MUDDY CREEK TWP — Training to swim across the English Channel doesn't feel heroic to Bill Wilson.

The 53-year-old Butler man feels relaxed and soothed in the water, actually.

Wilson has suffered from chronic allergic rhinitis — a disease that deprives him of taste and smell without the assistance of steroids — since 1979, when he had his tonsils taken out.

"The water is very soothing to me,"Wilson said. "It takes care of my respiratory system and reduces stress. My body feels its best when I'm swimming."

And Wilson has been swimming a lot. To qualify for an attempt to swim across the English Channel, he must be able to swim six hours in water temperatures below 60 degrees.

He accomplished that feat Saturday at Lake Arthur and has been in training since September of 2005 to do so. Overall, Wilson has been in training for three years and has participated in several open water long distance swims during that time.

"I've gone from swimming two to three miles per week to peaking at 25 or 30 miles per week," he said. "Now I'm going to taper off, relax for a couple of months and get back into training again."

Also an asthmatic, Wilson plans to make the 25-mile swim across the English Channel in August of 2007.

He competed in a pair of 2.4-mile swims in Hawaii in 2004:The North Shore Challenge and the Waikiki Rough Water swims. He did the 4.4-mile Great Chesapeake swim and the 8-mile Boston Lighthouse swim last year.

He recruited Renfrew resident and longtime Carnegie Mellon University swim coach David Belowich to assist him in his training.

Wilson and Belowich met years ago while their sons were in the Butler YMCAswimming program.

Belowich was in a boat Saturday monitoring Wilson's six-hour swim.

"He went six hours, six minutes, non-stop, a steady 58 strokes per minute,"Belowich said. "I couldn't believe it. Bill is very, very serious about this.

"I wish my college guys had that kind of dedication. Bill really inspired me."

Wilson's distance swims have varied in difficulty thus far.

"The North Shore Challenge was beautiful, with so much coral and colorful fish around you," Wilson said. "It was almost magical.

"The Chesapeake swim was tough because I was fighting waves two to four feet high."

Wilson swam for the Seneca Valley High School team for two years, but gave it up because he didn't like swimming competitively.

Eventually, he got out of swimming completely for fear it would irritate his health conditions.

Then he learned otherwise.

"I read about Michael Read, who is also asthmatic, swimming the English Channel for a record-tying 32nd time at age 63 (in 2004) and that inspired me to get back in the water,"Wilson said.

"I got into distance swimming because of the relaxation. Once I get over the initial shock of first hitting the water and settling in, I found I could go on for hours.

"After a while, I figured I was capable of swimming the English Channel," Wilson added.

So he decided to go for it.

Wilson and his wife, Diane, have been married for 30 years. They have three sons — Adam, Brent and Ben — all of whom learned to swim at the Butler YMCA. Adam was a distance swimmer for the West Virginia University men's swim team.Wilson practices in the Butler YMCApool at night. He swims daily during his lunch break at the Pittsburgh Westin Executive Fitness Center, which has a 40-yard pool."Some people think I'm crazy,"Wilson said. "My wife thinks I'm having a mid-life crisis ... But she's been very supportive through all of this."Wilson's middle son, Brent, serves as his personal lifeguard and charts laps when his father is practicing by himself."I don't want him out here alone,"Brent Wilson said Friday, while watching his father swim half a mile in 57-degree water temperature at Lake Arthur. "I think he's crazy, but I admire what he's doing."He's not doing this for glory or money. He's doing it for self-satisfaction."During a particularly stressful day at work, Wilson called it a day at 11:30 a.m. and headed to the Westin pool.He began swimming at 11:45 a.m. and did not stop until 8:43 p.m., conquering 16 miles and 1,400 laps."That was a sensory deprivation workout,"he explained. "When you're swimming for miles, you get so relaxed and in-tune that you have out-of-body experiences."After a while, you have no idea how long you've been in the water."At the speed of his six-hour swim Saturday, Wilson will need nearly 18 hours to complete a swim across the English Channel."He needs to pick up a little speed and he'll probably do that,"Bel owich said. "Bill's doing better now than I thought he could be. His attitude and mental approach right now are outstanding."He swam six hours in 56 to 58-degree water temperature. He has a lot of confidence now. That (positive) reinforcement will sustain him for the next year."Wilson will need about $4,500 to cover his swim across the Channel with an accompanying boat. He hopes to pick up sponsorships during the coming months.He plans to swim the Channel for two charities:The Pump McLaughlin Statue Fund and Hurricane Katrina relief."My sons were all taught how to swim by Pump," Wilson said. "I have so much respect for that man. I know the statue's pretty much paid for, but I'm going to donate money regardless."