Borut Strel, left, helps his father, Martin Strel, right, prepare this morning at LeTourneau Landing for today’s swim in the Mississippi River. Strel began swimming the river on July 4 in Minnesota and plans to reach the Gulf of Mexico by Sept. 7. (The Vicksburg Post/C. Todd Sherman)

[08/27/02]Martin Strel, 47, claimed a new world record for durational swimming by breaking his old one when he stroked into Vicksburg on Monday.

Though his trip down the Mississippi continued this morning, Strel, from Mokronog, Slovenia, covered 1,878 miles from Lake Itasca, Minn., in 54 days.

His previous long swim, in the Guinness Book of World Records, was 1,866 miles of Europe’s Danube River in 58 days two years ago.

He stroked downstream with another goal to become the first person to swim the entire Mississippi consecutively. He started on July 4 and plans to complete the swim Sept. 7, a total of 2,360 miles in 66 days, in New Orleans.

“Many swimmers try to swim the river,” Strel said. “The people never made it, now it is my time.”

Strel must average about 40 miles a day to make the feat in the time he has given himself.

He says he must keep swimming regardless.

“Today I don’t feel too good, but I must swim,” Strel said, “Every day around 2 o’clock, I get tired and like to sleep, but I must swim, pain or no pain, I swim.”

Strel said a masseur is most important on a journey like this.

“Every four to five days I get a massage,” Strel said, “Masseur is good.”

Strel travels with a caravan of supporters, which includes his 21-year-old son, Borut, and his 17-year-old daughter, Nina, an event coordinator and a kayak team.

“We are kinda like a Gypsy caravan,” said Guy Haglund, Strel’s event coordinator.

Strel said the three-man team travels in three separate kayaks and directs him where to go and watches out for river traffic.

“The barges slow for us, we have radios to communicate with them,” Strel said.

Although Strel has not had any illnesses to date, he has run into some pretty bad storms.

“In storms I still must swim, better to stay in water than in a metal boat” Strel said. “In Cape Girardeau in Missouri, lightning hit a buoy right next to me and pushed me over.” He said he still swam a little faster.

As for the water quality in the Mississippi River along Vicksburg, Strel said it is “surprisingly good.”

Haglund said water samples have been taken regularly on the trip and studied by the Minnesota Pollution Agency.

Strel said the biggest difference in swimming this river and the many rivers he has swum before is, “This is the mighty Mississippi.”