Extreme Dream
I saw a story on MSNBC today that is so inspiring I just had to share it. At age 61, Diana Nyad is still chasing her dreams. She attemped to swim from Cuba to Key West, Florida. I read that video caption and said, "Say what?!? This is ridiculous!" She has been training for 18 months, swimming up to 24 hours at a time. I've never even swam for more than an hour, and she's attempting to swim 103 miles over 60 hours at age 61. Seriously.
So I went to her website to check this awesome lady out. She's just amazing to me. Who takes 30 years off and just decides to come back and go for it right out of the gate? I guess she was taking the go big or go home mentality very seriously. Having already attempted the swim once at age 28, she's at it again. You should check out her site. http://diananyad.com/ It's filled with all the news articles and stories people have done on her life over the years. She's one impressive lady. Here's the video about her Extreme Dream.
She said the only reason she would ever attempt this swim again was if she needed it. She went back and chased her dreams. She didn't give up on herself. You have to admire that in a person of any age.
Unfortunately, Diana didn't make it all the way to Florida. She was pulled from the water after swimming for 29 hours. Later Tuesday, Nyad said her captain told her she had roughly 53 miles to go when she stopped. The swim had been expected to take about 60 hours to cross 103 miles. Check out this article chronicling the end of her swim.
"It was so hard. I couldn't even swim. I couldn't be the swimmer I am," Nyad said, detailing the ailments that piled up as the waters got choppier. "I had severe asthma for 11 hours — I was taking 10 strokes and then going on my back and gasping. I had severe pain in my right shoulder that was so excruciating that every stroke I took from the third hour all the way through 30, I just winced every time." She even swam right through a smack of stinging jellyfish.
She said she pictured herself emerging from the water onto the beach and vowed to doggy-paddle there, if that was what it took. I don't know how old you are, or what generation you're a part of, she is an inspiration. She wasn't afraid to dream big and go after it with all she had. Even though she didn't finish, and I'm sure she's dissapointed, she still must feel a great sense of accomplishment in not being afraid to try. You go Diana!
So I went to her website to check this awesome lady out. She's just amazing to me. Who takes 30 years off and just decides to come back and go for it right out of the gate? I guess she was taking the go big or go home mentality very seriously. Having already attempted the swim once at age 28, she's at it again. You should check out her site. http://diananyad.com/ It's filled with all the news articles and stories people have done on her life over the years. She's one impressive lady. Here's the video about her Extreme Dream.
She said the only reason she would ever attempt this swim again was if she needed it. She went back and chased her dreams. She didn't give up on herself. You have to admire that in a person of any age.
Unfortunately, Diana didn't make it all the way to Florida. She was pulled from the water after swimming for 29 hours. Later Tuesday, Nyad said her captain told her she had roughly 53 miles to go when she stopped. The swim had been expected to take about 60 hours to cross 103 miles. Check out this article chronicling the end of her swim.
"It was so hard. I couldn't even swim. I couldn't be the swimmer I am," Nyad said, detailing the ailments that piled up as the waters got choppier. "I had severe asthma for 11 hours — I was taking 10 strokes and then going on my back and gasping. I had severe pain in my right shoulder that was so excruciating that every stroke I took from the third hour all the way through 30, I just winced every time." She even swam right through a smack of stinging jellyfish.
She said she pictured herself emerging from the water onto the beach and vowed to doggy-paddle there, if that was what it took. I don't know how old you are, or what generation you're a part of, she is an inspiration. She wasn't afraid to dream big and go after it with all she had. Even though she didn't finish, and I'm sure she's dissapointed, she still must feel a great sense of accomplishment in not being afraid to try. You go Diana!