He Swam 1,367km Down New Zealand - 90 Days, No Wetsuit
90 minutes into a 1,367km swim down the length of New Zealand, Jono Ridler turned his head to breathe and saw a large shark a body length away. He got out of the water for 20 minutes, then got straight back in — and kept going for another 89 days.
The kid who had to be bribed with candy to finish a swimming lesson ended up breaking the world record for the longest unassisted staged swim. In this conversation he breaks down the journey.
Along the way: the panic attack 100 metres into his first open-water race. The Cook Strait crossing that ended with him pissing blood. The 33-hour Hauraki Gulf swim where he hallucinated a snowman on the support boat.
From swimming for a reward, to swimming for an identity, to swimming for something that will outlast him.
We also get into the voice that tells you to stop (and why it only ever arrives at the edge of what you can do), how to train the mental skills necessary for his feats of endurance, and what he's learned about uncertainty since walking away from a 13-year career with no idea what comes next.
Jono Ridler | Speaker, Athlete, Advocate — https://www.jonoridler.com/
Live Ocean Foundation — https://liveocean.org/
Swim4TheOcean — https://www.swim4theocean.org/
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