Jesse:
Have you seen my car?
Christie Boner:
Yeah.
Jesse:
You have?
Christie Boner:
Well, I saw the backseat.
Jesse:
No, I'm talking about the whole thing.
A couple of months ago, I read a story about a woman who claimed to have completed a swim across the Atlantic. AP was all over the story of 56 year old Jennifer Figge. "During her taxing journey, Figge had to battle waves of up to 30 feet and strong winds, and the inclement weather forced her to veer 1,000 miles off course; she originally was supposed to swim to the Bahamas. Her longest time in the water was about eight hours." Ms. Figge was accompanied by a boat and surrounded by a cage to protect her from sharks, and she wore a wetsuit.
Here's the problem. Her boat traveled 2,100 miles. She now admits that she only swam about 250 miles, and there were entire days when she didn't exit the boat. She also now says that she never planned to do the whole thing, but here's a note from Hal Higdon (yes - the Hal Higdon) who is the father of her publicist, that was published before the event. "So, you think running a little old 26 miles and 385 yards is an accomplishment? Well, yes it is, but consider Jennifer Figge, who later this year will attempt to become the first woman and the first American to swim across the Atlantic Ocean, from Cape Verde Islands off the coast of Africa to Barbados. " And here's the NY Times story. "Figge plans to swim 2,100 miles, from the Cape Verde Islands off Africa to Barbados. She will do it in a shark cage attached to a sailboat, swimming for six to eight hours a day without rest. The journey will take about two months and, if successful, will make her the first woman on record to swim across the Atlantic."
The shame is that the woman is clearly a talented and dedicated athlete. Had she not engaged in hyperbole, we'd be lauding her accomplishments. After all, I'm not about to swim 250 miles in a month. Instead, she embarassed herself, and all the press outlets who initially published the story without recognizing that no one can swim 70 miles a day for a month.
