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Open water swim in race was.....
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 2006-04-15 12:26 AM |
 Mesa |  Subject: Open water swim in race was.....I did a splash & dash race and it was my first open water swim race. It sure did suck. The swim was in Tempe town lake (where AZ Ironman just was). We had 30mph winds that blew the buoy way off course causing many of us to swim a couple of extra hundred meters. I found that when I bumped into people I would tread until I could swim smooth again and then if I made a attempt to draft, they were already moving away to where I couldn't. Anyway... lots of chop and murky water... but I am not going to let it discourage me. I am registered to swim in there again in 2 weeks. It is a 1000 meter swim and I am determined to not have the swim suck! Open water practice is a must now. |
| 2006-04-15 12:31 AM in reply to: #397126 |
Extreme Veteran  570  | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... From what I hear . . . first OWS is the worst. I've only done one so far and I'm certainly hoping that is the case. With those conditions I'm sure the next one will be no problem. |
| 2006-04-15 11:17 AM in reply to: #397126 |
| Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... I had a horrible first open water swim experience. Freezing cold Pacific ocean, tide was rapidly going out, and what was once a normal swim start turned into a mad dash to swim in whatever water was left. Ended up being a 400 metre aquajog. Fuuuuuun. I'm sure anything is going to be better than that, so I actually look forward to my next open water race  |
| 2006-04-15 12:14 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Veteran 192 Draper, Utah | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... My first open swim was in a small town pond filled with ducks and duck poop. The water was about 55 degrees and my friend that I swam with kept swimming to the bank of the pond and throwing up. He threw up four times before we finshed. First time OWS's are the best!!! |
| 2006-04-15 12:21 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Supersonicus Idioticus 2439 Thunder Bay, ON | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... mine was 82 degrees, no wind, sunny day... kind of nice. Don't worry about drafting.. it never helped me either. I think you need to be an expert open water swimmer to draft effectively (and I'm an expert closed water swimmer). The key is to not get too excited about things like that so you don't waste your energy. |
| 2006-04-15 3:01 PM in reply to: #397126 |
| Veteran 298 chicago | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... mine was in a small lake in the NJ pine barrens. The water there is closer to tea than water, a deep red-brown color from all the tannins, with a bit of a metalic taste. I could not even see my arm when it was outstretched, let alone other people in the water. I ended up sighting on just about every stroke, but it taught me to draft because feeling the pull in the water was the only way I knew I was about to swim over somebody. |
| 2006-04-15 3:35 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Pro 6582  Melbourne FL Gold member | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... The next one will be easy One tough 1st OWS there... |
| 2006-04-15 5:10 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Expert 725 Wilmington, NC | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... my first was in chest high surf, back by 6 foot swells. a fair number of the ELITE racers failed to finish. To top it off, the race was a swim-run-bike-run-swim format. Not only did I swim 375 meters in that surf fresh, I did it again at the end. I was DFL, but more than 50 people did SRBR and didn't finish the last swim and I don't know how many didn't even try.
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| 2006-04-15 5:22 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Veteran 270 Tuscaloosa, AL | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... I just did my first open water swim this afternoon. The first minute was a little odd, I just couldn't find my rhythm. I finally settled down and swam OK. This was in a lake with very light chop and I had a hard time sighting. I need to figure something out by next Saturday when I swim in The Gulf. |
| 2006-04-15 6:04 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Master 2314 Gulf Shores, AL | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... Had a similiar experience with the buoy in a race last year. It was supposed to be a 600 swim but the buoy broke loose and nobody figured it out for 15 minutes. Based on my time, I think I swam 1500 and was exhausted cause I went out at a 600 pace. Luckily it wasn't rough cause alot of folks were whipped. |
| 2006-04-15 7:38 PM in reply to: #397126 |
| Expert 1085 New Orleans, LA | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... good luck in two weeks! I had my first OWS experience last weekend (for my tri next weekend) and had trouble breathing. For both of our sakes, I hope 2nd time around is easier |
| 2006-04-15 8:43 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Pro 4100 Wherever the trail takes me, WA. | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... I think that everyone's 1st open water swim is a nightmare. I AM SURE THAT YOU WILL LOOK BACK in a few moths, and laugh about how "BAD" your 1st swim experience was. Hang it there. IT'LL GET BETTER! |
| 2006-04-15 10:25 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Expert 997 Littleton, CO | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... To drop an encouraging note, I LOVE open water swimming. I found that if I relaxed, it was almost a Zen experience. Just me, the water, and the sky. It felt spiritual. I had to work past the crowds and sight buoy's, but on those open stretches, it was like heaven. No walls or flip turns to slow me down, I was able to get into a meditative state and just pull strong through the water. Maybe try to isolate your fear and anxiety thoughts and think about how basic and almost primal OWS'ing is. It's just you, your body, and nature. Everything working perfectly together. I know, I sound like a freak...but I swear that half of OWS is mind over matter! |
| 2006-04-16 8:27 AM in reply to: #397126 |
Member 20 Okinawa, Japan | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... I just started OW swimming a couple weeks ago. It became quickly apparent that OW swim practice is not optional if any race you plan on doing is OW. There are just too many things that you need to get used to. I learned very quickly to absolutely love it, but the first time certainly was an eye opening experience. What seems like an insignificant current to your eyes will potentially become a serious obstacle. Choppy water can be a big problem if you haven't forced yourself to become a bilateral breather. I learned to love it, but it was a learning experience. I doubt anyone jumps in and loves it the first time. I'm surprised that I got used to it so quickly, in fact. The only downside is that, living in Okinawa, it's hard to get anything done since I see the ocean almost 24 hrs a day and have to restrain myself from jumping in. |
| 2006-04-16 4:09 PM in reply to: #397126 |
Master 2629 brummie land | Subject: RE: Open water swim in race was..... did my first (and so far only) ows (apart from in the north sea as a kid and a rather warm indian ocean on my jollies) in salford quays - fecking froze. 1500 all round but no wetsuit. thought my hands had turned into ice by the end. i think it was good fun though - it didn't freak me or anything. looking forward to starting practice soon with a wetsuit  |
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