This historic body of water is called the Hellespont in Greek and the Dardanelles in former Turkish times. In modern-day Turkey it is known as the Strait of Çanakkale. The Strait separates both the Asian and European land masses and has been a natural barrier for invading armies for millennia, including King Xerxes I of … Continue reading Swim The Planet – Hellespont / Dardanelles Strait
Swim The Planet – Swim NYC
Inasmuch as New York is the city that never sleeps, it is also the city that, possibly due to all this ‘unsleeping,’ seemingly never swims. I could find just one Olympic-sized swimming pool in Lower Manhattan. It was the aptronymically named Hamilton Fish Pond, so-called after former local luminary Hamilton Stuyvesant Fish. The ‘Fish Pond’ … Continue reading Swim The Planet – Swim NYC
Swim The Planet – Memphremagog Marathon
On 15th August 2019 I completed The Lake Memphremagog 11.3 kilometre marathon swim which is part of the week-long Kingdom Games in North Eastern Vermont. Twenty eight swimmers started the race at 9.30am with an average water temperature of approximately 21C and air temperatures around 22C. The breeze was minimal and the water conditions were … Continue reading Swim The Planet – Memphremagog Marathon
Send Her Back
I wrote the following article for the New York Times in response to the recent “Send Her Back” chant at a political rally in the United States. My article was partially quoted in Australia Letter, on 27th July 2019. Read the full article below: Send Her Back, by Ria Bleathman I grew up in 1970’s … Continue reading Send Her Back
Swim The Planet™ – Swim the Kingdom
On August 15, 2019 I will be participating in a marathon swim with the North East Kingdom Open Water Swimming Association in the pristine mountain lake called Memphremagog between Vermont and Quebec. The lakes of The Kingdom are a mecca for open water swimming and the Association hosts the annual Kingdom Games with swims conducted in these … Continue reading Swim The Planet™ – Swim the Kingdom
Swim The Planet – Rockin’ It
This morning our intrepid group of 28 swimmers set out from St Francis Beach at 9.15am in San Francisco Bay for the 14th annual Swim Around The Rock. The thick fog had lifted just enough for us to sight the northern point of Alcatraz as we set off. We swam with a waning flood tide … Continue reading Swim The Planet – Rockin’ It
Swim The Planet™ – Rock Around the Rock
On Saturday 10th August 2019 I will be swimming in the 14th Annual Around Alcatraz swim in San Francisco Bay. The 5.8km swim involves water temperatures around 13C with fast tides and complex currents and is considered the most difficult of all the Bay swims. We will start at 6.30am at St. Francis Beach and swim … Continue reading Swim The Planet™ – Rock Around the Rock
Swim The Planet™ – Winter Rip Crossing Video
We've added a new video to The Winter Rip Crossing post! Check it out: https://riableathman.com/2019/06/02/swim-the-planet-the-winter-rip-crossing/
Swim The Planet™ – The Rip Wants You Dead
The Winter Rip is an extreme open water swim. Our historic crossing on 2nd June 2019 confirmed this description. The story of our crossing is worth telling. The Unravelling This photo shows our group of four swimmers some two kilometres and one hour into our crossing and about one kilometre from our finish at … Continue reading Swim The Planet™ – The Rip Wants You Dead
riableathman.com 