Happy Easter!

The last qualifying swim for the Swim Around the Rock was held yesterday (Easter Sunday). Maybe the race organizers were kind enough to hide a few brightly colored eggs in the sand, but I doubt it. I took a break from swimming this weekend, relaxed and enjoyed spending time with my family. It was a treat to sleep in, watch the boys hunt for Easter eggs and stuff myself with honey baked ham.

This morning I was back in the bay with members of the Dolphin Club at 6 am. After the swim, several of the members encouraged me to attend the once a month board meeting and apply for full membership. I suppose insanity loves company.

It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to join. I'm not sure getting up at 4:45 is sustainable. The Swim Around the Rock is only 6 weeks away and the minimum club commitment is 6 months. To be completely honest, my thoughts getting into the bay this morning were “this is crazy, just get through this, these guys are crazy, only 6 more weeks to the race and you never have to get in without a wetsuit again.”

However, upon completing the swim my perspective had completely changed. The sunrise was beautiful, my arms felt heavy and the water felt wonderful as I quietly shared space with new friends, floating in the surf, waiting for the last swimmer to make it back to shore. It just felt right to me. After reflecting on the morning, I am left wondering how participating in this event might impact my life after the swim is over. After all, Jon has been swimming with the club for 20 years.

On a Clear Day (movie recommendation)

"On a Clear Day" is an awesome independent film I’d highly recommend to anyone reading this blog. It is loosely tied to open water swimming, but it is more of a character driven film about the trials of life. The cast is excellent! Watch the trailer and decide for yourself. Note - Barbara Streisand does not appear in this film!

plot summary:

“After decades of laboring as a Glasgow shipbuilder, Frank Redmond, a no-nonsense 55-year-old working-class man, suddenly finds himself laid off. For the first time in his life, he is without a job or a sense of direction, and he's too proud to ask for guidance. His best mates - rascally Danny, timid Norman and cynical Eddie - are there for him, but Frank still feels desperately alone.

An offhand remark from Danny inspires Frank to challenge himself. Already contemplating the state of his relationships with loving wife Joan and all-but-estranged son Rob, Frank is determined to shore up his own self-confidence. He will attempt the near impossible - swimming the English Channel.

As Frank plunges headlong into his new daily life, his astonished friends are swept along with him. Prodded by stalwart fish-and-chips shop owner Chan, the men support Frank, train him - and keep their goal secret from his wife and son. Frank is unable to confide in those closest to him, but as the big day and moment of truth draw near, there is a sea change.

Frank's family confronts him, and he realizes that he must repair his strained family ties. As Frank and those closest to him discover - or re-discover - reserves of love and compassion, he realizes that he is also swimming from one part of his life to another.”

If you have seen it or rent it, please post your comments on the film.

Who dares to swim in the bay at 6 am?

After two days off, I hit the bay this morning at 6 am. It was much lighter out this morning. Here is a CLASSIC picture of the usual morning crew at the Dolphin Club. From left to right you see Jon, Sunny and Mark.

Jon is very generous and is always smiling. He is the former president of the Dolphin Club and has been swimming in the bay for nearly 20 years. I thanked Jon for sharing his space with me and he replied that 20 years earlier his co-worker invited him for a swim and he was merely returning the favor.

Sunny and Mark and super nice folks. I was surprised to meet their grand-daughter at the club one morning. I was surprised because they are superstar triathletes and in better shape than any 20 year old I’ve ever met. This morning Mark casually mentioned he went biking with Floyd yesterday. My brain was still thawing, so it took a moment to register. . . Landis? I asked. Yep, he replied. Check out Sunny and Mark’s web page.

Huge congrats to Nobu for joining us this morning! Poor Nobu had a tough start as he forgot everything but his wetsuit. Borrowed cap, goggles, towel is no way to start your first dark swim. He swam well and was all smiles when we returned to the beach. I hope he joins us on Friday morning.

QUALIFIED!!!

I picked up Bob around 9:00 and headed down to Aquatic Park. We brought all the kayaking gear down to the beach and were surprised to see Nobu! He had come to cheer me on in the qualifying swim. What an awesome guy. I was the first swimmer to check in. We had to wait an hour before the other swimmers arrived. Then, we were fully briefed on the swim route and conditions. Here is a picture of Nobu and Bob (Please click the pictures, they are so much better full size!).




Nobu took this picture of Bob and I on the beach. Bob is an awesome kayaker. We once logged over 20 miles of kayaking together during the Boston Balance Bar 24 Hour Adventure Race. His kayak experience was tested today as his paddle broke midway through my swim. He improvised and completed the course using half a kayak paddle as an oar. It was really reassuring to have Bob as my pilot.




Once assembled, the race organizer, Pedro, briefed us on the swim course. He made it clear it was going to be a difficult swim. He said each of us needed to be tested because anything could happen during the Swim Around the Rock. He said last year the test swim was "hell" and it took over 3 hours to complete. The following week, the inagural Swim Around the Rock went smoothly with an average swim time of just under two hours. It was a reminder that proper training only gives you the opportunity to complete the swim, the rest depends on how the bay treats you on the day of the race. Here is a picture of a couple of kayak pilots, me and the four other swimmers. Yes, I was the only non-wetsuit swimmer today.




It wasn't supposed to be a race, but this was a very competitive group of swimmers. Pedro said go and the race was on. . . for everyone but me. Hey, it is a lot harder to get into the bay without a wetsuit. The initial shock of the cold is pretty hard to describe. Anyway, you can see the other swimmers about 100 yards ahead of me. Wait up for the non-wetsuit guy? Not.




Here is a picture of me trying to catch up. The bay was 52 degrees, warmer in some spots, definitely colder on the outside of the breakwall. During the course of the swim, I passed two wetsuit swimmers and ultimately finshed 3rd out of five.




Here is picture of me approaching the break wall. You can see the shape and distance of the wall in the background. The current at this point in the swim was really strong. The temperature of the bay dropped right here too. It was a difficult demoralizing start to a long, 3 mile, swim.




Ah, back to the protected cove of Aquatic Park. The cove is warmer than the open bay and there is less current. However, the time in the bay was starting to take its toll at this point in the swim. Shortly, after this picture was taken Bob's paddle broke. I remember looking up at Bob, paddling with half an paddle and wondering if I was losing it due to hypothermia.




My official finish time was 1:10:20, 20 minutes faster than I expected. The time on my Kobold is 1:13 because I didn't stop it until I got to the beach. In my view, the swim was a great success. I swam further and faster than I ever had before. Huge thanks to Nobu for coming out, cheering me on and taking pictures. Thanks to Bob for being a great pilot and overcoming gear failure. Thanks to Pedro for allowing us to test ourselves against the Rock.

Qualifying swim scheduled (4/1/2007)

The arrangements have been made for my qualifying swim. It will take place this Sunday at Aquatic Park at 9:30 am. Bob Morelli will be my pilot for the 3.1 open water swim.

I’m optimistic, but have yet to complete the actual course. My last attempt to swim the break wall with Nobu was cut short due to strong currents outside the cove. I expect the swim will take about 90 minutes. I’ll post again Sunday evening with the swim results.

Here is a recap of training this week:

Monday – Rest
Tuesday – Masters swim (1 hour 1,800 yds)
Wednesday – Dolphin Club bay swim (30 minutes, 1 mile)
Thursday – Masters swim (1 hour, 1,900 yds)
Friday – Dolphin Club bay swim (30 minutes, 1 mile)
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – Qualifying SAR swim (3.1 miles)

Above is a picture of Aquatic Park at sunrise I took after a swim with the Dolphin club.

Jaws!

It used to be that all I ever thought about when I went swimming in the bay was Jaws. The visibility in the bay is 12 – 24 inches, so you are pretty much swimming blind. Each stroke I would imagine rows white teeth coming up from below. Not a pleasant thought, but I couldn’t help myself. I blame Benchley and Spielberg.

To quell my fear, I read everything I could get my hands on to better understand sharks and Northern California waters. My two favorites are Benchley’s shark redemption book, “Shark Trouble” and Susan Casey’s book on the Farallon Islands, “The Devils Teeth”. I also scoured the internet for shark facts and figures. Rationally, I came to understand there is no real shark threat in aquatic park or San Francisco bay at large.

Apparently, this NEVER happens. . .


Nonetheless, each time I took a breath and turned toward the darkness, I still saw Jaws.

Who knew, all I had to do to get over my irrational fear of sharks was lose the wetsuit! Now all I ever think about is exposure to the cold. It is like a pyramid of fear. At the base level, I have to concern myself with the most immediate threat, hypothermia. Fear of sharks is way at the top of the pyramid. The cozy wetsuit musings on imaginary sharks have been replaced with questions like “How long have I been in? How am I feeling? How much do I have left? How far am I from shore?” I never get that “sharky” feeling anymore.

Of course, I recognize the irony of replacing one fear with another, but here is the thing. . .

The conditioning to the cold is starting to work. As long as the swim is 45 minutes or less, I now know exactly how my body will react and hypothermia is not an issue. Thus, particularly in the shorter swims, I am having a great time out there!

Manatees and Coach Brant

I swam at Mills College with the Oakland Manatees Master's Club tonight. The Manatees are a great bunch of folks (below is a link to the club). The coolest part about the workout was my 5 year old son, Brant, decided to tag along. He instantly hit it off with my coach and after a few cups of hot chocolate decided to take on the role of mini-coach. It was a bit windy and a tad under 50 degrees, but he hung in there cheering me on until I finished my last lap!

Thanks Brant!



The Manatee Aquatic Masters