After a cross Atlantic swim, now the Pacific!
On September 25th 1998, Ben Lecomte became the first man to swim across the Atlantic Ocean. 73 days after he left Hyannis, MA, over 3,700 miles to the East, he stepped on the French shore of Quiberon.
Ben Lecomte dedicated his swim to his father, Pierre who passed away from colon cancer, and the purpose of the event was to raise funds and awareness for the cancer research. "My battle was very different from the one faced by cancer patients, it was my decision and I could give up at anytime. But during my swim I better understood their suffering and the feeling of not knowing the outcome," said Ben.
During his journey, Ben swam around 8 hours per day beside the Falbala, a forty-foot sailboat. When not swimming, he spent his time drifting on board with the two-crew members. To protect him from sharks and other sea creatures, he used a shark POD (Protection Ocean Device) instead of a cage. This high tech equipment creates a magnetic field in the water to keep sharks away.
During his journey, Ben encountered some very difficult weather. At times, Ben would swim while waves reached over twelve feet high. But the most challenging aspect of the journey was staying motivated. "I found it very difficult to do the same thing over and over: looking at the same blue background, hearing the same noise, tasting the same strong salty water." Whenever he thought about giving up, Ben would concentrate on why he began the adventure in the first place, and he would remember those happy times spent with his family in France.
When he finally reached the shores of Quiberon, France his first words were: "Never again." But since then, his feelings have changed: "My passion is intact, I just focus on happy moments of my journey and I am ready to take on the Pacific," said Ben. He plans to begin his new journey from Tokyo, Japan in the spring of 2012 and conclude it in San Francisco, California some 6 months and over 5 thousand miles later.
Ben knows what it will take to reach his goal, his Atlantic swim gives him an edge. He wants to realize his endeavor with some of the same concepts as the ones followed in the Atlantic ocean but yet improve the logistic and do a stage swim (resuming his swim each morning where he stopped the day before). The Pacific ocean is the largest, it will require a 50 foot long catamaran and a team of 5 on board.
By leaving from the eastern coast of Japan, he positions himself to catch early on the Kuroshio, the warm pacific current that flows from the West to the East. Ben will follow the same daily routine, swimming approximately 8 hours, with Shark PODs positioned near him to increase his protection against great white sharks.
Also, the support boat will be fully equipped with computers and satellite phone to send and receive data. This technology will provide the audience direct interaction with Ben and his crew. Up to the minute print, audio and video information will be uploaded to the web site. Some of which are: position, weather condition, the team and Ben’s health as well as mental status, and the last encountered ocean lives.
In the same spirit as the Atlantic swim, Ben dedicates his Pacific swim to the memory of his father who died of cancer, and in honor of people around the world that are struggling and in need of inspiration and motivation, whether that struggle is battling a disease, an economic or financial struggle, or something completely different, whatever it is, it’s a challenge in someone’s life and Ben is swimming for them.
His message is that we all share one common bond. We all have struggled with something at least once in our lives and with determination, courage and the support of others, together, we can conquer anything. Together, there is hope for the future.
Born in France, Ben now is a naturalized US Citizen and calls Texas home. An architect graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington, he’s always loved adventure and has continually pushed himself to excel. His latest endeavor – to swim across the Pacific Ocean – is a monumental feat that will test his endurance, both physically and mentally. He is exercised, disciplined and up to the challenge that swimming thousands of grueling miles will require!
Ben is just like a guy next door, is a father of two, but he has an intense drive to reach his captivating dreams, which sets him apart from others.
To that end, Ben’s training regimen includes three to five hours, six-days-a-week swimming and cardiovascular cross-training (including bicycling and calisthenics). He will require 8,000 calories a day during his swim. He is utterly dedicated and does not give up without a fight.
With one record breaking event under his belt, the successful swim of the Atlantic Ocean in 1998, the Swim across the Pacific is just another feather in his cap.
Ben will dedicate this swim to his father just as he did the Atlantic swim. His father, after all, taught him how to swim. He died of colon cancer in 1991 at the age of 49, after an 18 month struggle, a struggle Ben won’t ever forget but which provides Ben with inspiration and courage.
Source: http://www.thelongestswim.com/
Here's the BBC article from September 25, 1998:
[Image: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/180000/images/_180273_lecomte_proposal_300.jpg]
After becoming the first person to swim 3,716 miles across the Atlantic Ocean, long distance swimmer Ben Lecomte's first words were, "Never again".
The 31-year-old Frenchman arrived at Quiberon, in north west France at 3.30pm (1430 GMT) on Friday afternoon exhausted after the 73-day journey.
Shortly after he arrived he sunk to his knees - and proposed marriage to his girlfriend. This time she said, "Yes".
The adventurer, who lives in Austin, Texas, USA, undertook the feat to raise around £100,000 for a Scottish-based cancer charity.
He began his record-setting attempt from Cape Cod, Massachusetts on 16 July.
[Image: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/180000/images/_180273_lecomte_return_150.jpg]
Colleen Turner, who travelled with the swimmer on his support boat, was among a large group of friends who greeted him when he touched land at Quiberon, near St Nazaire in Brittany.
She told BBC News 24: "He's tired and he's getting a little cold. He needs to get into a nice hot shower and dry clothes."
Mr Lecomte made one stop in his journey at the Azores in mid-Atlantic after suffering from exhaustion. He stayed for a week to recover and then completed the mammoth swim.
Ms Turner defended him against criticism for not having swum all the way.
"The human body could not withstand 24 hours a day for 73 days in the North Atlantic Ocean.
"What Ben has done is to set the bar. He swam without a kick board, with his own arms across the North Atlantic in six to eight hour chunks of time."
She said he was highly motivated by his father's death from colon cancer in 1991.
"This was something deep inside of Ben that he needed to do for his father's memory - to help if he can in some small way get rid of the dreaded disease of cancer."
The airline marketing representative caught a strong tide and so made the last 25 mile swim ahead of time.
"We weren't expecting him until a bit later, but he caught a strong tide coming into shore. It was so exciting watching him arrive," said Ms Turner.
On his knees
Shortly after he came ashore Mr Lecomte was down on his knees. Not from exhaustion, but because he asked his girlfriend to marry him.
[Image: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/175000/images/_179862_wetsuit.jpg]
Ms Turner witnessed the proposal: "It was very sweet. Jenny made Ben get down on his knees and propose again - and this time she said yes in front of everyone."
In fact he had proposed as he entered the water off Massachusetts - but she told him to ask her again "on the other side".
Not content to wait, he asked her again on the phone from the Azores - but once more she coyly declined to answer.
Finally, when he came ashore in France, he asked a third time and she said, 'Yes'.
How he did it
Mr Lecomte achieved his remarkable feat by swimming for six hours a day beside his support boat and within a 25ft electromagnetic field called a 'protective ocean device' which protects him from sharks.
He trained for six years before undertaking the swim to raise money for the Association for International Cancer Research.
Mr Lecomte, who had to eat for four hours every day to replace more than 9,000 calories burned while swimming, battled through force eight storms, 45-60 knot winds and 10-20ft waves, in addition to tackling sea turtles, dolphins, jellyfish and incredibly cold water on the way to a place in the record books.
Other transatlantic records
- In 1969, Briton John Fairfax became the first person to row across the Atlantic single-handed.
- In 1952, Frenchman Alain Bombard made the first crossing in a rubber dingy
- In 1988, another Frenchman, Remy Bricka, took 64 days to "ski" across the Atlantic on polyester floats.
- Guy Delage also holds the record for the first transatlantic crossing in a microlight, in 1991.
- In August, three North American "artists" accompanied by their three dogs successfully sailed across the Atlantic in a 50ft boat constructed entirely from junk.
- On Tuesday, British windsurfer Jason Gilbert completed a 2,200-mile, three-man journey from Newfoundland to Dorset. "The first thing I want to do now is go for a pint," he said.
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/180273.stm
Since I go to the same university (University of Texas at Arlington) as Ben, I see many people here consider him as a celebrity (myself included). Wish I had a chance to meet him before he graduated last year.
As you can guess, we're all rooting for him and he's on the front page of the university's newspaper. :cheer: One of the most inspirational people I've never had the chance to meet but was highly likely to.