‘Dr Dave’ prepares to tackle southern Strait

Dave Edgar’s eyes will be firmly fixed on weather forecasts in the deep south over the next few days.

The accomplished marathon swimmer and endurance athlete plans to swim Foveaux Strait, the 28.6 stretch of water between the lower tip of the South Island and Stewart Island, around February 7, his bid dependent on weather, tide times and local knowledge.

If Dave manages the Foveaux crossing, he will have completed the “New Zealand Triple Crown of open water swimming”, after swimming Cook Strait in February 2024 and circumnavigating Lake Taupo five years ago.

However, the southernmost challenge is considered as tough, if not tougher, than the others.

Only 15 people have successfully swum the Foveaux Strait which is notorious for unpredictable weather and chilly waters. Triple Crown swimmers are not allowed to wear wetsuits.

Beyond the physical challenge, swimmers often encounter local marine life, including the presence of great white sharks, adding an extra layer of excitement to the endeavour. Only 10 swimmers have completed the Triple Crown.

The first person to swim Foveaux Strait was John van Leeuwen in 1963, taking 13 hours and 36 minutes. Meda McKenzie became the first woman and second person, to complete the swim in 1979.

The 52-year-old Army Major, born and bred in Tokoroa but resident in Marlborough for the past nine years, hopes to touch down in Stewart Island in around “eight to 10 hours”.

As a high-performance strength and conditioning coach and military officer, Dave combines his diverse skills to empower others and raise awareness and vital funds in support of children and teenagers with dyslexia and learning difficulties, an issue close to his heart.

“Last year, after I swam Cook Strait I just wanted to do something, so I set up a Dr Dave Swims Givealittle page to support dyslexia, because I am dyslexic, which most people don’t even know because I have found my way through it. Now I am just trying to advocate for other people with [dyslexia]. Trying to help them find their ways round it.”

Last year he personally paid for some reader recorders at MBC, equipment designed to help dyslexics at exam time, and set up an ongoing Navigators Learning Award for achievement in learning.

Although Marlborough-based, Dave travels widely, his role of “officer commanding physical performance” for all branches of the military taking him all around the country.

An accomplished triathlete and Ironman contestant in his early years, attending five world champs, knee issues forced Dave to change tack, with long-distance, open-water swimming becoming his discipline of choice.

Asked why he takes on such gruelling missions, he is blunt.

“I don’t like to rest on my laurels, you know. I love doing it and at the end of the day I have always been an endurance athlete … I think it’s normal, although my wife always tells me, ‘no it’s not’. Basically, I just like to challenge myself.”

He has not shirked on the challenges. On the academic side, Dave has a PhD in sleep and recovery, plus a Masters in strength and conditioning, having spent several years as the strength and conditioning coach of the Manu Samoa men’s rugby side, attending two World Cups.

His forthcoming trip south is yet another challenge, a sizeable one, but if preparation, motivation and attitude count for anything, the job’s as good as done.

Dave’s Givealittle page is https://givealittle.co.nz/.../dr-dave-swims-dr-david...