Objects in goggles may be farther than they a-pier (sorry)
I did my Longest Swim Evar today.
About a dozen of us did the Pier to Pier swim from Hermosa Beach to Manhattan Beach. The official distance is 1.8 miles. I cut back to the beach a little early, but because of my poor swim navigation I went out farther than everyone else, so I'm pretty comfortable saying I did 1.6 miles. (Previous max distance was 1.2 at Wildflower & Oceanside.)
It was a difficult start. The surf was pretty rough, with big and frequent waves. It took a lot of energy just to get out to the "start" of the swim, but I made it and we all headed up the coast. I can honestly say I did not swim in the back of the pack. That's because everyone else was so far ahead of me it was like I started 3 waves after them. Now I know what you're thinking: being way in the back is the worst possible place to be, because the sharks eat the slowest swimmers. Well that's true when you're in this situation:
But when I'm in the water, I like to think that THIS is what's happening:
Suppose we're swimming TOWARDS the sharks? The back is the BEST place to be. Let the fastest guys get munched. (Sorry Steve.)
My biggest problem with swimming is that it's just SOOO boring. I lose focus very easily and I keep having to catch myself and correct my form. Things are a LITTLE better on race day when you're swimming past buoys and lifeguards on surfboards. When doing an ocean swim, there is NOTHING to look at. And I swear, no matter how long I swam that darn pier never seemed to get any closer.
So what did we learn today? Not much. I'm a slow swimmer. I knew that, and I'm pretty OK with that. Maybe the one thing I got out of today's swim is that I'm glad Coeur d-Alene is a 2-lap event. I had always thought that doing one large lap would be much better, but now I realize that mentally I NEED that break in the middle. They can make it 8 laps of .3 miles as far as I'm concerned.
On a sad note, this was the last time I'll see the Ironman Brazil team before their big race. I miss them already.
posted by Wedgie @ 6:39 PM
2 Comments:
Oh the pier to pier! great swim I did that before Brazil 2006 with the axis of evil.... I have to disagree with you, I think the sharks would go after the slow swimmers... easier catch, and they usually have mote meat, unlike you and your butter.... ;)
Ha! Ok, you owe me a new keyboard because I just spit my drink everywhere laughing. Nice. How did you get such a lifelike shot? There must have been a tourist nearby taking pictures.
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