We are swimmers at Vobster Quay. We'll be open water swimming on the 19th of December in cold water to raise money for MNDA. Alex Francis is a swimmer at Vobster Quay and has MND. While Alex attempts to swim 350m the elites will race him to a mile! Others will swim as far as they can manage in the cold water.

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I started swimming in the cold water of Vobster Quay in September 2019, about 4 months after my MND diagnosis. With the help of some very special friends I kept going through the winter months, but had to stop during the first lockdown. When I restarted, later in 2020, my disease had progressed and I had to adapt to my new limitations. Now in the winter of 2020 I'm challenging myself and others to take to the cold water as a way to raise funds for MND Association.

Read the full story of why I love cold water swimming

Recently my swims have consisted of about 100m slow backstroke, followed by neuromuscular exercises and some time upright in the water wearing a flotation belt. The last time I swam a "half lap" of the lake, 350m, was back in March. This will be a big challenge for me and is likely to take me over 30 minutes. The water temperature will be around 9°C and the significant part of the challenge will be staying warm enough despite limited movement. I will have my lovely crew - Jolene, Sara, Neil plus Ali and Richard - watching over me to make sure we all stay safe despite the cold.

I never in a million years thought I would get sick with a terminal illness at the age of 42. I was superfit and healthy with a young family. Life was going really well. And then I was diagnosed.

MND can hit anyone at any time. It is not a lifestyle disease. I cannot tell my children what to do to protect themselves from this threat because we do not know enough about the causes yet.