Torbay's Ice Maiden Gerry smashes world record

Cool as a cucumber Torbay sea swimmer Gerry Roberts is a world beater - as the oldest person to swim an Ice Mile.
The International Ice Swimming Association has confirmed Gerry has set a new world record as the oldest person to complete the chilly challenge at 73 years young.

Ice Maiden Gerry completed the freezing feat with snow on the landscape in Loch Morlich in the Cairngorms in Scotland.
She described it as her 'swim of my dreams' - with the temperature of the water at 3.2 degrees centigrade and the air temperature a rather brisk minus 1.5 degrees centigrade.

And she did it wearing only a normal swimming costume and just a normal silicone cap and swim goggles - there were no accessories like, gloves, boots or extra head attire or anything thermal for insulation.
Gerry, from Torquay, even admitted herself: "This is a tough call - even more so when you are nearly 73.5 years old. This is phenomenal."
Everyone on the beach at the Loch cheered her in on her return and were astounded that she swam and endured being  in the water for 54.43mins.

Gerry, a long distance swimmer of up to 22.5 kilometres in 12.5 hour swim, had never swam that kind of distance in those cold winter temperatures in such an exposed environment .
She had to call on previous knowledge and experiences that she has endured and experienced whilst training over the previous two years of winter swimming.
During that time she was unable to swim a ratified Ice Mile due to the warm water temperatures  in the UK .
She said: "Obviously, I was very disappointed as I had  swam five Ice Miles last year within a two-week period as part of her training plan - during a cold snap, of course.
She says of the Ice Record Day: "There was snow on the beach and the scenery was like a fairy tale. The loch was surrounded by snow laden mountains and the snow clad pine trees like Christmas trees hugging the loch .
The sky was azure blue and the air crisp and the sun low peeping over the mountains. The lighting on the water was idyllic and flat and mirrored the surroundings and glistening all around.

"The support-and rescue team both on land and water were all togged up in their insulated winter clothing to watch me swim as well as on the beach other supportive swimmers from the camp./"
She added: "I usually swim a mile in 42 minutes, but the cold slowed me down and I cannot believe I was in the water for just under 55 minutes, the longest I’ve ever been in the water at those brutal temperatures.
"All the dedicated training In Scotland paid off. I knew I had done things to the best of my ability..I knew when to stop a swim in training sometimes..  I knew when to push the training up .and  it was so wonderful that it turned out that the ice mile was a terrific success and I had trained the right amount."
The  recovery team were responsible for helping Gerry warm up in a warm room and check that nothing  was untoward post swim.

"I have been told by the recovery team, post swim, that my recovery was very good and a quick one by normal standards," said Gerry. "During the actual swim so much is going around in your head. Last year in training - I haven’t heard anyone say this before - but from my own experience I remember in the building up of my endurance time in the cold water temps, I could see imaginary  hoops under the water that  I had to swim through .
"Each time I swam through a hoop maybe every five minutes, I knew I had gone through a moment of breakthrough of duration time in the water and thus the beginning of a new chapter beginning on the other side of the hoop to another higher level of endurance to learn and save for further experience."

She says the biggest fear in cold water swimming is to become hyperthermic when the body starts shutting down.
"The mind can become disoriented and  the extremities like your fingers arms and legs become numb and useless as the heart is fighting to draw the blood to the organs," says Gerry.
"If you can’t use your limbs properly anymore and your body alignment in the water goes from horizontal to like sinking legs there is the fear of your organs shutting down in serious cases. Ice or cold water swimming is not to be taken lightly  .
During her training swims she was used to be being watched and looked after by her husband, Clive.
Gerry said: "He would always be on the shore checking my stroke pace and who I knew, if it ever happened and if I needed to abort, that if he had been concerned that he would be the first to  wave me in to get out. But I always seemed to know my own capabilities.
"In fact, on preparing my mindset again and again,the day before the official ice mile, whilst staying at the hostel at Loch  Morlich and talking to the Swim Your Swim team who hosted and were the organisers of the winter swim camp,.I had a revelation moment. When they said to me 'swim to the best you can on that day as the  support boat will be  at your side at all times filming you and observing you checking on every detail of your body alignment and any changes and signs of hyperthermia. You don’t have to worry as they will know the right time to pull you out and abort the swim, if that is needed' it was then the penny dropped.

"A realisation came into my head - I can only explain it that I pictured myself whilst on my training swims that  all this time up to that day in training I had been wearing my own safety officer cap .
A tough hat to wear if you can’t afford the luxury of paying  to have a coldwater coach by your side on the cold water training five days  a week. But I was always sharp enough not to burn myself out and when it’s enough for that day and how my body felt that day and flexible to consider things  and not too gung  ho.
"So I  actually believe that light bulb moment I created for myself was a big release of some of the stress of the swim. I could let go - throw the safety officer’s cap away and swim through more of my own imaginary hoops into the unknown as I was now in very safe hands. It worked. It was brutal. It was cold.
"I swam to the best I could talking to my parents above, thinking I will never have such a magical  swim surrounded with such beauty again
Sometimes zoning into a rhythm of saying tea and cake as each arm entered the water .. one for tea and the other for cake.Little tips other swimmers had mentioned to me  the night before  putting them into practice .
"My brother Robert and his wife Gwen also made a surprise visit flying in to support me at the Loch. All of this helped me to get to the finish line. What a lucky girl  I am."
Gerry wanted to thank Swim Your Swim and and swim buddy Selene Corvin with special love and gratitude to husband Clive.
She says: "Here is the man beside and forever behind me, constantly helping me to achieve the challenge of this Ice Mile."