Dad’s epic one-handed ocean swim
LINDSAY Mills didn’t mince his words when asked what it would be like to tackle today’s Burleigh Swim Run as an amputee.
“Well, it makes it (expletive) hard to swim,” the 41-year-old said of aiming to complete the annual Australia Day 400m swim/4km run combo despite having lost his right forearm and hand in a motorbike accident.
“The running bit I go OK but the swimming? Well, I can swim but I’m not fast. A bloke with two paddles is a damn sight faster than a bloke with one paddle.
“I am endurance fit though because I have to do twice as many strokes to do the same as a bloke with two hands.”
About 600 people are expected to line up in today’s Slater + Gordon Burleigh Swim Run, the community fitness event Ty Dowker conceived eight years ago that sees average Joes and Janes take to the sand and water alongside Olympic champions.
Mills, who will use a hand paddle for a “bit more oomph”, might be one of the average Joes but his story is anything but average.
At 19, the apprentice carpenter “stacked” his motorbike” at Springwood and while his hand “just came off”, it was a leg injury that caused him the most trauma.
“I stopped counting operations at 30,” he said. “Trying to keep the leg on in a reasonable working condition was a medical experience … and took the best part of two years to get better.”
Having always done his best to stay active, the last two years has seen him up the ante including a memorable 12-week Fight Like a Pro training regimen that ended with a bout – and victory – in the ring.
“I just do these things for the sake of staying healthy and giving myself a challenge to see if I can do it,” said Mills, a licensed builder and supervisor.
“I don’t do it to test myself against blokes who look like me … I love testing myself against every bloke and showing I can be as good as anyone.”
Mills then made special mention of the two people he most hopes to inspire with his physical challenges — his eight-year-old daughter and six-year-old son.
“It’s showing them that if you put your mind to it, you can do it,” he said.
“I’m showing them that exercise and healthy lifestyles is the key. You’ve just got to keep testing yourself and at the very least proving to yourself what you can achieve.”
WELL, I CAN SWIM BUT I’M NOT FAST. A BLOKE WITH TWO PADDLES IS A DAMN SIGHT FASTER THAN A BLOKE WITH ONE PADDLE LINDSAY MILLS