an UltraSwim 33.3!

We get asked this question a lot. ‘How good of a swimmer do I need to be to take on the UltraSwim 33.3 challenge?’ - in theory it’s simple… if you are a good swimmer, prepare well and are determined, you have a strong chance of getting hold of the coveted 33.3 Finisher droplet!

But to save the overthinking, we’ll break it down for you…

You don’t have to be an elite swimmer to be a winner at UltraSwim 33.3 - any determined competent swimmer, with the right preparation, can succeed and join the nonetheless exclusive list of 33.3’ers - and for us, whilst we are in awe at the performances at the front, every Finisher is a winner in our book! Even if you don’t make all the finish lines, and only get the Participation Medal without the Finisher droplet, you’ll be enormously respected for what you’ve achieved regardless - and remember most of the human race don’t even make it to the start line!

At #2Montenegro last October we saw a huge variety of swimmers, from ex-elites to those who were just starting out - and everything in between. Swimming might be a ‘solo’ activity, but it felt more like a team sport, with everyone helping each other out and supporting one another with the aim of getting over those finish lines during 4 days.

Whilst it will vary event by event, you’re likely to split the 33.3km minimum total distance, over the 4 days something like this - Day 1 (two swims of 4-5km with a break), Day 2 (7.5km and an untimed 2km after lunch), Day 3 (Marathon 10km+), Day 4 (4-5km - whatever is left to make the English Channel distance!). Day 3 will be daunting for many ahead of the event, but after the first two days, even if you are tired and maybe sore (despite our sports massages, physio etc), somewhat surprisingly you will feel stronger mentally and physically!

If it’s still too daunting for you to imagine doing this SOLO, there is a DUO RELAY format which limits the maximum swim to c.5km - and a total of more like 20km, where you split the swims other than Day 4 with your DUO partner.

But we know it’s easier to relate to the experience of swimmers who have gone before you, so we’ve compiled three first-hand testimonials to give you a better idea and show you that everyone is much more capable than they initially think!

SIX MONTHS TO GO TO #3CROATIA

...and six reasons to enter UltraSwim 33.3

Well, here we are with six months to go until UltraSwim 33.3 #3Croatia. Each UltraSwim 33.3 event is different, and each swimmer’s experience is different but as race organisers, there are a few things we can guarantee: from world-class safety and event management to a comprehensive preparation programme - we’ve got your back. Having said that, it will still come down to you, physically and mentally, for you to accomplish your dreams and become your best self. Six months out, you should indeed feel a little uncomfortable on the one hand, but reassured by the support you will get from us, but also all the other swimmers. Open water swimming may be very solo, but UltraSwim 33.3 is all about teamwork too!

So what will your experience look like? Here are our top six reasons to enter and find out…

1. THE ADVENTURE

We hate laps. It’s for this reason that we have created an Epic Adventure Swim Race Series™ that takes you to the most stunning locations in Europe to swim the iconic distance of the English Channel. We’re talking secret coves, caves, abandoned submarine bases, channel crossings, even country to country sometimes, and of course beautiful nature above and below. No two minutes will be the same and every day in Croatia will offer a new location to explore. So bring your friends, family and partners - this adventure is for everyone - we have a special package for them too!

2. THE PEOPLE

Most come to our event alone but realistically everyone is in it together. One thing we saw first-hand in Montenegro is the sense of community a multi-day swimming event fosters. Whether it’s finding your ‘time tribe’ (the swimmers who average the same time and ability as you, that you might work together with on the water) or swapping tips and tricks - everyone is looking out for one another. Lifelong memories and made and valuable friendships are formed. This is so much more than just a race.

3. THE CHALLENGE

Swimming 33.3km is no small feat. Even divided over four days, it’s an epic challenge, one that you might not even be sure you can accomplish. But before you start doubting yourself, let us tell you a few things we know - in fact maybe just one thing… you can do it! As long as you meet the entry requirements , and are ready to push yourself through some moments of doubt, you can complete the 33.3km. We saw so many self-doubters on the start line in Montenegro and guess what? Almost all of them finished every stage (and there is no lack of honour in not making all of them, the rest of the planet weren’t even on the startline!). This is about challenging yourself, hitting that doubt on the head and realising you’re capable of more than you think.

Plus, our expert team will help you every step of the way.

4. THE SENSE OF ACCOMPLISHMENT

Whether you think you can or you think you can’t… either way you’ll be right! Everyone enters UltraSwim 33.3 for different reasons, perhaps you’re a pool swimmer looking for a new adventure within the sport, or you’re on a personal journey and find solace in the water, a triathlete looking for work on their swim, or an English Channel hopeful building your confidence - whatever your reason, the sense of accomplishment on that finish line will be overwhelming.

5. THE PHYSICAL ADVANTAGES

Six months to go is the perfect time to sign up. Not only will you be at peak personal fitness by the time #Croatia comes along, you’ll also have the help of our expert coaches and staff and training plan options, not to mention the advice from (and interaction with) members of the 33.3 Club - finishers of previous events. Use UltraSwim 33.3 #3Croatia as the opportunity to push yourself out of your comfort zone!

6. THE UNKNOWN

This is one of the biggest reasons to take part in UltraSwim 33.3 #3Croatia. You won’t know until you reach that finish line just what the experience will mean to you. As event organisers we have been privilege to some of the most beautiful stories and journeys of personal growth. We have seen unbreakable bonds form and watched as swimmers encouraged each other throughout.

So what will your experience look like? There’s only one way to find out…

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BEHIND THE GOGGLES OF SWIMMER 140

Behind the Goggles is a series of stories behind the scenes of UltraSwim 33.3® - an epic adventure swim race series™ challenging participants to swim 33.3km, the iconic distance of the English Channel in a new multi-day formatted event. 

Whether you think you can or you think you can’t… meet swimmer #140

Taking on any long distance swim if you’re not a seasoned swimmer is daunting. At the start line of UltraSwim 33.3® #2 Montenegro, there were more than a few doubts and nervous glances as 120 swimmers lined up on the pontoon of the Lazure Marina to take their first plunge. Even THEMAGIC5 founder Niklas Hedegaard, a seasoned pool swimmer, was apprehensive as he took on the challenge of his first open water competition. 

The unique selling point of a multi-day event format (in comparison to single-day events) is that stories surface, friendships blossom and performance constantly improves through shared tips and techniques. And, at the end of it all, the sense of accomplishment is overwhelming - and no more so for those who thought they wouldn’t make it through the 33.3km course.  

One of those people is swimmer #140, Davina Cull.

📸 Lloyd Images / UltraSwim 33.3

We only heard about Davina through her husband Nick, an experienced swimmer and coach, he finished way ahead of his wife on the first day and was found fidgeting by the finish line. 

“Are you waiting for someone?” 

“Oh hi, yeah, my wife Davina, she’ll be coming through soon,” he says with his eyes remaining glued to the finish line.

“You didn’t want to swim together?” the staff member asks. 

“No, Davina is swimming her own race in her own way. It’s really important for her,” he continues, still craning his neck to see if he can spot the bright pink 140 tow float coming around the corner.

Day 1 of UltraSwim was a 9km swim broken down into 4km and 5km swims from Lazure Marina, via Portonovi Beach Club and finishing in Forte Rose. As the conversation with Nick continued, it transpired that Davina only overcame her fear of water a few years ago after she drowned as a child and had to be resuscitated through CPR. “But she doesn’t really talk about it,” he explains. 

“Here she comes, she’s here!” he says to no one in particular. The second part of the sentence was lost anyway as Nick was already halfway down the beach ready to help his wife out of the water. Davina emerges visibly emotional and exhausted as they embrace. Nick’s clean, dry clothes he’d changed into post-swim were soaking wet again but he didn’t seem to care.  

He chats enthusiastically with his arm around her as she takes some deep breaths. They repeat this routine over the four days of UltraSwim 33.3 #2Montenegro at each finish line - with a particularly emotional moment at the end of the 10km marathon swim on day three. “She’ll have found this part really tough,” he says as he waits at the finish line, once again at Forte Rose. Upon arrival Davina staggers out of the water and Nick rushes to her side. “Are you okay? You okay?” She stays still for a few moments and covers her face. 

While most people will associate swimming with freedom, after a near-death drowning experience it can be associated with claustrophobia - especially when water gets up your nose. Generally speaking the conditions throughout the four day event in Montenegro were good, but not without some rough swells and currents - during the 10km marathon the first half was described by world record-holder Andy Donaldson as “like swimming on a treadmill.” 

As Davina swam the last 250m on the final day, having accomplished the entire 33.3km course, the atmosphere among the swimmers was electric. 

“I just didn’t know if I’d make it, I backed myself but I didn’t want to tell anyone my story until the final day,” she explains as she sits in the sand on Portonovi Beach Club. “This event has been something so different for me. When I was about 10 I was on holiday with a friend in Cornwall and this was back in the day when beaches weren’t really guarded and one day I was bodyboarding on those flimsy boards you have a kid and suddenly I was swept under with a rip tide. The board slammed into me and pushed all the air out of my stomach and to be honest I don’t remember much, but I do remember the sensation of sea water going in my nose and mouth and everything going dark.”

From that day on, swimming water was no longer a part of Davina’s life. No pools, no sea swims…nothing. It wasn’t until she saw her husband Nick take part in the Dart10km that she reconsidered. “I watched him and he was like a fish, he loves the water you know, and he was so relaxed and peaceful and… beautiful actually. I suddenly thought ‘I want to do that with you’.” 

📸 Lloyd Images / UltraSwim 33.3

After gradually acclimatising to a pool quite literally metre by metre and encouraged by her friend Rachel, it was the use of a nose clip that changed the game. By ensuring the water wouldn’t go up her nose, Davina’s swimming experience was transformed. 

“I was pushed to do it by a friend of mine, I’ve been swimming with Rachel (swimmer 137) and…” she tails off, still holding her finisher's glass of champagne. “I’m sorry I’ll get emotional about Rachel, it’s just she’s an incredible woman. She beats herself up about her performance but this morning on the transfer boat I just looked at her and thought ‘you look like a swimmer’ she just ‘belonged’ here.” 

The final day consisted of a fairly rough channel crossing between Croatia and Montenegro. “Fear never really goes away, today was the most scared I’ve been all event. At one point panic took over and I really thought it was happening again but then I saw the support kayak and reminded myself how far I’d come and I was like, I’m getting to that finish line!” 

“One thing that hit home about my marriage with Nick, is when he told me that UltraSwim 33.3 was my Silk Road Mountain Race (a race he recently completed), I knew at that point how much he understood what this meant to me,” she shares as she grips her finishers medal.

“This has been the most fantastic adventure I’ve ever done.” 

As Henry Ford famously said - whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, either way you’ll be right. 

📸 Lloyd Images / UltraSwim 33.3