Running Up That Seabed

The one…

hen Sports Illustrated photographer Flip Schulke arrived at a Miami hotel to do a photoshoot with Muhammad Ali back in 1961, he was in for a surprise.

Ali – then still known as Cassius Clay – informed him that on a trainer’s recommendation, he was now shadow boxing underwater.

Only trouble was, Sports Illustrated weren’t buying. So Schulke approached Life magazine, and they instantly fell in love with the idea. They also, like Schulke, fell for a spoof from Ali, who had created the fictitious training routine on the spot.

Well, it seems quite a few people are falling for Greystones diver Dave Kerr’s similar routine. Only, when it comes to underwater running, rock in hand, young Kerr ain’t taking the Muhammad.

“This is really all the fault of my dad, Albert,” says Dave. “Given that he’s been scuba diving for 46 years now, and still going strong at 79, it was inevitable that I’d become a life-long member of Wicklow Aquanauts Scuba Diving Club too. I began when I was 14, and now, 40 years later, I’ve thrown off that scuba gear and just go underwater with nothing but my togs and goggles.”

And the obligatory large rock.

“Well, yeah, that’s part of the kick. Underwater rock running originated decades ago but became very popular in the ’90s with surfers who wanted to train for the stress of wipe-outs and potentially being underwater for minutes at a time. It starts with practicing on dry land, holding your breath for longer and longer lengths of time. I’m up to 3 minutes and 45 seconds – which is quite a way off the 10-minute-plus goal that some achieve.”

Part of the regular South Beach year-round sea swimmers, Dave and his buddy Brian Gilmore usually hang back after that morning dip and head for the seabed. “We basically hold our breath, duck-dive to the bottom, grab an appropriately weighted boulder or rock – somewhere between 15kg and 25kg – and run as long as we can underwater.

“The depth varies but normally, anything up to 6 metres is comfortable for us. We are up to 83 steps, which would equate to about a minute and 30 seconds underwater. You’re exerting a lot of energy, of course, but we would do around 10 of these dives each morning.”

Every difficult step is worth it for Dave and Brian though. Mainly because, it seems, running down that deep can get you pretty darn high.

“It makes you feel so energised mainly because you become hypoxic,” explains Dave. “”Which is a lack of oxygen to the tissues, and it gives you a tingling feeling throughout your body. And once you get that feeling, you’re hooked.

“Basically, it’s well worth all the strange looks we’ve been getting down on the South Beach…”