Chicot a Go?

The Chicot Challenge over the years has been a bundle of problems, obstacles, and frustrations. Oddly, I have always welcomed the unexpected when preparing for this annual swim and viewed them as tests of faith, opportunities to see God come to the rescue. This year, not so much.

To begin with, after a successful 2017 Chicot Challenge, I injured my shoulder in late June. I held out hope for a month or two that I would heal and be able to swim again this year. I visited doctors, had shots, went through rehab, prayed, fretted, and eventually had an MRI. Finally I had to acknowledge that I would not swim Chicot in 2018. That was not a pleasant thing and my mind began to cast about for a substitute, another event to create.

A hero, however, stepped forth.

Wilson Carroll, a Jackson attorney who originally hails from Greenwood, offered to swim for me because "it is too important to let die." So that is how we planned and plotted since last February, for Wilson and his son Spence to relay a one-way from the State Park to Ditch Bayou. Then I checked with the State Park about renting their pontoon boat.

They have been trying for possibly a year to get their boat fixed. To make a short story long, they have to have three estimates before they can award any work and that has been a sticking point for them. So I turned to the private citizen who graciously loaned us his boat last year. His boat is in need of repair and he has recently had surgery preventing himself from fixing his boat. Consequently, I recontacted the State Park and the manager said he thought their boat would be ready in time. However, as of yesterday, the prognosis on their boat receiving its repairs in time are not very good.

To add to the good news, Wilson has recently had a pretty serious health issue that will prevent him from doing the swim this year. That equals no boat and no swimmer. As I bounced all of this off my wife, she said, "Why don't you contact MJ?" 

Cha ching! 

MJ is MJ Staples, the indefatigable marathon swimmer from Atlanta, GA who last year served as the Challenge's Official Observer. This year I have been reading on Facebook about her exploits from across the county. I sent her a message. She wants to come swim.

The boat, however, remains an issue. We can do a shorter version of the swim without a Pontoon. Not having a pontoon rules out a relay and makes a really long swim much more difficult. The point is, we plan to go ahead with Chicot Challenge VII this year in some fashion on June 2nd. The distance may even be shorter than a one way. The State Park to downtown Lake Village is about seven miles, no small feat itself. Since MJ will be swimming, I will give her the options and let her swim what she feels like doing. Team Centerville is ready to do whatever it can, and the main thing remains the main thing: fundraising for the Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi and raising awareness of the dangers of this sneaky disease. Those efforts have started but are going slower than hoped. I recently received T-shirts. They are $20.00 each and 100% of that goes to the DFM.

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Please pray for Team Centerville, for our efforts, safety, and success.