新概念2和3反復出現的英吉利海峽，現在讓我們一起看看如何征服它吧^_^
新概念三Lesson20講述了勇敢的飛行員Latham和Bleriot嘗試穿越英吉利海峽的故事。現在大家想要跨越它不用這么驚險，只要搭乘火車就好啦！不過還是有很多冒險家們試圖用各種方式來跨越英吉利海峽，我們來看看跨越英吉利海峽的5種方法，大家看看是不是夠創意夠驚險呢？
5 Ways to across English Channel
跨越英吉利海峽的5種方法
The English Channel is the part of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Britain from France. When people attempt new ways of crossing the channel, they do it at the Strait of Dover, which is the narrowest point of the channel at only 34 kilometers between Dover and Calais.
英吉利海峽從屬于大西洋，它分隔了英國和法國。由于多佛（英國東南部的港口）和加來（法國城市）之間的多佛海峽長度僅有34千米，所以當人們嘗試用新方法跨越英吉利海峽時通常會選擇這個最窄點。
The cachet of crossing the channel is way out of proportion to its distance. There is something symbolic about making the trip, particularly if you do it in a new way.
雖然英吉利海峽的跨度不大，可是跨越它的成就感可是大大超過了英吉利海峽的寬度！跨越英吉利海峽是有象征意義的，尤其是用一種很新穎的方式。
1. Balloon 氣球法
The first channel crossing by air was in the 18th century. French balloonist Jean-Pierre Blanchard and American doctor John Jeffries took off from Dover Castle in a hydrogen balloon on January 7th, 1785. The two had to pitch almost everything they took overboard in order to stay afloat, but landed unharmed at France about two and a half hours later.
在18世紀就有人第一次通過飛行的方式穿越英吉利海峽了。1785年1月7日，法國氣球飛行家Jean-Pierre Blanchard和美國醫生John Jeffries從多佛堡乘氫氣球出發。在路途中，他們不得不把所有東西都扔出氣球外才能維持漂浮狀態。不過最終在兩個半小時后，他們兩個還是毫發無損地到達了法國。
2. Swim 游泳法
The first man to swim the channel was Captain Matthew Webb in 1875. It took 21 hours and 45 minutes. Webb trained for two years and made an unsuccessful attempt a couple of weeks before his historic crossing. He became a celebrity and a professional swimmer afterward. Webb died while attempting to swim the Whirlpool Rapids under Niagara Falls in 1883.
在1875年，誕生了第一個游泳跨越英吉利海峽的男人—Matthew Webb。他花了21個小時45分鐘游完了全程。Webb已經為此訓練了2年，在他成功的前幾個星期，他還有一次不成功的嘗試。在這個歷史性的跨越后，他成為了一個名人和專業游泳選手。在1883年，當Webb嘗試穿越尼亞加拉大瀑布下方的Whirlpool急流時，他不幸身亡了。
The first woman to swim the channel not only broke ground for her sex, but beat the time of the five men who preceded her by at least two hours! American swimmer Gertrude Ederle had already won a gold medal and two bronze medals at the 1924 Olympics.
第一位游過英吉利海峽的女性是美國游泳選手Gertrude Ederle。她的突破并不僅體現在性別上，更厲害的是：她的用時比在她之前游泳跨越海峽的5位男性至少快了2個小時！在跨越海峽之前，她已經在1924年的奧運會上獲得了兩塊銅牌和一塊金牌。
3. Pedal 踏板法
The first human-powered flight across the channel occurred in 1979 when the Gossamer Albatross piloted by cyclist Bryan Allen flew over the channel in 2 hours and 39 minutes. It was powered by pedals that turned propellers.
在1947年，第一次人力飛行跨越英吉利海峽成功了。自行車選手Bryan Allen駕駛著Gossamer Albatross飛越了海峽，用時2小時39分鐘。飛行器由腳踏板來提供螺旋槳的動力。
4. Train 火車法
Since May 6, 1994 it is possible to cross the channel by train. It was on that day the Channel Tunnel officially opened. A Eurostar train left Folkestone carrying Queen Elizabeth II, and another left Coquelles carrying French president Francois Mitterand. In addition to passengers, trains carry trucks and other vehicles underneath the Strait of Dover.
從1994年5月6日起，由于英倫海峽海底隧道的開放，人們就能通過火車穿越英吉利海峽啦。當天歐洲之星列車載著英國伊麗莎白女王離開福克斯頓（英國肯特郡東部港市），而另一輛火車則載著當時的法國總統密特朗從科蓋爾（法國）出發。在多弗海峽的海底，除了搭載乘客，列車同樣運載火車和其他交通工具。
5. Skydive 跳傘法
In 2003, Australian Felix Baumgartner became the first person to skydive across the channel. He jumped out of a plane over Dover and landed in Cap Blanc-Nez, France 14 minutes later. Baumgartner wore an aerodynamic suit with a 6-foot carbon fin attached to guide his flight.
2003年，澳大利亞人Felix Baumgartner成為了第一個通過跳傘跨越英吉利海峽的人。他在多佛上空從一架飛機上跳出，最后于14分鐘后降落在法國的Blanc-Nez海角。Baumgartner穿著一件裝了6英尺長（約1.83 米）碳纖維鰭的特制服裝，這個空氣動力學鰭能夠幫助他控制飛行的方向。
