Recently a 33-year-old swimmer and fitness expert, Ross Edgley, returned from an epic 1,780-mile (2,800 km) journey. Ross spent 5 months at sea and is believed to be the first person to swim around the island of Great Britain.
The fact that this deed was perceived as impossible inspired Ross to be one to accomplish it. “I’ve always been fascinated by British explorers and it was Captain Matthew Webb [first person the swim the English Channel], who really inspired me. Back in 1875, they said no one could swim the channel because it was just too treacherous but he proved them all wrong. It was the same with this swim, people said it was impossible and that it could never be done, so that’s what really made me want to do it” he told Bored Panda.
However, it didn't come without a cost. When asked what kind of challenges he had to endure, Ross said “There were so many and alongside Red Bull, I think we did a great job of documenting them all in weekly vlogs on the Red Bull YouTube channel. I’ve spoken about the wetsuit chaffing, sleep deprivation and ‘salt mouth’ – where parts of my tongue started to disintegrate due to the content of salt in the water. But I think the main one that really stands out, were the jellyfish stings, as the pain they caused at times was just immense. The big one was during the Gulf of Corryvreckan whirlpool, off the west coast of Scotland. A giant jellyfish attached itself for 30 minutes to my face in the middle of the whirlpool and just wouldn’t let go.”
During this victorious swim, Ross broke 4 world records. The records include - the first person to swim the entire South Coast of the UK, the longest ever staged sea swim, the fastest person on the planet to swim from Land's End to John O’Groats, and the first person to swim around Great Britain. However, after reaching the shore there are plenty of challenges waiting for him. “The biggest challenge now is learning to walk again! My biggest fear when I was coming out of the water and back onto the beach was that I was going to fall over. As I’ve not stepped foot on land for over five months, the tendons and ligaments in my feet have been asleep, so I basically have to learn to walk again. But in terms of bigger thinking, and I know this will sound weird, but I’m still not bored of swimming. A few big swims have been mentioned and this is probably the most ‘swim-fit’ I’ll ever be, so who knows?”
Scroll below to see how this amazing journey unfolded!
The fact that this deed was perceived as impossible inspired Ross to be one to accomplish it. “I’ve always been fascinated by British explorers and it was Captain Matthew Webb [first person the swim the English Channel], who really inspired me. Back in 1875, they said no one could swim the channel because it was just too treacherous but he proved them all wrong. It was the same with this swim, people said it was impossible and that it could never be done, so that’s what really made me want to do it” he told Bored Panda.
However, it didn't come without a cost. When asked what kind of challenges he had to endure, Ross said “There were so many and alongside Red Bull, I think we did a great job of documenting them all in weekly vlogs on the Red Bull YouTube channel. I’ve spoken about the wetsuit chaffing, sleep deprivation and ‘salt mouth’ – where parts of my tongue started to disintegrate due to the content of salt in the water. But I think the main one that really stands out, were the jellyfish stings, as the pain they caused at times was just immense. The big one was during the Gulf of Corryvreckan whirlpool, off the west coast of Scotland. A giant jellyfish attached itself for 30 minutes to my face in the middle of the whirlpool and just wouldn’t let go.”
During this victorious swim, Ross broke 4 world records. The records include - the first person to swim the entire South Coast of the UK, the longest ever staged sea swim, the fastest person on the planet to swim from Land's End to John O’Groats, and the first person to swim around Great Britain. However, after reaching the shore there are plenty of challenges waiting for him. “The biggest challenge now is learning to walk again! My biggest fear when I was coming out of the water and back onto the beach was that I was going to fall over. As I’ve not stepped foot on land for over five months, the tendons and ligaments in my feet have been asleep, so I basically have to learn to walk again. But in terms of bigger thinking, and I know this will sound weird, but I’m still not bored of swimming. A few big swims have been mentioned and this is probably the most ‘swim-fit’ I’ll ever be, so who knows?”
Scroll below to see how this amazing journey unfolded!
Recently a 33-year-old swimmer and fitness expert, Ross Edgley, returned from an epic 1,780-mile (2,800 km) journey
He spent 5 months at sea and is believed to be the first person to swim around the island of Great Britain
Ross is not new to extreme challenges. He accomplished the world's longest rope climb in less than 24 hours by climbing the height equal of Mount Everest — 8,848m (29,029 feet)
He also attempted to swim 100km in the Caribbean carrying a 100lb tree
On his Twitter account, Ross shared what his body looked like after this swim
However, his newest greatest challenge didn't come without a cost either
To have enough energy for the swim around Great Britain he had to consume 15,000 calories per day
He was suffering from what is referred to as "salt mouth", caused by the build-up of salt water on the tongue
Ross also shared a photo to show how his feet looked like after swimming
He developed severe chafing on his neck
He had to swim surrounded by jellyfish and even a shark
While these 157 days at sea were extremely exhausting and challenging, Ross managed to break 4 world records during this amazing feat
The records include - the first person to swim the entire South Coast of the UK, the longest ever staged sea swim, the fastest person on the planet to swim from Land's End to John O’Groats
And the most important one - the first person to swim around Great Britain!
