Lyle Nalli has been swimming, literally, for decades along the black lines of pools throughout the United States.
Over the decades, he also dabbled with playing water polo and did many local open water swims, including swimming on a record-setting Catalina Channel relay in 6 hours 53 minutes in 2001 with Hank Wise (43), Ted Bramble (40), Matty Mitchell (44), Parks Wesson (50), and Lexie Kelly (24) with alternate swimmer Samantha Sears, paddlers Benjamin Landis and Matt Landis, and escort boat Captain Greg Wise.
But after 35 years of practicing podiatry and dealing with all kinds of medical industry changes throughout his career, Dr. Nalli finally retired and has been traveling throughout Italy and France with his wife Cindy.
He has been enjoying surfing and open water swimming at every stop, from Normandy to Corsica.
Dr. Nalli talks about his activities during his far-flung adventures, “I swim whenever and wherever the opportunity arises. Sometimes, I surf or bodysurf and do a lot of hiking, too. I am always scouting out potential swim sites and working out different forms of transportation to these locations. I do the appropriate stretching and dryland training as needed. I found I needed a few particular shoulder stretches to avoid joint pain when I return to regular training.
I also keep track of my mileage using my Garmin for swimming, surfing, hiking, and walks.
I also make sure to keep a camera around because side stories nearly always arise. Today, for instance, after a swim in a mountain lake during a 4-mile hike, the local town of Évisa in the windy mountain roads had a pizzeria. They served not only exceptional food, but owner and staff were also characters of comic relief.
The history of Europe is just fascinating, the architecture is beautiful, the local culture is wonderful to learn and appreciate, the foods are out of this world. And the sunrises and sunsets just seem so rich and deep with color.
Wherever we go, it is a time and place to go out, experience the new place, make friendly contact with people, and make it a memorable experience. These are the things that Cindy and I will never forget and always appreciate.
Our travels in Europe remind me of swimming in an outdoor hotel pool in New Zealand years ago. I looked up at the night sky, but nothing was recognizable to me. There was no Big Dipper in the sky. I figured out what I saw was the Southern Cross when it finally occurred to me my earthly location.
These are great times to enjoy and remember for a lifetime.”
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