ilario cornflower: Diana Nyad swims from Cuba to Florida

Friday, September 6, 2013

Diana Nyad swims from Cuba to Florida

by John Atchison

Created on: September 05, 2013 ??Last Updated: September 06, 2013

During childhood, everyone fantasizes about things they would like to accomplish. Some hope to grow up to be rich and famous. Others dream of becoming a star athlete or the president of the United States. In some cases, these dreams can serve as the impetus to push someone towards a lifelong pursuit.

In the case of Diana Nyad, that dream was to be the first person to make a historic swim. That swim would take her from the coast of Cuba to the state of Florida. Her dream was to make the swim, without the aid of a shark cage. One person before her had made the swim, but she completed it within the confines of a cage. The waters in that area are treacherous, with venomous jellyfish and hungry sharks awaiting those that swim their waters.

Nyad was a long distance swimmer of great renown, so when she made her first attempt, at age 28, people gave her a good chance to complete the journey. Her first foray proved to be fruitless as current direction pushed her off course. She abandoned the effort after 76 miles. In favorable conditions, the swim is supposed to be 110 miles. Certainly though, she would make it on her next attempt.

Next attempts came and went without success. Nyad would attempt the swim four times, with the last one in 2011 stopped early, due to being stung twice by box jellyfish. It almost seemed as though her dream would not find its reality. Nyad announced, at age 64 that her late August attempt at the swim would be her last. At that age, one had to think the odds were against her.

According to an article in the Guardian, Nyad shouted the word courage, and then jumped in the water at Marina Hemingway in Cuba. Her final attempt was off and swimming! Some of her equipment had changed over the 35-year period. When she took to the water this last time, she had a special suit to protect against jellyfish stings. She wore special cream on her face, and a silicone mask to protect her face. The suit slowed her up, but she felt the protection was essential.

One could not have blamed her for being upset when she found out a current change would increase the length of the end of the journey. She had been in the water for 46 hours by then, but her famed will and perseverance were not going to stop her now. She was about six miles from the finish at that point.

On September 2, Nyad could finally see the finish line is sight. According to the Guardian, she gathered her team with a couple of miles to go. She gave them a short speech, saying, ?This is a lifelong dream of mine and I'm very, very glad to be with you. Some on the team are the most intimate friends of my life and some of you I've just met. But I'll tell you something, you're a special group. You pulled through; you are pros and have a great heart. So let's get going so we can have a whopping party."

With that, she went back to swimming. Shortly before 2 p.m., the 64-year-old walked up on the Florida coast, before collapsing in exhaustion. She had avoided jellyfish this time, but her lips and tongue had swollen up badly. She had cuts in her mouth from her silicone mask. None of that mattered to Nyad though, because she had reached the culmination of her dream. She also set an example to millions, letting it be known that age should not be a factor in trying to fulfill a dream.

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