CHILLER THRILLER
Nothing can explain the sense of pride and euphoria of completing such an intimidating challenge
“I dived in and started swimming, hands and feet freezing so quickly that it almost numbed the pain. Every stroke my wet arm lifted out of the water for a few seconds and icy water ran down the exposed surface. Turning had to be done underwater as the deck was frozen and a wet hand touching it could get glued to the wood.”
One lap, two laps; suddenly it was 40 laps. The mind is so focused in a swim like that, it excludes any sight, sound or thought that is not 100 percent related to the task of stroking through the water.
“When you finish you can’t touch anything. You just raise your arm and wait to be dragged out,” says Barkai. “Your skin is bright red, almost glowing, and by the time you get to the sauna you’re covered with a thin layer of ice.
“I was dragged to the dry sauna. The sensation of inner cold is hard to describe, my chest was tight and my mind was in a very narrow tunnel vision of survival. Ryan and Kieron were looking after me. It was comforting, but not easy for them as they prepared for their own epic challenge.”
In the next sauna, a wet one, three Russian women in swimsuits covered the frozen swimmer with wet towels and started pouring cold water on the towel. Alternate hot and cold treatments using water and wet towels eventually brought him back to life.
“I was out, defrosted, in time to see Ryan and Kieron diving for their 1km. They swam together, and it was amazing to see the two colourful South African caps ploughing through the ice water like synchronised swimmers.”
In less than 15 minutes they were finished and were able to walk to the sauna where the heating process started. The nurses took buckets of snow and rubbed their skin hard – a painful exercise that gets the circulation going before the wet towel and water treatment.
“As worried as we’d been before the event, we had to admit the Russian recovery process was amazing. Nothing can explain the sense of pride and euphoria after completing such an intimidating challenge. We may be nutters, but we felt like celebs in Siberia.”
Stramrood and Palframan clocked 14:58 and Barkai 16:57, earning them the three medal places in the 1km swim.