Done in by Huntington Beach Pier Swim, again

Hi: I learned by ocean swimming once a week. Have you looked at the Tower 26 swims?

They just suck. Period. You put your head down and hope you time it right. You can't really get into a rhythm because you have to keep glancing up to check on the next wave.

Yeah, that's one of the really hard places to practice. I got smashed so many times last year before Orangeman. 3 sets of waves breaking and the final ones were like, 6-8 feet tall! I got passed the first one but the following one got me and I was done in just like you. >.<

I would say experience has a lot to do with it. I've been swimming all my life, especially off the OC coast in waves of all sizes so I guess I'm pretty used to it. I've done the swim leg of Orangeman as well as a few sprint tri's in open ocean with waves (Hermosa, Redondo). Prior to my first open ocean tri I hadn't swam freestyle in the open ocean for a few years so I took a brush up swim clinic with Martha of Tri La Vie down at Crystal Cove which included many test runs of water entry with waves, along with many tips and instruction plus a half mile swim / mock tri swim with water entry and exit. It was under $100, included a wetsuit rental, and well worth my time and cost in order to ensure I was ready to do the swim confidently. I'm not a member of Tri La Vie nor do you need to be one to do the clinics. Here's a link to some upcoming ones, I highly recommend: http://www.trilavie.com/Events.html

Edited by Rancid13 2013-07-03 1:59 PM

Trilavie rocks! :D