We arrived in England early Sunday morning only to learn that the weather here is terrible for Channel swimming. The wind is at 50 mph and on a good day it’s 1.

My daugher’s pilot, Eric, who will guide her across the English Channel said her first opportunity to swim will mostly likely be Saturday morning. She has a 7-day window to swim, so Saturday will be great. It is recommended that Channel swimmers arrive at least two weeks prior to their swims so that they can get accustomed to the water. Fortunately for my daughter, Karah, swimming in the San Francisco Bay (where she lives), has adequately prepared her for the 10-14 hour swim.

What has been the most frustrating for us is finding an Internet Cafe. I’m actually sitting outside a hotel in Folkestone, England, using the wireless Internet they offer to their guests (we are staying in Deal, England, about 30 minutes away). We’re somewhat concerned about Karah’s health at this moment. She has a cold and a possible spider bite on her leg. She went to a doctor yesterday in Deal who treated the bite and put her on antibiotics. She’s a trooper though and was today in the Channel for an hour. It was about 60 degrees, warmer than the San Francisco Bay, she said.

Karah Nazor

Meanwhile, she’s getting lots of rest to help heal from the cold, and the spider bite.

When she got in the water today, she met a Channel swimmer from New Jersey. He’s been here since June 20 to prepare for his swim scheduled Friday. He and Karah swam together and he told her she was the fastest swimmer he had worked out with. That’s good news to us.

The Channel is beautiful, and the cliffs of Dover are breathtaking.

We’re having fun, eating lots of good food, and waiting for the big swim.

My daughter has faced many challenges in the past and doesn’t back down. On Saturday morning at 4:30 a.m. when she gets in the water for her swim across the Channel, she will be ready. So will I. I’m her biggest cheerleader.

Karen Nazor Hill is a style writer for the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Her daughter, Karah Nazor, is a former Chattanoogan, who is a post-doctorate scholar at the University of California San Francisco and is planning to swim the English Channel. She is a longtime swimming enthusiast who swam with the East Ridge Youth Foundation, Greater Chattanooga Aquatic Club, Scenic City Aquatic Club, University of Miami and James Madison University. She won the first 3.5-mile Swim Around the Rock event around Alcatraz in San Francisco.

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