Any marathon swimmers here?

Have not done a "marathon" swim for years but as a teenager I used to do a 10K pool swim every year for charity.

OWS or pool? Assuming the former.....If so, you should definitely have a kayak or boat escort for a swim of that distance. If you get bored, you can always tread water/do breaststroke for a bit and chat with your escort! They can also give you food/drink if you want. If it's in a pool (or even if not), maybe estimate the time it will take and break it up into sections. Switch strokes occasionally if that's an option (such as 100m of breaststroke or backstroke every 100m to mark the end of the 1000m, or one minute of some other stroke every ten minutes in open water). If you have a SwimP3 or similar that would make it less boring. Otherwise, like "Finding Nemo", just keep swimming. I actually found it rather relaxing--unlike a practice, you just swim at a comfortable pace, which is kind of a nice change. Think of it as a run/ride/hike of the same distance and it will seem less intimidating.

As for marathon swimming in open water, maybe Yanti (IndoIronYanti) or her husband Kingsley would be good resources for advice.

Yes, lots of support, including Sheriff's boats. I'll have a personal escort with me via kayak so that I'm not using the resources unless really needed. I do have a SwimP3 that I plan on using. I'm such a rhythmic person that I've made strides to load it with music that is only 50 or 100 beats/min so that I can maintain my constant stroke. Not something that I worry about too much but I'll fall into the rhythm of the song regardless of the tempo.
One thing that drove me crazy on my first long OWS was counting my strokes. I always do it in the pool, but out in the open it was just a huge distraction that I had troubles breaking.

Not lots of races just tons of distance training. Longest swim of 13.7 km Its hard to stay totally focused for that length of time. Just one hand in front of the other.

Edited by simpsonbo 2015-06-27 9:03 AM