Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-07-17
EDERLE' BIG TEST
! IS STANDING COLD
Trainer Working I'd Harden
Her for Long Hours ir
Chilly Channel.
pY THOMAS WILLIAM BURGESS.
Trainer Of Gertrude Ederlee
GAnrH cn1c h1EsZ .Iz.,.a nee Ilil

94 1nOMA0 WhLLAehNA DGHNuA1Oos
Trainer of Gertrude Ederle. {.
CAPE Girls .NEz, France, July II.
Although there are many disad.
vantages that woman who hopes 10
swim the English Channel has to
meet. nature has given her one ad:
vantage over a man in her nght
against the cold water, That is the
extra layer of tissue that lies beneath
the woman's skin.
The channel has many weapons,
and the greatest of these is the cold.
II is impossible to swim across the
Strait of Dover unless the swimmer IS
favored by wonderful luck, warm
weather, kind winds and an accom-;
panying pilot who has vast knoWledge
of the tides. But more important than
ali this is the power of the swimmer
to stand the cold. He also needs mag
nificent endurance to keep on, perhaps
for 90 hours, moving arms and legs
against the water that is fighting TO
keen him back For, even when toe
Is favorable and the swimmer is wen
IN sight of the chalk cliffs Of Dover, II
seems that he is being held back from
his desired goal by the wafer.
Cheering Words Needed.
That is. when announcement IS
most needed AS the swimmer tires.
the accompanying friends on the tug
nearby also get tired and usually az
the timeIthe swimmer needs encour.
arernent most sorely the friends fall
down on him and are either seasick
or too weary to bolster up the courage
of the swimmer.
win power is the most desired at
tribute of the channeloswimmer am
q lazy swimmer. and much prefer the
water at 20 degrees rather than q
Temperature of 80 degrees. The same
IS true of many who attempt to SWIM
the channel, but they know that tneN
will never succeed in their ambisioh
unless they become accustomed TO the
cold water.
The matter of training is different
for each swimmer. The temperament
Of the swimmer must be consulted be.
fore any definite program OF training
IS adopted.
There Is the plodding type of swim
mar. such as Miss Lillian Cannon
She Is a good swimmer, and perhaps
her plan to swim every day, whether
she feels like doing II or not, Is best
for her Helny, on the other hand.
wants to swim when the spirit moves
him. and TO go a little farther each
day, increasing the training periods
syss
Training Plan for EderIe.
think the best training for Ger
fr1,de Ederle is to swim for two. three
a, four hours on one day and then not
to swim at all for several days. When
she makes long swim she does mag
nificent work, and she will do any
thing her trainer asks of her. she -
In excellent condition and she does not
l.
what she can do. l know her endu-
rance Is remarkable and 1t is more
important that she become accustomed
to the cold water and the cold air
than that she should do any certain
amount of swimming.
/ want her to make several siren
,ious swims before she makes her at.
tempt to cross the channel so that 1
can try out various kinds OF food In
an effort to discover the ideal for her
and so that I may see how the cold
water affects her.
1t als6 will be necessary to try yari-
GUS kinds of grease to see which will
stay on the longest. We have been un.
able to discover any grease that would
cling to the body during an entire
channel crossing, but some greaSeS
last longer than others, and the one
that lasts the longest is the one that
we will use.
The problem of greasing Is more diff
ficult with a woman than with man,
because the majority of male channel
swimmers do not wear bathing cos
tunes, whereas women are handi-
capped by wearing suits. The cloth
rubs the grease off the body, lowering
the resistance to the water.
(Copyright. 1925