It’s been quite a while. I’ve been a busy bee. Both my jobs, a home trip to Belgium, a training camp in Lanzarote with my running club, public lectures, a minor jaw surgery… As you’ve probably seen on Facebook and Instagram, I’ve had plenty to attend to those last two months.

“But what about your swimming?”, you might ask. Well, I haven’t been resting on my laurels either. I’m spending much of my off-season time training with the so-called “extreme team” I’ve joined through The Sport Society. Mainly speed training, challenging me on both my freestyle, my breast stroke and my back stroke (butterfly must wait until I get Jason Statham’s body to go with it). As always I’ve been practising my technique with Susanne on the side and it’s been paying off very quickly. The woman is a genius! ❤

Most importantly I’ve spent the last couple of weeks planning my next season. As last year it’s been a real brain-teaser, trying to fit all the pieces into one big puzzle (cf. the cooking lesson). It’s a bit like shooting a movie. So many scenes and views to choose from and only room for a selection of them. Some swims have made the final cut, others will have to wait for a sequel in 2016 or later. No Golden Globes for me this year!

The devilish planning exercise all started when I received an e-mail from the German organizers of Beltquerung, the swim between Denmark and Germany I’m planning to do in 2015. My heart skipped a beat when I saw their message. I was both excited and scared at the same time. As always when I get nervous, I was stuck in the loo for quite a while trying to grasp the obvious – it’s really happening! No more dreaming! The first official stage of my journey is just around the corner! Now all I need to do is fill in the papers, get my physician’s approval, choose a tide, pick up a captain and pay the fees. “Border shopping” is calling!

Besides Beltquerung in August I have a few other exciting swims scheduled for 2015. Two double crossings between Denmark and Sweden in June and July as well as a full circumnavigation of the island of Ven in August and hopefully La Bocaina, a single crossing between Lanzarote and Fuerteventura in September. And of course, two classics I wouldn’t miss for the world – Vikingesvøm across Roskilde Fjord in June and Christiansborg Rundt around the Danish Parliament in late August. I guess my schedule is pretty definite by now, although it’s only December. (Holy Neptune, am I turning Danish?!?)

The big question for 2015 is not as much about how many miles I can cover as about how much of the longer swims I can actually handle without my wetsuit. I haven’t got much bioprene left on my body so maybe I should hire a feeder from next spring on… Anyone? 😀