Diana Nyad Fact Check site

135

Comments

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    @bruck, if you go to her EverWalk site and scroll down to the bottom, you'll see "Meet our sponsors" on the lower right. They're Johnson & Johnson, 24 Hour Fitness, Facebook Live, and ABC-Good Morning America.

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited June 2017

    I just finished watching two DN interviews. They have a bunch of material I'd like to add to the site, but I have a number of questions I'm hoping someone(s) can answer.

    I'll start with the 2015 video "Diana Nyad shows grit, spirit that drove record-setting swim" and address the other one in a separate message.

    ...

    [4:48] "People have been trying [to swim from Cuba to Florida] since 1950, and nobody had ever made it."

    Anyone know who--if anyone--tried in 1950?

    [10:00] "...I wrote a blog about Caitlin Jenner, you know, right as it was all coming out this summer. 560,000 people responded, and had, it was a wonderful dialogue...."

    Can anyone find such a blog entry? I don't find anything. My guess is that she means that Facebook post I mentioned above (but says "blog" because it has more cachet). I hate to quibble, but adding together Likes, Comments and Shares, you still only get 10,129, a tad short of 560,000.

    [11:45] "So believe me, um, we swam shore to shore, and it was fair and square. And most of them were very gracious. When we did our navigational charts for them, that group of marathon swimmers who just, I won't say they doubted, they wanted to see the proof. And I don't blame them. It's okay. And we vetted it, and they all said to me--or wrote to me or John Bartlett, my navigator--"thank you, thank you for taking the time, you know, fair enough, it's done."

    Any way to prove this is bunk?

    [12:14] "And the couple that are still out there--haters are always gonna hate. And they're still there."

    I love it. It's me and one other, I guess. Niek maybe?

    ...

    MORE JELLYFISH, ALWAYS MORE JELLYFISH

    [13:59] "Usually--90-plus percent of the time that a human is touched by that tentacle of the box, it's fatal. You are dead....and I should have died that night."

    I included the above so you can see how the percentages are moving up--90+ here, 95 on the podcast, maybe 99 next time.

    [35:22] "But I am literally the only one who knows what it's like 50, 60 miles off shore, having swum there on my own speed. And the issue that's different than all those other, you know, endeavors for me is sensory deprivation."

    Who would be best to cite to refute this claim?

    DanSimonellipaulmAnthonyMcCarley
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    You won't want to miss the 2nd video. It's a PBS interview from 1978.

    [8:33] "The International Federation of Long Distance Swimming," which is headed up in Cairo because that's a big center of long distance swimming, it's been established there for over 100 years now. They recognize the world championship as being between Capri and Naples, Italy. And whoever wins that race every year is the world champion, male and female separately. I've won that race four times. I still hold the fastest record, even though I haven't been there the last two years.

    Nyad won once, in 1974. But did she really hold the record? Results here seem to indicate that she did.

    But the Americans and the Canadians don't recognize that as the world championship because they don't pay your plane fare to get there. The Americans recognize, which is the World Professional Marathon Swimming Association--you know, there are lots of different organizations around the world--they recognize a race in Argentina that happens every February. And the Egyptians and the Europeans don't recognize that race because they don't give plane fare to those people and they can't get there.

    [10:44] The World Professional Marathon Swimming Association, who only do swims in fresh water--I was on their circuit and was the best on their circuit--recognize only freshwater swims that are done in, you know, lakes and rivers, and where you don't need a shark cage. And so this was the first time--it's a precedent. [talking about her 1978 Cuba-Florida attempt]

    I'm guessing the "I...was the best on their circuit" alludes to the one year she won on points. Is all the rest of the above pretty accurate?

    [17:45] I swam in the North Sea a few years back, a race down the Dutch coast that took me 40 hours and 3 minutes.

    Anyone know anything about this swim?

    ...

    OLYMPICS--how things change

    [23:02] Nyad: In the summer after junior year in high school, I came down with endocarditis....

    [23:32] Calloway: That cost you Olympic...
    Nyad: That's why I prefaced it by saying, 'you can't say could have,' because I was not an Olympic-caliber swimmer before that. I was good. You know, I was good. I was the best in Florida, and that was one of the best two swimming states country--Florida and California. But I can't say that. That was so many years ago, I can't even remember it.

    I include this because it may be the single glimmer of reality in the interview. Clearly, her POV changed over the next few years.

    [24:13] Calloway: Let me throw a quote at you from Tom Hetzel who has swum the English Channel seven times. He was quoted in People magazine as saying about you: "She has a tremendous reputation for not finishing races. She has gotten more publicity for doing less than anyone I know." The question is, how are we to take these charges about you and publicity vs. what I think is a legitimate role, beautifully done here, in popularizing swimming? How do you feel about that?

    [24:43] Nyad: Well, let me ask you a few things. You know, what do you really believe when you read People magazine, you know, I mean we're talking about People magazine, you know, we're talking about a rag. 2nd of all, I could tell you that Tom Hetzel asked me to marry him three times.

    Does anyone know if this has any relationship to the truth?

    And now into an unintelligible discourse....

    Now you're talking about, of course, People magazine admits that when they have a quote. So, you know, you would be saying to me, you know, I don't know what your situation is. But if you have a divorced wife who you left and she were to tell me horrible things, I would say, 'well, you know, she said that, now that's true, isn't it,' and you would say, 'listen, there are a lot of things going on here.' And 3rd thing I would say to you is, uh, just look at my record. Just go out and check my record of who's the only person who's ever swam Lake Ontario north to south. 100s of great swimmers have tried it.

    Did 100s of swimmers actually try this?

    Look at the Cuba swim, you can look at all the films. I was 42 hours in an incredibly rough sea. I don't care if I made it or not--I think that it stands on its own. I hold the world record for many years now for Capri to Naples....

    I know I can check through the results, but if anyone knows offhand how long she held the record, please let me know.

    DanSimonelliAnthonyMcCarley
  • DanSimonelliDanSimonelli San Diego CASenior Member

    @danslos
    Ongoing kudos for sticking to this!

    [24:43] Nyad: Well, let me ask you a few things. You know, what do you really believe when you read People magazine, you know, I mean we're talking about People magazine, you know, we're talking about a rag. 2nd of all, I could tell you that Tom Hetzel asked me to marry him three times.

    "Fake news" ;)

    Answering a question with a question.
    :-L

    AnthonyMcCarleydanslos
  • evmoevmo SydneyAdmin
    edited June 2017

    [8:33] "The International Federation of Long Distance Swimming," which is headed up in Cairo because that's a big center of long distance swimming, it's been established there for over 100 years now. They recognize the world championship as being between Capri and Naples, Italy. And whoever wins that race every year is the world champion, male and female separately. I've won that race four times. I still hold the fastest record, even though I haven't been there the last two years.

    Nyad won once, in 1974. But did she really hold the record? Results here seem to indicate that she did.
    ...
    I hold the world record for many years now for Capri to Naples....

    I know I can check through the results, but if anyone knows offhand how long she held the record, please let me know.

    Some facts:

    • DN swam in the Capri-Napoli race twice, in 1974 (8:11:20) and 1975 (9:24:57) in her early twenties (ref). Not sure where the claim of "winning four times" comes from.
    • Here are the full Capri-Napoli results in more easily browse-able format.
    • Her 8:11:20 in 1974 was the fastest time by a woman at the time. In that race, she placed 14th overall (ref).
    • Before 1974, 33 women had swum Capri-Napoli, compared to 226 men.
    • This course+gender record stood until 1987, when Irene van der Laan went 7:54:05 (ref).
    • DN's 8:11 now ranks as the 98th fastest time by a woman in that race.
    danslosDanSimonelliIronMikeLynnkub
  • evmoevmo SydneyAdmin
    edited June 2017

    @danslos said:

    [11:45] "So believe me, um, we swam shore to shore, and it was fair and square. And most of them were very gracious. When we did our navigational charts for them, that group of marathon swimmers who just, I won't say they doubted, they wanted to see the proof. And I don't blame them. It's okay. And we vetted it, and they all said to me--or wrote to me or John Bartlett, my navigator--"thank you, thank you for taking the time, you know, fair enough, it's done."

    Any way to prove this is bunk?

    I was on that call, and I don't recall ever seeing any navigational charts or real-time observations on currents, though we specifically asked for it. That was the crux of the issue at the time -- they promised to provide it, so in the immediate aftermath, many took her at her word, like "OK cool, so it is forthcoming." But then the charts & stuff never came, and we began to realize that it was basically just a sham performance for the collected international media to get the pesky skeptics off her back.

    Lesson learned.

    [35:22] "But I am literally the only one who knows what it's like 50, 60 miles off shore, having swum there on my own speed. And the issue that's different than all those other, you know, endeavors for me is sensory deprivation."

    Who would be best to cite to refute this claim?

    Penny Palfrey was well over halfway when she got pulled on her Cuba swim in 2012. Reports stated 79 miles from the starting point. So I would think Penny could also fairly claim to "know what it's like 50, 60 miles off shore."

    DanSimonelli
  • curlycurly Issaquah, WASenior Member

    Thank you for creating the fact check site. Yesterday after finishing a nice swim in the lake, I got to chatting with a nice couple of cyclists. They were asking about swimming in the lake and we got to talking about long distance swimming and of course old DN's name came up. I launched into the usual discussion of how a lot of her claims aren't necessarily so. I soft peddle it to not seem like a raving lunatic. They obviously saw and mentioned the Lance Armstrong connection.

    I said that it was really kind of a shame that she makes these fraudulent claims because she actually has done some significant distance swims. She's 60 something and swimming long distances. That is pretty cool. Why does she have to besmirch her reputation and the sport as a whole with made up achievements?

    IronMikessthomas
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited June 2017

    @curly, maybe you meant your last question to be rhetorical, but I'll try to answer it anyway. Having waded through quite a bit of Nyad stuff so far, it appears that she has an unquenchable need to feel special and unique, and because of this specialness and uniqueness, she must be adored. This is why she can't be the 7th woman to have swum around Manhattan Island--she MUST be the first. This is why she can't be the 3rd of six to swim from Cuba to Florida--she MUST be the first of 1000. This is why the box jellyfish sting can't be just painful and debilitating--it must cause instantaneous death 95% of the time.

    This is also why she couldn't attempt a measly single-crossing of the English Channel--she had to become the first woman to complete a double. And, when she couldn't get across even once, it was because she had "the worst weather in the world..." (see the PBS interview at 13:54). Not the third worst or the second worst. The first worst.

    Everybody must know that Diana Nyad is the uniquest of the unique, the specialist of the special, the epic-est of the epic. Even the weather knows it.

    I will leave you with this (for now), also from the PBS interview. The interviewer asks about an account of Nyad's 1978 Cuba-Florida attempt:

    (7:22) John Calloway: Let me quote from Newsweek magazine: 'Nyad has surrounded herself with inexperienced trainers whose main qualification seemed to be skill at squash raquets and unbridled adulation of the heroine.' You were quoted as saying: 'It isn't whether they know swimming. It's whether they love you.'

    Nyad: Oh, absolutely true. Any swimmer would tell you that.

    Thanks to all who replied to my earlier questions. I need some time to look through them before I respond.

    evmoAnthonyMcCarleyDanSimonelliIronMikecurlyssthomasbluemermaid9LynnkubKatieBun
  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member
    edited July 2017

    For some reason DNOWS linked two days ago to a 3-year old article in Red Bull magazine about the "world's most epic swims." And of course she's listed in the article with a quote:

    "When my mind goes and my right brain emerges I lose control of my intellectual thinking," she said. "I'm in a dream state."

    danslos

    We're all just carbon, water, starlight, oxygen and dreams

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    IronMike said:
    For some reason DNOWS linked two days ago to a 3-year old article in Red Bull magazine about the "world's most epic swims...."

    Speaking of the e-word, here's a nugget from recent Nyad-video mining operations: Diana's favorite word.

    ...

    MORE ABOUT OTHER CUBA-FLORIDA ATTEMPTS
    Does anyone know when Chris Green attempted his Cuba-to-Florida swim? He's listed here as having gone 32 miles at some point.

    A member of the forum alerted me to the attempts of Cuban swimmer José/Johnny Cortinas. His Openwaterpedia bio states that he attempted "twice to escape swimming across Florida Strait..." Cortinas also attempted the swim as part of a relay in 1950. It didn't end well, but I haven't come across anything about the conclusion other than this brief article.

    Openwaterpedia says "reportedly over 20 individuals" have attempted to cross the Florida Strait. Not sure where that number comes from. I'm now at eight individuals (if we count Cortinas as a solo) and a relay.

    -Daniel

    DanSimonelli
  • evmoevmo SydneyAdmin

    I suppose it depends on what you count as an "attempt."

    I've made numerous attempts to swim around the world (all failed after a few miles, maybe a couple dozen at most).

    danslosSoloJSwim
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    I also wonder about the meaning, in this context, of "reportedly."

  • loneswimmerloneswimmer IrelandCharter Member

    And we vetted it, and they all said to me--or wrote to me or John Bartlett, my navigator--"thank you, thank you for taking the time, you know, fair enough, it's done."

    Any way to prove this is bunk?

    Yes, the best possible: Multiple credible participants who can all attest this didn't happen and what she is saying is a lie.

    IronMikedanslosDanSimonelliKatieBun

    loneswimmer.com

  • LynnkubLynnkub Charter Mem​ber

    Oh LOOK! FINIS has a QUICK survey opened!
    surveymonkey.com/r/QNLC9Y3

    I just couldn't help but mention that FINIS used to be a respected brand until it sponsored Diana Nyad and repeated lies...

    Capture

    evmoIronMikeDanSimonellirlmMoCossthomassuziedodsKatieBun
  • ssthomasssthomas DenverCharter Mem​ber

    Uhm...this question on the survey sorta bugs me. I picked competitive swimmer. HA.

    Capture

    Lynnkub
  • curlycurly Issaquah, WASenior Member

    Triathlete / Open Water Swimmer. Hmmmmm..... Why not have a group of Water Polo / Hockey?

    DanSimonellilakesprayssthomasrlmsuziedodsIronMikeLynnkubgregoc
  • MoCoMoCo Worcester, MASenior Member

    curly said:
    Triathlete / Open Water Swimmer. Hmmmmm..... Why not have a group of Water Polo / Hockey?

    I feel like that's a halfhearted "I swim inside" vs "I'm willing to swim outside too"

    LynnkubDanSimonelli
  • Oh my that was fun...

    LynnkubcurlyssthomasSoloDanSimonelli
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited September 2017

    Just finished a major update to the site. If you have a chance to look at at, please let me know if you find any errors or any way that you think I can improve it. I've moved most of the explanations off the main page, relying instead on brief videos to make the main points.

    After listening to as many DN interviews and speeches as I could get my hands on, I am convinced of two things:

    1. She did not swim, on her own power, all the way from Cuba to Florida. The course and pace that her GPS data describe would have required divine intervention. No one is that lucky. She may have been in the water the whole time; but, for at least part of that time--maybe a good chunk of it--she was doing something other than swimming (or treading water).

    2. She lies as a matter of course, even when there is no clear benefit to her. It's a reflex. I couldn't include all of her fabrications and exaggerations--I have a life, sort of, and would like to return to it. If something big comes up, I'll add it. For now, though, I'm getting back to my violin.

    -Daniel
    Los Angeles, CA, USA

    pavlicovDanSimonellimjstaplesloneswimmerdavid_barraIronMikeevmobluemermaid9lakesprayLynnkubSwimmersuz[Deleted User]MoCoJSwimrlmsuziedodsgregocKatieBun
  • DanSimonelliDanSimonelli San Diego CASenior Member

    @danslos
    You Rock! :)

    Lynnkub
  • loneswimmerloneswimmer IrelandCharter Member

    @danslos. Superb update. I would call it the definitive meta-analysis and response to the affair.

    Thank you.

    From a personal point, I understand very well where you are coming from.

    For fours years (it seems longer!) I have on the one hand felt it is important to leave my own articles about Nyad visible. Because there needed to be a visible counterpoint, (even if no-one reads them anymore, & regardless that with time, I think they could have been much better written). I am glad that the forum and your site both exist to provide other platforms and more comprehensive views that do more than my over-wrought articles.

    On the other hand, I do not want myself nor the sport to be defined in the main by this issue. Anger over her lies probably comes from a different place for everyone. For me it's an absolute uncompromising detestation of frauds, who lack any respect for the people who have literally risked or given everything in the sport. But I don't want to ever bring Diana Nyad into the water with me (metaphorically speaking) so choose to let my anger go (most of the time).

    Thanks for so clearly collating and articulating the best interest of the sport.

    DanSimonelliIronMikeevmorosemarymintlakespraycurlyLynnkubjbsMoCoJSwimphodgeszohosuziedodsgregocKatieBunViveBene

    loneswimmer.com

  • curlycurly Issaquah, WASenior Member

    The addition of the video clips to support each point is very good. It's amazing to see her responses on camera. If you know anything about watching someone lie, you will see a lot of tell tales as she responds. Seeing the clips really helps drive home the point.

    This is a well laid out site with clear and concise facts. I think that anyone, whether a swimmer or just a curious onlooker, will be able to comprehend the argument. I will be happy to point anyone to this whenever the DN issue comes up.

    Small point. I was talking with a cyclist about DN and compared her to Lance Armstrong. He said that there is some disagreement in the cycling world about what went on with Lance. He felt that Lance merely got caught doing what everyone else did. I don't know whether that's true or not, but I think it's important to let DN sink on the merits of her history and not try to tie Lance on her neck as ballast. (How's that for a metaphor?) Anyway, what you have done is compared two cheaters and that's a valid point to make.

    Last point. For the non-swimming community, I think it would be helpful to explain how fast she claims to be swimming or treading water. 3 miles an hour sounds pretty slow when the average person thinks of miles per hour in terms of car speed. Perhaps a video of DN next to a video of an Olympic 10K swimmer would demonstrate how fast 3 mph is. I know someone did a link where it was estimated that DN would had to have been swimming 6 mph for a segment. They showed a video of Sun Yang breaking the 1500 meter record to demonstrate what 6 mph looked like compared to DN drowning herself at .5 mph.

    Anyway, that's my two cents worth. It's a great site and you are doing a great service.

    LynnkubslknightDanSimonelliIronMikeJSwimflystormsdavid_barrasuziedods
  • @danslos dude, that's a well presented website congratulations.

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Thank you all for your supportive words about the site. They mean a lot to me and make it seem worth the effort.

    Quite a bit of material didn't make the cut. Much of what I left out has to do with trying to establish motivation. It just seemed too squishy to keep--better to stick to the facts.

    However, it's still pretty interesting. One avenue I pursued was Nyad's con-artist step-father, Aris Nyad. Turns out his real last name probably wasn't "Nyad," something I wonder if DN herself knows. I put together a brief Aris Nyad timeline. I find fascinating his possible connection to Nelly Nyad, a model who seems to magically appear and then disappear in 1952 or thereabouts.

    suziedods
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Thanks Niek.

    Diana has never answered any of my messages, so I'm afraid that I can't help with that. I've sent messages through her website and her facebook page. No luck.

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited September 2017

    Ms. Nyad is going to contribute her two cents to a New Yorker Festival panel called "Fearless: Life on the Edge." Anybody know anyone at the New Yorker to talk with about this? Nyad shouldn't be allowed to cavort with the likes of Honnold, Mancino or Petit.

  • loneswimmerloneswimmer IrelandCharter Member

    The MSF team would like to demonstrate our support and belief in the importance of @danslos' site to the sport.

    We think the community would like to help ensure the site's future by crowdfunding ten year's registration costs of the domain.

    Purchasing a domain registration for a long time in advance is a declaration of trust and honesty. It has some influence in determining how well a site ranks in Google.

    Four years cover are already agreed by the MSF team, @evmo, @malinak and @emkhowley & myself.

    To demonstrate community support, we're going to open it up for others to get involved if they wish.

    I'm sure we will have no difficulty crowdfunding from another six sponsors. We are assuming a registration cost of $15 per year (but I haven't clarified that).

    We have already discussed privately with @danslos. He was commendably concerned about MSF perceived partisanship, but that ship has already sailed, and the MSF team all think it important that MSF speak out in the sport's interest when others won't. So we are in agreement.

    For anyone else interested, please PM me directly and I can arrange it with @danslos and his Registrar. On the slight chance someone from outside the forum is reading and wishes to get involved, my email is loneswimmer@loneswimmer.com.

    Once we agree you can Paypal me the $15, and I will finalise. I will only accept what is needed for site registration. As soon as I think I have sufficient interest I will update this thread.

    It would be important to note: The site belongs and will continue to belong to @danslos, with no control or input from anyone else. It's his entirely and always will be and he will be beholden to us in no way.

    evmomalinakaSoloDanSimonellipavlicovgregoc

    loneswimmer.com

  • emkhowleyemkhowley Boston, MACharter Member

    danslos said:
    Ms. Nyad is going to contribute her two cents to a New Yorker Festival panel called "Fearless: Life on the Edge." Anybody know anyone at the New Yorker to talk with about this? Nyad shouldn't be allowed to cavort with the likes of Honnold, Mancino or Petit.

    Et tu, New Yorker? sigh It's sad to see another publication I aspire to write for falling for this hooey (Outside being the other that comes immediately to mind). If I knew who and how to pitch the NYer, I would, with a story about the real marathon women and the unadorned facts about how they're moving mountains in the sea. But that publication has always been a mystery wrapped in an enigma for many of us freelancers.

    IronMikessthomasStephenDanSimonelligregoc

    Stop me if you've heard this one...
    A grasshopper walks into a bar...
    https://elainekhowley.com/

  • loneswimmerloneswimmer IrelandCharter Member

    No-one should feel obliged, this is entirely voluntary.

    Small update: There are two domains we want to help protect, essentially mirrors of each other. We now have nine people after a few hours, but with a second domain, we can use eleven more supporters.

    Thanks all.

    DanSimonelli

    loneswimmer.com

  • malinakamalinaka Seattle, WACharter Member

    Donal doesn't have an NPR fund drive where he's from, but just pretend Ari Shapiro, Terry Gross, and Peter Sagal all telling you the fastest way to get back to your regular programming.

    evmoMoCogregoc

    I don't wear a wetsuit; it gives the ocean a sporting chance.

  • ssthomasssthomas DenverCharter Mem​ber
    edited September 2017

    emkhowley said:

    danslos said:
    Ms. Nyad is going to contribute her two cents to a New Yorker Festival panel called "Fearless: Life on the Edge." Anybody know anyone at the New Yorker to talk with about this? Nyad shouldn't be allowed to cavort with the likes of Honnold, Mancino or Petit.

    Et tu, New Yorker? sigh It's sad to see another publication I aspire to write for falling for this hooey (Outside being the other that comes immediately to mind). If I knew who and how to pitch the NYer, I would, with a story about the real marathon women and the unadorned facts about how they're moving mountains in the sea. But that publication has always been a mystery wrapped in an enigma for many of us freelancers.

    I'm intrigued by this. It appears all of the New Yorker writers have Twitter handles (the person who did the profile on Nyad, for example, is: twitter.com/avlskies). I wonder if tweeting them would have any impact on their perception of her or present an opportunity for Elaine to give a different perspective? I'm not a Twitter expert by any means- any thoughts? It really is disturbing that she's in a group with Honnold or Petit. I've been in groups with pro runners and triathletes and not felt worthy- it's ghastly that she would hold herself as equal with true pioneers.

    evmoDanSimonelli
  • evmoevmo SydneyAdmin
    edited September 2017

    ssthomas said:

    It appears all of the New Yorker writers have Twitter handles (the person who did the profile on Nyad, for example, is: twitter.com/avlskies). I wonder if tweeting them would have any impact on their perception of her or present an opportunity for Elaine to give a different perspective?

    I tweet at Ariel Levy (twitter.com/avlskies) annually or so, just to remind her I still remember the atrocities she committed against the journalism profession. Her DN puff piece led me to unsubscribe for 2 years from the New Yorker, which is saying something since I'd been a subscriber for about half my life.

    And don't forget Stephanie Pearson of Outside - https://twitter.com/stephanieapears

    And everyone listed here:
    http://diananyad.com/press/

    ssthomasIronMikeDanSimonelligregoc
  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member

    evmo said:
    And everyone listed here:
    http://diananyad.com/press/

    Pretty much, you just did this to all of us. Ugg...

    We're all just carbon, water, starlight, oxygen and dreams

  • DanSimonelliDanSimonelli San Diego CASenior Member

    Count me in! I'm good for a domain reg year!

  • I hope this won't be perceived as too aggressive but if the higher profile long distance swimmers in our community each sponsor the site for a year as Dan has just done, then making that known to the NY'er and sponsors would be a pretty strong message. No offence to us every day swimmers but if the Dan's and Chloe's of this world were to take a stand it would carry greater weight.

  • MoCoMoCo Worcester, MASenior Member

    WarmWater said:
    I hope this won't be perceived as too aggressive but if the higher profile long distance swimmers in our community each sponsor the site for a year as Dan has just done, then making that known to the NY'er and sponsors would be a pretty strong message. No offence to us every day swimmers but if the Dan's and Chloe's of this world were to take a stand it would carry greater weight.

    I don't feel strongly either way, but if that's the tactic we go with feel free to use my sponsor $s towards general MSF costs.

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    I haven't been sure how to respond to the support and generosity about the site. I'm incredibly moved and thankful. In my naïvete, I figured that, after I posted the original site back in January, Diana would fess up. It might take a little while, but that'd be the end of it. So the increased push that you've provided has been a big help (like a massive current pushing me north?).

    COMPARISON PATHS?
    It occurred to me, after the message from @curly about providing comparison speeds, that I should also provide comparison paths. Does anyone know if any GPS data or charts remain available for any previous Cuba-Florida attempts by Nyad or anyone else? I'd like to drive home the point graphically that Nyad's 2013 path was impossible.

    So far, all that I've found is this graphic, which is based on this graphic.

  • loneswimmerloneswimmer IrelandCharter Member

    I just wanted to offer a final chance for anyone to get involved in supporting the site, as a couple of people who had expressed a desire didn't complete their transactions so this is gentle indirect reminder, in case they wish to so do,as we are not yet yet fully funded.

    I'll be closing this by the end of this week, as I was on holidays last week.

    loneswimmer.com

  • I'll donate $15 bucks if no one of greater status steps up. Those journos will have to reconsider once they hear the mighty WarmWater's stepped into the ring....

  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Thanks again to all who are helping out with this.

    Thanks to the MSF, I'm experimenting with a site/blog on which I post material that didn't make it onto the main Fact Check site. The first entry examines Nyad's absurd declaration that

    all the great swimmers of the ocean have tried [to swim from Cuba to Florida]—male, female, young, strong, fast….

    I count up everyone who has attempted the crossing, including a 1950 Cuban relay. See Diana Nyad Fact Check Annex. Larger version.

    JSwimpavlicovIronMikeevmo
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Thanks to all who contributed to the domain-renewal fund. I can't renew them until the end of next month. I'll let you know when that happens.

    In the mean time, I've made a new delivery to the DN Annex, "Why Does Diana Nyad Make Stuff Up." The post provided a good excuse to bring back a video of the same name that missed the main site cut.

    DanSimonellipavlicov
  • pavlicovpavlicov NYC USASenior Member
    edited September 2017

    danslos said:

    a video of the same name

    That video is great but it is very hard for me to understand young Nyad over the music ... What does she say there?

    danslos
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    That video is great but it is very hard for me to understand young Nyad over the music ... What does she say there?

    @pavlicov, sorry about that. In response to "it's whether they love you," she says, "Absolutely true. Any swimmer would tell you that." Young Diana #2 says:

    Every one of those six trainers, they cried desperately when I finished, as did most of the news crew.

    pavlicov
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Three things...

    1. First, mark your calendars! "GRIT, GUTS, AND GRACE..." with DN this coming Monday in Beverly Hills.

    2. "Diana Nyad | On Inspiration, Motivation and the Drive to Succeed.". Nyad's first lines in this interview:

      My direct, conscious goal is not to be better than others. My intense focus is to be my best self.

    3. New post at the DN Annex about Gavin Mortimer's great book, The Great Swim. I was mainly interested in the book's coverage of Mille Gade, 2nd to swim the EC and 2nd around Manhattan (1921). But the post also looks at Mortimer's take on touching (i.e. the boat and other people).

    DanSimonelliIronMikepavlicov
  • evmoevmo SydneyAdmin

    danslos said:
    Ms. Nyad is going to contribute her two cents to a New Yorker Festival panel called "Fearless: Life on the Edge." Anybody know anyone at the New Yorker to talk with about this? Nyad shouldn't be allowed to cavort with the likes of Honnold, Mancino or Petit.

    Thanks to a certain Forum member (who wishes to remain unnamed) for taping the recent New Yorker panel. Here are the DN excerpts:

    DocScottpavlicovIronMikeDanSimonellidanslosLynnkub
  • DanSimonelliDanSimonelli San Diego CASenior Member

    Gawd!! :-&
    She's so fkg nauseating and boring!!

    danslosKatieBunLynnkubCamille
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited October 2017

    Partly in honor of Nyad's "Fearless!" appearance but mostly because I wanted to explain why the DN Fact Check site opens with Manhattan, I just posted to the DN Annex: Diana Nyad’s Manhattan Project. If nothing else, there's a cool picture of a jellyfish (surrounded by Fearless! fish) and another one with dolphins bodysurfing.

    Also added a page that will hopefully make Nyad's Manhattan lie as clear and explicit as possible: Nyad's Manhattan 1st.

    Sorry if I've mentioned this before, but the key to listening to or watching Nyad, given her tendency to cause emesis, is to listen or watch at a minimum of double speed. If anyone needs app recommendations, I'd be glad to provide them.

    evmossthomaspavlicovrlmDanSimonelliLynnkub
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited October 2017

    DanSimonelli said:
    Gawd!! :-&
    She's so fkg nauseating and boring!!

    But you have to love her "titanium cap of will." I'm not sure where she says it, but it's one for the ages. I want one, but all I can find so far is a titanium cap of water bottle.

    Karl_KingeryDanSimonelli
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber

    Just added a post--about Nyad's "Fearless!" appearance--to the Fact Check Annex: Manhattan Project 2: The Titanium Cap of Will.

    Also, in case friends or family could use a quick briefing, I added a bare-bones summary of Nyad's fabrications: Summary of Diana's Deceptions.

    In looking at the Manhattan swim, I re-read Nyad's 2011 non-response response to CNN's fact-checking, History Rewritten….to my GREAT Surprise! . I missed a ton of stuff in there. In particular, the bits about her grandfather, George Warrington Curtis, may be entirely made up.

    I'm hoping to do an exegesis of that letter for another post, but there's just so much :^o

    DanSimonelli
  • danslosdanslos Los Angeles, CAMem​ber
    edited October 2017

    More Manhattan: A scrapbook of Newspaper Clippings of Nyad’s Manhattan Predecessors.

    Also, in History Rewritten….to my GREAT Surprise!, you'll find this seemingly innocuous fact: "My grandparents...were all born in Manhattan." But none of her grandparents were born in Manhattan--maternal, paternal nor step.

    Nyad gains little or nothing from lying about that, so why'd she do it? One of the characteristics of pathological and/or compulsive liars is that they lie for no apparent reason. In other words, "falsification entirely disproportionate to any discernible end in view" (via wikipedia). I think that explains it.

    DanSimonelli
This discussion has been closed.