OWS Alone

I would never do it......again.  I have in the past, and got completely sideways one day when a big wind came up and I was 1/2 mile to the nearest shore after I GREATLY misjudged a distance across a lake that I was unfamiliar with and found myself 40 minutes into a 20 minute swim.

I think the only thing that kept me alive was knowing that the headlines in the local paper (I was out of town at a family reuniun in a very small town) the next day were going to be how I drowned swimming across the local reservoir.....and how all the locals were going to read it and say...."what a dumbarse  ".

I've done it and used a rescue can attached to my leg.

Now I do my OWS swimming in a protected spring that's cold enough for a wet suit and no boats are allowed. I have to keep watch for gators, though!

Next thread:

Do you ever swim with a pistol?

Ha...that's funny...I should get a waterproof holster!  I have yet to see one in the swimming area which is roped off. I do see a lot of manatees. They are pretty cool to swim with. They are just as curious as we are.

Just need to step up your swimming and start towing boats behind you like the great departed Jack LaLanne!  Be tough to overlook a guy swimming if he is towing a bunch of boats!

1957 Age 43: Swam the treacherous Golden Gate Channel, towing a 2,500-pound cabin cruiser. This involved fighting the cold, swift ocean currents that made the 1 mile swim a 6 ½ mile test of strength and endurance.

1974 Age 60: Swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf, for a second time handcuffed, shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat.

1975 Age 61: Swam the length of the Golden Gate Bridge, underwater, for a second time handcuffed, shackled and towing a 1,000-pound boat.

1976 Age 62: Commemorating the “Spirit of ‘76”, swam 1 mile in Long Beach Harbor, handcuffed, shackled and towing 13 boats (representing the 13 original colonies) containing 76 people.

1979 Age 65: Towed 65 boats filled with 6,500-pounds of Lousiana Pacific wood pulp while handcuffed and shackled in Lake Ashinoko, near Tokyo, Japan.

1980 Age 66: Towed 10 boats in North Miami, Florida filled with 77 people for over a mile in less than 1 hour.

1984 Age 70: Handcuffed, shackled and fighting strong winds and currents, towed 70 boats with 70 people from the Queen’s Way Bridge in the Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary, 1 ½ miles.

YouTube video of that last one...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skRb-oND3qA

This is my source for this info. 

http://www.jacklalanne.com/jacks-adventures/feats-and-honors.php

I have absolutely no problems doing an OWS alone, but I make sure that the lake is not open for motorboats. There are several nearby here that don't allow motors, so it doesn't pose a problem finding one.

I am a capable swimmer and would NEVER OWS ALONE.

I promised my wife that I would live for a long time.

Not that I'm encouraging you to swim alone but if you do here is a swim buoy that works great.

http://www.ishof.org/cgi-bin/mivavm?/Merchant2/merchant.mvc+Screen=PROD&Product_Code=SF06&Category_Code=SF

Even though I don't OWS alone I swim a lot slower than my swim buddies and I don't expect them to watch out for me. Besides, the best rescue is self rescue.

It attaches with a waist belt and doesn't impede your swim. It also can be a surface marker so boats can see you. In my experience it does occasionally draw jetskis.

I OWS alone all the time and I'm a very strong swimmer, which is going to count for jack squat if a) a boat can't see me, b) I run into real trouble, c) refer to b, of which there are infinite variants.

However. There's alone, and there's alone. I wouldn't swim in the ocean if there were not a single soul around land or water. At the very, very least, someone knows I'm going in and when I plan to be out. Usually there are surfers, folks on the beach, and anywhere I swim, I either know the water, currents, tides and weather really, really well, or it's a popular swimming beach with locals or lifeguards who can tell me (and in any case, I watch the weather and water before going in).

The attached picture is what I look like doing OWS in a place where there may be boats or jellyfish. Eyewitness accounts (from those not instantly blinded) confirm that in clear conditions you can see me for miles. Or something like that. It's called a burkini, by the way, and is also useful for swimming in conservative Muslim areas.

(Burkini swim.Crop (Small).jpg)

If I get a cramp, bonk, or have water go down the wrong pipe on the bike or run, I stop.  If it happens on the swim 200 yards from shore, I die.

I OWS alone all the time. Have done for years.

I do what I can to reduce the risk by wearing a neon swim cap and sometimes I tow a bright pool noodle behind me for visibility and as a potential "life saver" if I were ever to need something to hang on to.

One lake I swim in has no motorized boats allowed , so no worries there. The other does allow boats, so I simply swim parallel to shore. 

Is it risky behaviour? Probably. But so is cycling.

Staying home and watching reality TV all day is also a risky behaviour if you think about it.

I do it too, with common sense precautions.  I swim in a cold enough lake that I wear my wetsuit which has enough buoyancy to keep me afloat if for some reason I completely cramp up.  I swim along the shoreline, usually only 10-20 ft. away from the ends of people's docks.  That way if for some reason I had to stop swimming it's easy to just stand up and walk out of the lake.  And, the boat traffic is almost non-existent there.

Otherwise if I'm going to be heading out across the lake away from the shoreline I have a buddy accompany me in his kayak.

I've done it.  I often swim and my husband or kids come to watch.

If you meet up and go swim with a friend. What is that friend going to do if something happens to you? Will they save you or will they be able to call 911 after?

We have two lifesaver cans we bought from Keifer and wear them around our shoulder and torso. My husband always uses one, I may but with my wetsuit I float well so if I need to rest I can just stop.

I strongly prefer to do ows where there are no motorized boats. I spend summers on an island and I struggle with swimming as I fear the boats and it isn't always practical to have someone follow me. If we had a kayak it would be safer. I can hear the motors but find it hard to know how quickly they are coming and if they are coming towards me. The island has small bays and I swim in them but over the years boaters come closer and closer to shore of the island.

You could try this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5SkIC68IEM

Never Ever swim alone!

(caviat:  I OWS alone 2X/wk = do as I say, not as I do )