Fort Pierce boat in Cuba to Florida swim

Endurance athlete and champion swimmer Diana Nyad, 62, announced Friday morning that they are the third attempt to swim the Florida Straits from Cuba to launch. This time can work in favor of the Treasure Coast connection.

Jaye Melanson, a yacht broker with East West Yachts and U. S. Coast Guard licensed 100-ton Master Captain, and her husband Jim Paris Ella was asked to support one of the ships will participate in Nyad time the 103-mile swim proposed effort.

Melanson said she was pleased to be invited to a 42-foot trawler Kadey Krog, which will be used as a media boat Sunday work. She was asked to select one of the boats are placed Nyad Friday night to run, but the schedule conflicts meant Melanson and her husband could only participate on Sunday.

"To me she is so inspired," Melanson, 64, said. "I've been a triathlete and skier, and she makes me want to get back."

Melanson is still competing. Last weekend, she won the women's helmet races organized by the Fort Pierce Yacht Club.

Nyad, Melanson and Paris Ella will drive to Key West on Saturday afternoon. Sunday will ship media representatives from CNN and the Los Angeles radio station by appointment seagoing environment Nyad they.

Melanson, hoping to witness history Nyad reached the shore and under its own power draws on the shore of one of the keys between Key West and Marathon.

As it did in his August 17 trial Nyad guide kayakers, which protects them from the sharks and other marine pests. She gets food from a tube of peanut butter sandwiches, pasta, water, oxygen, drugs and a new swimsuit, but her team could not help it any other way.

To mind its own, especially at night, she sings songs by The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin.

"I've never - it is the norm - I've never seen, because it is very depressing to the horizon without the light, nothing and I've never asked my coach here in the boat, what time is, or is" we are almost. really? "Nyad said." They're going to tell me when we drive for 10 hours. "

Nyad tried first Florida Straits as a 28-year-old cross in 1978, when she swam in the shark cage steel for about 42 hours before ending the experiment.

Its August 17 trials and 29 hours for 50 miles to shoulder pain, and asthma attacks forced it to cut it short.