My Passion with Stacey Johnson: Being thrown in at the deep end sparked a sporting life

My passion for swimming began when I was really small, and I now compete in one-mile open-water swimming competitions in Yorkshire and the north of England.

I train with the Manvers Triathlon Team in their lake at Wath-on-Dearne.

I would never have imagined that, as a young child, being thrown into the deep end at my local swimming baths by my father would inspire me to take up the sport on a competitive basis. He had promised to buy me some goggles if I swam a width, and so I somehow managed.

Fast forward a few years, and when I came across a company that operates guided swims down the Thames, I decided to go for it when he once again promised me some new goggles.

Friends, family and colleagues assumed it was all for charity, and I inadvertently managed to raise £650 for the British Heart Foundation. I even had money thrown at me on the holiday itself by people on a passing barge who thought I was crazy.

Most people presume that I want to swim the Channel or do longer swims, but I prefer being fast. Short races give me something to aim for in the training pool – and it’s much more exciting.

Mile races get very competitive and there’s lots of pushing and shoving. I’ve had countless elbows in the face (and, admittedly, have probably given a few, too).

I swim about 15 miles every week and I find it very relaxing after a hard day at work.

Not all of my experiences have been pleasant, however. When I was part way down the Thames once I breathed in the wrong place and swallowed a massive beetle.

I began flailing about in the water, but as I was alone, the only help on hand was from a herd of cows in an adjacent field who came over to have a look, but then returned to chewing the cud.

On the same swim in the Thames, the guide had warned us about how aggressive swans can be if you’re near them in the water.

I rounded a corner to find a flock of around 50 of them closing in on me, so I had to drag myself out of the water onto a boggy marsh, tiptoe through the mud around them and then jump back in.

In a race through Salford Quays, a fellow swimmer’s foot hit me so hard in the face I had to stop for a while, when I realised I was floating over the top of a shopping trolley and a few bikes.

It all makes for some great stories over dinner though, and the regular exercise keeps me fit.

It’s not for the faint-hearted, but for those people who love a challenge, and I do, competitive swimming is one of the best sports you can do.