Your first swim (Page 2)

From the age of 16, I wanted to be a triathlete. I was a good runner and a good cyclist so what did I do? Biathlons and Duathlons! I couldn't swim freestyle. I never learned to swim with my face in the water.

In college, I decide to take an intermediate swimming class. After 3 classes, the teacher pulls me aside and says something like "Jeff, I can't do these strokes for you. You need to get some basic skills. Why don't you go to the Y?" I was CRUSHED! I was a really good athlete, why couldn't I swim? I just didn't get it.

Over the years, it lingered in my mind and was always in that list of things that I couln't do or that I failed at. It stayed there a long time.

So, before my 40th birthday, I decided that would tackle this little swimming problem. I went through many months of anguish, doubt, and tons of frustration. One night after a particularly horrible "swimming" session that consisted of: gasp - choking - flail to the opposite wall, hang on a pant - spit, repeat, I sat in my car and thought about if it was really worth the anguish or if I should just walk away from it once and for all. So I sat there, shed a few tears and decided to tough it out and not let it beat me again.

The first time I swam across Tomales Bay, I sat on the opposite shore in the mud, looked back at how far I had come and shed another tear but this time with huge smile. I just swam 1/2 mile. I took a short break and swam back across.

Tell your friend to stick with it.

my first "swim" was 200 yds in about an hour. I'd do 25 yds then suck wind for 5 minutes. Repeated a total of 8 times and went home exhausted. In a few months I was able to swim a mile....slowly. But I could do it. I was shocked b/c I had good overall fitness from weight room work and bike fitness....

Fast fwd to my first tri, an oly with an ocean swim. Brutal. First time in the full wetsuit. My shoulders still (7 months later) hurt. I could swim 10 strokes then had to stop to re-orient myself. There were times I was 30 yards further out from the beach than anyone else swimming out to sea. I must have been swimming sideways! The guys in the yaks were banging on their boats to get my attention in order to get me to swim towards the buoys. Only 3 got out of the water after me. (one of those athletes was 74 years old!) I grabbed the yaks 2x. Swallowed no less than 20 mouthfuls of salt water, then was dry-heaving coming out onto the beach. I was dry heaving from both the copious amounts of salt water in ingested plus the motion sickness I encountered after 300M. It was at about the 300m point where I couldn't move my arms b/c my shoulders hurt so badly, so I was on my back kicking to keep moving. Well, floating completely on top of the water with 3 foot waves and a bad chop was worse than any hidious amusement park spin-till-you-hurl ride. I could float on my back and be nauseated, or I could swim in pain...I chose to swim....I got out of the water and just about swore off any more ocean swims. I did make it to the bike....The first 6 miles of the bike I averaged about 15 mph b/c I thought I would puke at any moment. Pure agony. I wasn't DFL in my AG, but close. 11/12. Man, I feel sorry for the guy in the water behind me!!!

BTW, I did get better. My second race was an 800m swim. Calm lake, sleeveless wetsuit. I was MOP for the swim (1:50/100m if I recall correctly)...and I did the swim easily. The experience of the first race and a good fitting wet suit made all the difference in the world.

My first OW swim went like this:

Went down to Aquatic Park (SF) in late March. Put on my wetsuit and walked slowly into the water with a racing heart and a dry mouth. I was in flight or fight mode. The water was about 50 degrees I thought my feet were going to freeze off. I wade out about chest deep, then the water seeps in through my zipper and up my back. YOWZER that was COLD!

So, I put my face into the freezing water and start to swim parallel to the shore in about 4 feet of water. I take a stroke and realize I can't see so I stop, stand and look around. I do this for next 100 yards or so. It must have been funny to people on the beach. Swim 4 strokes, stand look around, adjust goggles, repeat 20 or 30 times. I just could not swim in that rootbeer colored water, I could see my hands but that was it.

I get out of the water and was so dizzy I almost fell over a few times. (hint: wear earplugs).

Your friend can do it, it will just take time.

my first swim was at a race up in the mountains. The water was 53 freakin' degrees. It was so cold. I'm not a very strong swimmer to begin with and then add in the fact that you get an ice cream headache every time you put your face in the water...It wasn't fun! I made it ok to the first buoy. It was a horseshoe shaped course. Then I was done. I wanted to be out of the water. I tried going on my back I tried freestyle but I ended up doing a doggy paddle/breast stroke movement. And I kept telling myself "just get out of the water, just get out of the water". 15 minutes later I was out of the water. Holy heck I was so cold. My feet and my hands were red and I couldn't feel my toes until I finished the sprint an hour and a half later!

BUT I did another sprint tri two months later and finished that swim in 10 minutes. So it wasn't nearly as bad!!

Wow!  I'm reading to 'work through' my open water panic and your experience was hellish!!  Congratulations on living through it, and going out to conquer another open water event!