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2017-04-04 10:06 PM


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Subject: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
Attempting my first HIM in May. Not looking for a time goal, but hoping it won't be too awful and inspire me to tailor my training a bit for the next. Wish I had been in the pool more but confident in the distance... until I got in the open water.... I didn't expect this. Yes it was windy, choppy and cold as shit however I made it 300 yards and had to turn back. I found that closing my eyes helped as I wasn't struggling to see beyond the brown muck. It sounds like it's a rolling start and there are resting rafts on the course?! No I don't want to be THAT guy in the race though it IS comforting to me they are there... please, any suggestions or experiences to inspire this newbie?!?


2017-04-04 11:48 PM
in reply to: Kebaxley

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
The more you can practice in it, the more confidence you will have. You can also work on "sighting" (lifting your head slightly out of the water while swimming) in the pool. Put a brightly colored water bottle or something at the end of your lane to focus on. (For OWS, I use my mother in a bright orange shirt!) Not sure I would close my eyes when racing, but I've raced quite a bit in situations where I actually can't see much of anything underwater. (Singapore water tends to appear almost black in early AM races!) Probably the worst that will happen is that you will run into another swimmer. They will be running into you anyway!

If you can do breaststroke, that is a nice way to take a little "breather", calm yourself, and get your bearings while continuing to move forward. I will admit I have done at least a few strokes of it in most of the longer tri swims I've done, and I'm usually one of the top swimmers in my age group! In crowded conditions with waves and surf, it's almost inevitable that you're going to swallow some water, or get it up your nose, at some point, and possible you'll have to cough some of it out; it's nice to have a "rescue" stroke where you can do that without depending on a rest raft or coming to a dead stop.

As for the rafts, don't worry about it. They are common in longer races and perfectly legal as long as you don't somehow use them to move forward. No different than me treading water or doing a few strokes of breaststroke while I try to clear my lungs or nose of ocean water. They can be a way to mentally break up the swim, even if you don't stop. You can just tell yourself, "Now I'll swim to the next raft." They tend to be regularly spaced and often easier to see than buoys. It's nice to know they're there, even if you don't use all (or even any) of them.

I'm no newbie--have been swimming since I was a little kid and it's possibly the strongest leg of tri for me, but to be honest, I look at a lot of courses (especially one-loop Oly or HIM ones in the ocean) and think, "OMG, they want us to swim THAT FAR?!" It can be intimidating, because most of us are used to seeing/touching a wall every 25-50m. Really helps to break it mentally into sections.
2017-04-05 2:58 AM
in reply to: Hot Runner

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
Originally posted by Hot Runner

I'm no newbie--have been swimming since I was a little kid and it's possibly the strongest leg of tri for me, but to be honest, I look at a lot of courses (especially one-loop Oly or HIM ones in the ocean) and think, "OMG, they want us to swim THAT FAR?!" It can be intimidating, because most of us are used to seeing/touching a wall every 25-50m. Really helps to break it mentally into sections.


I can definitely relate to this!

OP, I agree that doing some breaststroke when/if you start feeling a little nervous is a good strategy. My wife has swam in some triathlon relays, and she actually floated on her back to clear her mind and relax before starting again. It was a swim in a river with zero visibility and with people everywhere. She did calm down and finished the swim without any problem.



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2017-04-05 7:08 AM
in reply to: Kebaxley

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!

Stay relaxed and don't panic or start off too fast. Control your breathing and focus on nice smooth stroke. There are some sighting techniques available for OWS that you should search on the web. Good idea to practice in the pool before race day. I like to sight every fourth or fifth stroke with slightly lifting my head up to sight the next marker.
2017-04-05 1:41 PM
in reply to: Kebaxley


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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
No kidding...as other's said. Be "that guy".
As long as you finish...right?
For one, I don't think anyone but an A-hole would care.
For two, nobody will ever recognize you with swim cap and goggles.


Here's my tip...
Embrace it. I guess, maybe it was a little easier for me being that as a kid I spent enough time swimming in lakes/rivers. Not like I did it all the time. But, between Boy Scouts and grandparents with a lake house...and vacations in Michigan...the water itself was not a fear.

Sure, I feared the distance in the beginning. And the possibility of...contact.

But, once I did it the first time? I find open water swimming a total treat. I don't have a lake house and Lake Michigan seems way more frigid as an adult. It's WAY more fun than a pool any day...any time. I'd rather look at brown water and see trees and shoreline...than a black line and a wall every 25 meters.

Every chance I get for an OWS training swim...I take it. For the joy of it! And I way prefer that in a race than a pool.
2017-04-05 2:46 PM
in reply to: Kebaxley

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!

My 2 cents, make a conscious effort to slow down for the first few minutes of the swim.  In my very first tri, the adrenalin took over and I went out like a bat out of hell.  I was exhausted after about 100 meters and struggled to catch my breath for the rest of the race. 

Others have suggested switching to breast stroke for a break, but for me personally, I find that breast stroke is more taxing than freestyle, particularly if you are in a wetsuit.  Once I switch to breast stroke, I find I breath a lot heavier and it becomes that much harder to put your face in the water and switch back to freestyle.  It may be better to roll onto your back and rest for a few seconds to catch your breath (assuming your are wearing a wetsuit).

 



2017-04-06 3:51 PM
in reply to: Scott71

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
just swim to the first buoy if you make it there you will finish swim to the next buoy then the next then the next. In reality most people freak out and quit a open water swim in the first 200 meters. Take your time get to the first buoy and the rest will easy. Do everything you can to get to that first buoy
2017-04-06 5:50 PM
in reply to: Kebaxley

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Subject: RE: Open water swim...eek! Tips?!
I went from (last March) being afraid to attempt to swim 300 yds in a pool (getting ready for my 1st sprint of last year).....to doing 2 HIM's as my last two races of 2016. 1st OWS of last year.....I freaked at about 150 yds. (went out too fast). 2nd and 3rd OWS......went out too fast.

From then on, I promised I'd go really easy at the start of my swims. My best two swims of 2016 were the last two (half ironmans). I am NOT a swimmer. I just learned to relax. My M.O. now is.....go easy and sight more. I swim (overall) faster, taking that approach.

I did a few tris in 2010, but quit because the swim freaked me out so badly. I decided to try to conquer this, last year. Now, I look forward to the swim moreso than I do the bike. Slow down....sight more....relax. Don't think of it as a distance. Think of it as........I'm gonna go swimming for XX:XX minutes. The distance still freaks me out, if I think about swimming 1.2 or 2.4 miles.

Good luck.
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