We've been immersed in the background to channel swimming so much over the last year that the swimmers often forget that our supporters are not sure of the mechanics of a relay crossing. So here is the low down.

In team breac there are 5 swimmers. The sequence in which the swimmers swim is decided before the team get onto the boat and is then given to the observer from the Channel Swimming Association. This sequence must be maintained throughout the swim.

Each swimmer swims for an hour and with 5 mins to go the changeover window commences. The next swimmer gets into the water & starts from a position behind the previous swimmer and then swims past them. At that point the previous swimmer can return to the boat.

If a swimmer can't complete their hour or touch the boat during their swim the relay team is disqualified.

Relay swimmers generally don't put on any lanolin oil or other insulation as they can handle the water temperature for an hour before changing over. Relay swimmers generally don't feed in the water as they have the chance to do that outside their swim rotation.

Swims generalls start from a beach near Dover called Samphire Hoe and aim for a point on the French coast called Cap Gris-Nez. The route generally takes an S-shape curve as the pilot aims to have the swimmer working accross the tides. As a result the distance travelled can be several miles higher than the “as the crow flies” distance which is 22 miles.

The first swimmer enters the water from the boat and then swims to the beach and clears the water. At that point the time clock starts and the swimmer enters the water again on the first leg of the relay to France. The last swimmer similarly must clear the water at the French side.

That's all I can think of ....so we'll put into practice tonight.

Ian.