According to the daily updates on his blog, the Rev. Mike Solberg thinks his attempt to swim the English Channel as part of his effort to raise $50,000 to build a school in Waku Kungo, Angola, could take place Saturday or Sunday, depending on when winds over the channel ease.
Solberg, senior pastor at Second Congregational United Church of Christ, 318 N. Church St., has been training for the attempt since early this spring and has raised more than $20,000 toward the school. He will travel to Angola in October for a formal groundbreaking.
Solberg’s attempt may be followed at his Web site, www.swimmikeswim.com. Real-time coverage of his swim will be available by going to www.ais-doverstraits.co.uk/ and selecting “Satellite Tracker-Anastasia”. Anastasia is the name of the pilot boat that will accompany him on the attempt.
Solberg described the tracking on his blog.
“That will give you a blip on a map every now and then (10 to 30 minutes apart usually), giving you my position. You will notice that you can zoom in and out on the map for the view that works best for you.
“Remember that I will not swim straight across, but will be pushed east, to the right on the map, for six hours, and then back to the west for six hours. Ideally, I’ll walk onto the French beach or rocks at Cap Gris Nez at the end of that 12 hours. More realistically, though, I’ll probably start getting pushed back east again before I hit the beach around Wissant.”
Donations for the school project can be mailed to Swim Mike Swim, c/o Second Congregational United Church of Christ, 318 N. Church St., Rockford, IL 61101.
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