Kelp Crawl Help ASAP

I don't know what we swam through at the General Smallwood Triathlon earlier in the year, but I'm guessing it was close.  It was held in the Potomac River, and we swam through what I can only describe as sea grass that came to the surface of the water.  I would advise getting into the water ahead of time and doing a little practice through it so you get used to the feel of it.  The "sea grass" or whatever it was would get wrapped around your ankle or caught in your watch, but it came loose fairly easily.  Just keep a smooth, strong stroke.  At one point it was actually pretty cool because the angle of the sun and visibility made it seem like we were swimming over the top of a forest.  I think it did slow everyone down a bit, so also be prepared for a slightly slower swim time than you'd normally expect.

There are quite a few videos on Youtube for this race. Many of them are created by tricalifornia and have good coverage of the swim.

I don't think it's anything to get stressed over. I think they are referring to using your hands to pull yourself through the kelp while remaining as streamlined as possble. Divers have to deal with getting themselves and their gear tangled but you shouldn't have to worry about that. People that have actually done the race can probably give you better advice.

the kind of stuff that hides in kelp can be scary...just don't look down. :P

take hedgetrimmers with you.

The technique I found useful (necessary) when I swam into a kelp bed was to do sort of what you called it - crawl. The motion I used was to keep my hand closer to my body on the pull motion of my stroke. It is almost like crawling along on my elbows. I add to that a modified dolphin kick so I am shooting through the gaps in the kelp. Just don't panic. Keep your movements measured and your swimming strong. Nothing sudden here. Best of all keep a positive attitude. I love to think of the trouble all the others are having getting through the kelp. It weeds out the weak.