h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

At new years day in The Netherlands there are traditionally a couples of nuts (400) every year, who take a dive in the North Sea and run twice as fast back straight on to the beach.

Nice tradition.

It's getting more crazy every year and that proves human evolution.

What does sanity do for us?

Once, when I was 18 and there were radiobroadcasting stations at ships all over the Canal I once started a serious deal with my friends that I would swim to radio Veronica.

I did swimm a lot these days in the cold water of the sea to exercise.

But the more I exercised, the smaller my options became to ever arrive there.
You cannot just swim in a straight line.
The waves are not the real problem. The strong flows of the sea.
You don't see these, but you feel these.

How many times it does not happen that someone cannot reach the beach anymore in summertimes? Many.

Bút I thought that these flows could also be "in my advantage" and after that conclusion I suddenly gave in
I have never been good in algebra and geometry. I was fully aware of that.

I was not beaten by the sea.
I was beaten by these stupid numbers and lines, that have more brains than the wild ideas of a boy who thinks he can fly very high and swim
all the way, even to England.



P.S. In WW.2 there have been many escapes from the beaches of Holland to ships in high sea. I don't know if anyone dared to reach these by swimming. No, I don't think so.


Warm greetings from Amsterdam and best wishes for 2007 !

Thank you Alfredo!and the same to you