Jay spent the night at the Comfort Inn in St. Catherines to get a good rest last night.

Some of the crew took the Precious Lady from Toronto to Niagara-on-the-Lake yesterday and took several water temperature readings along the way. The water temperature ranged from 62 to 70 degrees!

Jay will be at the Queen’s Royal Park by 9:30 to be ready for a 10 am start! We hope there is a big crowd to cheer him on. Expect periodic updates today. Oh, and also check out this nice little article from The Toronto Sun!

10:30 am

Jay left Queen’s Royal Park at Niagara-on-the-Lake at 10:10am. The weather was great for those of us on shore but will create one metre high waves for Jay and may blow him off course. A small crowd cheered him on. One well wisher was a man who has a son with autism who understands why Jay would want to educate others about autism spectrum disorders. Thanks to the Niagara-on-the-Lake Sailing Club for providing us with two berths last night.

12:38 pm

Jay is maintaining a pace of 3.2 km per hour, faster than we anticipated! The Kingston media have been fantastic. Jim Elliot from The Drive will be interviewing Jay’s parents today. 96.3 FM spoke with the Program Supervisor from the Ministry of Children and Youth Services who is responsible on matters pertaining to autism and who is a pacer for Jay.

5:00 pm

Jay is keeping up a better than anticipated pace in waves ranging from 0.3 to 0.4 metres. Initially we thought that Jay was swimming quickly because of the calm waters for the first stretch but it appears that his training at Progress Fitness is the reason he is doing so well! Thankfully the crew is not adversely affected by high waves as has been the case for other marathon swimmers and have been able to enjoy the food donated by The Vegatable Fix.

10:00 pm

Jay is doing well and eating in the water has not created a problem for him. He had a bit of a lag as his arms were sore for a while but he is doing well again. Two of his volunteers have been in the water swimming alongside Jay. Eden has encouraged Jay for two 45 minute periods. Andra swam with Jay for 1.5 hours tonight. Jay is in good spirits and in great form. The night swim is a dangerous time and there are several safety measures in place to ensure that Jay remains safe. Two zodiaks are keeping close to him with flashlights donated by the Cataraqui Canadian Tire. Thanks to Bay Port Yachting Centre for making the zodiaks available. Jay’s crew enjoyed watching the stunning sunset while watching Jay swim.

Overnight

The crew enjoyed their evening cruise under tons of stars as they proudly watched Jay conquer what is likely to be the hardest part of his swim. Pam, Jay’s volunteer coach, did a really good job of talking him through a second period of experiencing pain in his arms. The guys from Gavercon and Hometech have been a great help operating the zodiaks. We want to thank both Gavercon and Hometech for their generous financial contribution even though we made a mistake with your logo on the event T-Shirts (SORRY)!

July 29th 6:15am

Everything is going well and we expect Jay to arrive at Marilyn Bell Park between 7pm and midnight. As we have planned a fun day in support of Jay’s efforts to raise awareness of Asperger’s Syndrome, we hope that there will be a lot of people at the park to cheer him into shore. Come and enjoy the activities that start at 2pm and the free live entertainment that begins at 3pm at Marilyn Bell Park. The water has been calm and there was no boat traffic last night, but as they get closer to Toronto this morning they are expecting more traffic. Jay has been drinking and eating hourly based on the very detailed and personalized meal plan that Dr. Vogt volunteered her time to provide. Understandably, Jay is slowing down so he is now accompanied by two pacers to try and give him another boost to help bring him out of the difficult time he had last night. Jay typically swims at 2 km per hour but has slowed to 1/2 km per hour; it is expected that he will pick up the pace again.

8:00 am

Jay could see the Toronto sky line lit up overnight, and now as it gets lighter he can still see Ontario Place – right beside where he is planning to come to shore at Marilyn Bell Park. Jay is currently 11 km from shore and is getting close to the Humber River current which he will have to work against. He is encouraged by everyone’s support. Jay’s friend Peter kayaked beside him all night and the crew is loudly cheering him on. Please keep sending your comments on Jay’s website as we are sending them to the crew to be read to him during his feeding breaks. The Kingston community has been a great support for Jay from the time that he started training. Jay’s volunteers marvel at the fact that as we promoted Jay Serdula’s Swim for Asperger’s we were continually told, “Oh, I know Jay” and were told another great story about Jay. When Jay made a purchase at Wool-Tyme very early on in the planning of the marathon swim, they promised a sponsorship and delivered on that promise. The Kingston media promised to support Jay’s swim and have been fantastic in pursuing up to date information on how Jay is doing. We are getting messages that people have heard about Jay on FLY FM and 96.3 FM and read about him in the Whig. As we are in Toronto, please send comments on Jay’s websites so we can tell his fans what radio stations to listen to and what television stations to watch and what papers to read for news about Jay. We can’t forget about Jay’s hometown Deep River! Ever since Jay was sanctioned by Solo Swims of Ontario, there has been a generous flow of donations from people who have known Jay for a long time. Let’s hope the Toronto community catches the spirit and joins us today at Marilyn Bell Park. The Toronto Sun ran a story about Jay this morning and the Toronto Star has expressed interest in being at the shoreline when Jay gets to Toronto! There is another big community that can help Jay – the Autism Spectrum Disorder community. Yes, Jay is looking for donations to help fund support for people who also have Asperger’s Syndrome, but his other goal is to raise awareness. Jay wishes that he had been diagnosed earlier so that his teachers would have understood why he had trouble with communication (such as taking the words literally and not understanding what was meant to be communicated), why he didn’t always react as expected in particular social situations and why he had trouble accepting change. There are many children who have a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome who wish that people still understood these very same things. Let’s help Jay and others who have Asperger’s to break down the barriers they face by telling people about Jay Serdula’s Swim for Asperger’s and provide information about the syndrome.

9:15 am

Once the sun came out and the pacers got in the water, Jay’s pace improved again.

11:00 am

Jay is going a bit faster now, and is averaging 2 mph. One of the zodiac’s is coming into Marilyn Bell Park to get supplies and more gas; we should have another update then. Thanks to Merry PAWppins Pet Care Services for relaying updates to our volunteer webmaster Eric today.

2:45 pm

Apparently someone spotted white caps on the Lake Ontario shore. As someone not personally vested in swimming I concede to not knowing what that means. However, I expect to receive an update on this from the boat very soon.

3:00 pm

Jay continues to keep up a reasonable pace, though is experiencing resistance from the Humber River basin as he gets closer to the Toronto shoreline. As a result of the strong currents, Jay and the crew have decided to alter the point of landing to the Leslie St. Spit (Vicki Keith Point). This will reduce his swimming time by an anticipated 3 hours. At present, Jay is expected to arrive between 7 and 11 pm. The reception has started at Marilyn Bell Park, and will continue there. People are encouraged to stay at Marilyn Bell Park until Jay’s arrival. We will keep people updated regularly, via this site.

3:45 pm

We have confirmed Jay’s impending arrival at the Leslie Street Spit with Toronto Port Authority. We would like to thank Michael at the TPA for accomodating this last minute change and for arranging security. Vehicle access will be restricted. For those at Marilyn Bell Park, please contact Laura regarding vehicle access for those designated as cleared. The press are asked to continue to contact Chris, at the number that has been provided. Jay’s anticipated arrival remains 8:00 pm. Individuals are welcome to walk to the lakeshore at the spit, although they should be aware that it is a 5 km hike from the parking lot. The reception party will continue at Marilyn Bell Park. Jay continues to be successful in his efforts to cross Lake Ontario.

6:30 pm

Jay is 2.9 miles from shore. He has changed direction and is heading for the Leslie Street Spit. He has been struggling against the current and as a result it is anticipated that he will not reach shore until approximately 10:00 pm. We would like to thank the media for supporting Jay during the swim, and agreeing to meet him at the Leslie Street Spit. A special thanks to Angela at the Whig Standard, Bryn at the Toronto Sun, and Megan at the Toronto Star.

9:00 pm

Jay is struggling against the current, finding it difficult to make headway, however his spirits and determination remain high. He is presently 2.3 miles from shore. At this rate, it is anticipated it will take another 4 hours to complete the crossing. We are concerned about a potential storm that is developing and could arrive in the area as early as 10:00pm. Jay’s crew remain diligent in maintaining his safety at all times. The media attention has been exceptional and clearly Jay has already achieved his goal of raising awareness regarding Asperger’s Syndrome.

9:40 pm

Jay’s sister has joined him in the water to support him on the last stretch. This has given Jay lots of motivation and energy. His family has also joined him on an adjacent boat. It’s been a long swim, but he’s almost there.

10:30 pm

Jay’s friends and family have been shuttled from the shore at the Leslie Street Spit out to the 68 foot lead boat Precious Lady (Captain John Crawford) and the 33 foot formula boat (Captain Dave Keates). The weather looks more favourable and Jay continues to push for the shore. He is anticipated to arrive around 1:00 am.

3:10am

Jay was successful, as he successfully swam across Lake Ontario as promised. He arrived at 3:10am; the swim took a total of 41 hours and 10 minutes. Congratulations Jay!

8:45 am

Jay is recovering in hospital, where he is getting some well deserved sleep and is under observation. The family really appreciates all of the support, especially that of the volunteers and those on the boats.

We are very excited and grateful for all of the media attention. All of Jay’s training and perseverance yesterday has led to the outcome that Jay had hoped for: people are talking about Asperger’s Syndrome. At present, Jay has no voice and therefore is not available for interviews. When Jay finished his swim he had moderate hypothermia; his body temperature dropped to 32.5 degrees Celsius but was back up within a few hours. Jay is recovering in the hospital and our primary concern is his return to full health. Unfortunately, we are not sure how long he will require to recover until he is reassessed by a doctor.

The media who have followed Jay can continue with their present contacts. Those wanting interviews when Jay is available can contact cjohnson@kerrysplace.org.