🏊‍♀️ Six Swimmers. One Channel. Two Causes. 🌊

We live by the sea. We love the sea.
And now - we’re swimming the sea.

At around midnight on one day between 10-15 June 2025, our team, The Saltwater Six, will take on the challenge of swimming the English Channel as a relay. From the white cliffs of Dover to the shores of France, we’ll be battling spring tides, early season cold water, darkness, and jellyfish - for 2 fantastic local charities and some (type 2) fun.

🏊‍♀️ Why are we doing this?

Because we have a shared ambition. And because we believe in Rise UK and The Clock Tower Sanctuary - two Brighton-based charities doing life-changing work.

🏊‍♀️ How can I track the Swim?

We’ll set up a WhatsApp group for the day and send you the link. We’ll post live updates all day. Please join so that you can give us some much needed encouragement.

You can also track our boat Optimist on the day from here https://cspf.co.uk/tracking/235097629

🏊‍♀️ Why those two charities?

Rise UK supports people affected by domestic abuse, helping them rebuild their lives with safety, dignity, and independence.

The Clock Tower Sanctuary provides vital support to young people experiencing homelessness, offering practical help and a path to a more stable future.

What brings these two charities together is their unwavering commitment to safety, support, and second chances helping people who are facing some of life’s toughest challenges find hope, stability, and a fresh start.

They’re both small, local charities making a huge impact - and your donation goes directly towards changing lives in Brighton and beyond.

🏊‍♀️ How does the relay swim actually work?

Swimming the English Channel is one of the world’s most iconic open water swims - and for it to be official, the rules are strict:

🟦 The team
Our relay team consists of 6 swimmers, each swimming in rotation.
We're only allowed to swim one at a time - no swimming side by side.

🟦 The rotation
Each swimmer takes turns swimming one hour at a time, in the same order, repeating until the team reaches France.

The moment our hour is up, the next swimmer must enter the water from the boat, swim up behind you, and take over - no overlap, no delay.

🟦 The conditions
No wetsuits. Just regular swimsuits, goggles, earplugs and a cap - the traditional Channel rules.

We are first in the season so the water temperature will be around 15–16°C.
We are swimming in a spring tide and our window is the 10th to 15th June. Our skipper will choose the best day based on the forecast and we’ll get a go or no at 7am on the day.

With a spring tide the swim will take between 12 and 18 hours. Spring tides can be in our favour…. or not. There will be strong tidal currents near France and if conditions are against us and the tide turns, we will be battling the tide and it could add another 6 hours to the swim.

Swims are conducted under the observation of our official Channel Swimming & Piloting Federation (CSPF) on the boat, who will recognise our swim as an official crossing.

🟦 Start and finish
The swim starts from Dover. To begin, the first swimmer must leave the boat, swim to shore, and start the swim from dry land.

The swim ends the same way: the final swimmer must reach dry land in France (anywhere between Cap Gris-Nez and Calais), clear the water, and stand completely clear of the sea.

Due to the tide times we’ll be setting off around 2300 and swimming though the night.

And when that happens - we are done.

🟦 The Distance
The straight-line distance from Dover to Cap Gris-Nez in France is around 21 miles (34 km). But nobody swims it in a straight line.

Due to the tidal currents, the actual swim route follows an S-shaped curve, as the team is swept sideways with the changing tides.

This means most swims end up covering 21–40 miles (34 - 65 km) - depending on conditions, our swim speed, and tide timing.

🟦 The boat

Our journey across the English Channel is guided by Paul Foreman and his boat Optimist https://cspf.co.uk/pilot-paul-foreman

🏊‍♀️ About the team

The relay team Fabian, Jill, Jon, Nicky, Richard and Steve are all friends from Brighton Swimming Club.

And a huge shout out to Hildi who has coached us over the last months with her multiple relay and solo swim experience.

We’re united by a deep love of the sea - the sea that we swim in year-round, and that now calls us to something greater.

🫶 Thank you from The Saltwater Six