Sixty-year-old to attempt Cook Strait swim

Sometime next week Whakatane swimmer Mike Bodger will be treading water in the middle of Cook Strait, wearing leopard skin-design Speedos and eating honey sandwiches.

The 60-year-old will attempt to swim across the notoriously difficult stretch of sea and, if successful, would be the oldest person to conquer the 26km between the North and South Islands.

Bodger will face water temperatures as low as 14degC, tidal flows and variable weather. It could take anywhere between six and 12 hours to complete.

Despite the obstacles Bodger was confident he could complete the crossing.

"I have been thinking about doing this for the last 10 years and I thought it was achievable. This will be my biggest swim and I really wanted to challenge myself. Swimming has a certain demand - it is not as natural as running or cycling.

"I think there will be some nerves before the swim - you get more nervous the more you think about how big it is," Bodger said.

Bodger will be accompanied by an inflatable rescue boat for the duration of the swim and he has to stay in the water to take his refreshment breaks - which are about every half hour.

Fifty-four people have successfully swum the strait, including Phillip Rush who has crossed eight times. He is also the world record holder for the fastest two and three-way swim of the English Channel. Rush now co-ordinates and supports swimmers who attempt the Cook Strait swim.

Cook Strait was first swum by Barry Devonport in 1963 in a time of 11 hours 20 minutes. The fastest crossing was Lower Hutt's Casey Glover who was 21 years old when he crossed the strait in 2008 in a blistering time of four hours 37 minutes.

- NZPA