Sami Robertson sets off today, Tuesday 7th July, on a 71-mile anti-clockwise swim around the Isle of Wight.
Four swimming friends join him for what he calls the biggest swimming challenge of his life. Only seven people have ever completed the full circuit before.
Sami isn’t doing this purely for the challenge, though. His family roots run deep in Bembridge, where generations of Woodnutts lived and worked.
His grandfather, Mark Woodnutt, served as the Island’s MP in the 1960s and ran Woodnutts Boatyard, the firm behind the airborne lifeboats dropped from planes to rescue downed pilots in the Second World War.
A start line steeped in family history
The swim begins at Bembridge Lifeboat Station, and Sami can’t quite believe the coincidence. He visited that exact spot to scatter his mother’s ashes during the pandemic.
The date carries extra weight too – it’s the birthday of his late uncle, Richard Woodnutt, who died last year.
Sami says,
“I couldn’t have planned those things if I’d tried.
“They’ve simply made this challenge feel incredibly personal.”
Twenty people, three boats, one cause
A full support team of twenty makes the swim possible: three boats, three pilots, three navigators and two kayakers, alongside the support crew and the five friends swimming together.
Sami credits one man in particular for bringing the whole thing together – John Caulcutt CBE.
John lives with Parkinson’s himself, and Sami describes him as one of the most selfless people he’s ever met.
Despite losing his wife to Motor Neurone Disease, John has spent years raising money for both Parkinson’s research and the MND Association, all while quietly inspiring those around him.
Why “The Wildpoolers”
The team swims under the name The Wildpoolers, given to them by Helen Matthews, chief executive of Cure Parkinson‘s, linking the group to the WILDPOOL shoe project Sami has worked on.
He loves the name because it captures the point of the whole endeavour. He says,
“People coming together. Not for medals. Not for records.”
Around 400 people on the Isle of Wight currently live with Parkinson’s, and across the UK it remains the fastest-growing neurological condition.
How Islanders can help
Sami has a simple ask for anyone on the Island this week. Wave if you spot the swimmers passing by, share the story, and tell others why the team is doing this.
The group hopes to raise £50,000 for Cure Parkinson’s, and every donation helps fund researchers working towards treatments that could one day slow, stop or cure the condition.
Sami says,
“If our swim can help raise awareness, start conversations and raise funds for the researchers working tirelessly towards a cure.
“Every stroke will have been worthwhile.”
Sami has already raised £23,000 of his £50,000 target. You can show your support by visiting his Just Giving page.
