It’s an open water swimming challenge that’s yet to be replicated. 

In June 2018, record-breaking endurance athlete Ross Edgley became the first person in history to swim around the entire coast of mainland Great Britain without setting foot on land. To date, he is the only person to achieve this cold water endurance challenge and record-breaking swim. 

Battling everything from freezing waters and jellyfish stings to busy shipping lanes and powerful tides, Ross Edgley’s swim around the UK began and ended in Margate Harbour, where a flotilla of 300 swimmers accompanied him to welcome him back to land.
  
While swimming around Great Britain, we proudly provided a Dryrobe@ Advance as part of his vital cold water swimming gear, keeping him warm and dry during the recovery process.

[Image courtesy of James Appleton]

The Great British Swim in Numbers

Ross Edgley’s Great British Swim: By the Numbers

“Naive enough to start, stubborn enough to finish”, Ross believed it would take 100 days to complete the ultra endurance swimming feat around Great Britain, but it became clear early on that it would take significantly longer than this. 

In total, he was at sea for 157 days, swimming for 12 hours a day (6 hours on, 6 hours off), travelling 1791 miles, setting two new world records, and smashing the previous record for a swim between Land’s End and John O’Groats by an incredible 73 days.

And how did he fuel such an extreme open water swimming record? 649 bananas played a huge role! 

 

[Image courtesy of James Appleton]

Extreme Challenges Faced at Sea

Surviving Salt, Stings, and the Sea

Along the way, he encountered challenges that would have stopped a less stubborn individual in their tracks.

The ultra endurance swimming challenge inflicted severe wetsuit chafing that earned him the nickname ‘Rhino Neck’, having bits of his tongue fall off due to mass exposure to saltwater (AKA ‘salt tongue’), a suspected torn shoulder, and being stung by jellyfish countless times. 

Off the coast of Scotland, one jellyfish attached itself to Ross’s face and wouldn’t let go for 30 minutes. This didn’t slow him down; Ross just kept on swimming!

Documented by Red Bull Media House in a series of weekly vlogs, The Great British Swim was not only a test of physical endurance, but also of mental resilience — and marked the most gruelling challenge of Ross’s already extraordinary career

Ross explains how cold water swimming around Great Britain was:

“Without question, this is the toughest thing I have ever done,” Ross said before the swim. “But if I complete it, it could be the greatest achievement of my life.”

Despite the lows, there were many high points, including swimming alongside a Minke whale for 5 miles in the Bristol Channel and playing hide-and-seek with a seal that had taken a shine to Ross’ pink buoy.

[Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool / Harvey Gibson]

Nutrition & Daily Routine

How Ross Fueled 12 Hours of Swimming a Day

You may wonder what Ross Edgley eats to fuel such an insane task.

Ross consumed between 10,000 and 15,000 calories a day to have enough energy to swim for 12 hours.

Surprisingly, the menu for open water endurance food was not clean eating during this challenge!

His swim nutrition during the 157 days included a steady diet of pizza and fry-up. And don’t forget those 649 bananas he manages to put away! 

[Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool / Harvey Gibson]

Cold Water Recovery & Gear

Cold Water Recovery: Dryrobe® to the Rescue

As well as getting his diet right, managing the cold was essential. As soon as he was out of the water, the first thing Ross did was get his Dryrobe® on..

This got his core temperature back up quickly, so he was ready to go again on the next swim. He demonstrates the role of Dryrobe® in his cold swim gear:

“It became such an essential tool because without it you’re just starting the next swim cold. You can’t start the next tide already cold.”

In Ross Edgley’s Cold Water Swimming Tips, Ross explains the importance of warming up after swimming for cold water recovery and how he used Dryrobe® as part of his cold swim kit:
 
"During the Great British Swim, I’d get out of the water, and sometimes what I would do is start hitting burpees in my Dryrobe® on the boat! People were like, “Are you not exhausted?!” And yeah, I was exhausted, but I know my temperature is still dropping, so before I’d get into bed, I’d need to warm my core temperature up!"

Check out the blog here for more advice on what to wear for open water swimming and for Ross’ cold water recovery tips.

[Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool / Harvey Gibson]

What’s Next for Ross?

After the Swim: What’s Next for Ross Edgley

So what’s next for Ross? A victory lap around Great Britain? Swimming around the world?

Turns out learning to walk again is the next big challenge!

Spending 157 days in the water has shrunk (atrophied) the tiny ligaments, tendons, and muscles in his legs and feet. This is similar to the effects that astronauts suffer after spending months in zero gravity.

[Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool / Olaf Pignataro]

Watch the Full Interview

Check out his full interview with us below:

[Video Footage courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool]

We’re proud to have supported Ross on this record-breaking adventure, and we can’t wait to see what challenge he decides to take on next. He has since completed the Great Icelandic Swim in 2025, another first and one of a kind open water swimming challenge.

Whatever Ross sets his mind to, the legacy from Ross Edgley's extraordinary swim has raised the profile of open water swimming, and his world record swim stories have inspired people across the world to join his extreme open water swimming feats. 

If you’re inspired to try cold water swimming but not sure where to start, please check out our Cold Water Swimming Guide to learn the benefits, gain tips, and receive invaluable safety advice.

 

[Cover image courtesy of James Appleton]

Published on November 05, 2018