Horsetooth Open Water Swim - 2009

... I really want to do this race due to the beautiful location and the crazy altitude and temps (and I WILL in the future - perhaps 2010!?) but I think I had better plan a bit more for it. The race director had serious reservations about my doing it due to my 0 cold water experience. I do not blame him at all as I'm sure he feels responsible for any swimmer out there. And I'll admit I'm a bit wack. I did decide to do the 25K OW swim literally 1 to 2 months before the actual race. Although that happened to pan out, I think I could have hurt myself! I'm just too addicted to endorphins. I'll accede that 67 - 69 deg F *might* fall in the range of "cold water swimming," bec. I have seen the difference between my own tolerance (in grimly every day) and my swim buds' (less frequent, do not swim as far when they consider water cold). Sometimes it is a matter of only a degree or two making the difference of still comfortable for me, not so for them. I do not have the slightest idea how these adaptions to cold water occur, but on the off-chance you could hurry them up, a couple more longish swims precede Horsetooth (and you are not obliged to swim 10k at Horsetooth). I'd suggest a long vacation out West: State Games of the West, 1.5k to 6k, plus Colorado OW Championship swim, Prospect Lake, Memorial Park, Colorado Springs, CO, Sunday, Aug. 2 www.thesportscorp.org/.../index.html Deer Creek Open Water Swim, Deer Creek Reservoir, southwest of Heber City, UT, 1 mile, 5 k, 10k, and 10 miles, sanctioned by Utah Masters, Saturday, August 15: deercreekopenwater.home.comcast.net/.../ Horsetooth Open Water: Horsetooth Reservoir, Fort Collins, CO, Sunday, Aug. 16, 1,000 yds to 10k, USMS and USS sanctioned: http://www.horsetoothswim.com/ Are you doing the Kingdom swim, in Vermont? :)

... I really want to do this race due to the beautiful location and the crazy altitude and temps (and I WILL in the future - perhaps 2010!?) but I think I had better plan a bit more for it. The race director had serious reservations about my doing it due to my 0 cold water experience. I do not blame him at all as I'm sure he feels responsible for any swimmer out there. And I'll admit I'm a bit wack. I did decide to do the 25K OW swim literally 1 to 2 months before the actual race. Although that happened to pan out, I think I could have hurt myself! I'm just too addicted to endorphins. I'll accede that 67 - 69 deg F *might* fall in the range of "cold water swimming," bec. I have seen the difference between my own tolerance (in grimly every day) and my swim buds' (less frequent, do not swim as far when they consider water cold). Sometimes it is a matter of only a degree or two making the difference of still comfortable for me, not so for them. I do not have the slightest idea how these adaptions to cold water occur, but on the off-chance you could hurry them up, a couple more longish swims precede Horsetooth (and you are not obliged to swim 10k at Horsetooth). I'd suggest a long vacation out West: State Games of the West, 1.5k to 6k, plus Colorado OW Championship swim, Prospect Lake, Memorial Park, Colorado Springs, CO, Sunday, Aug. 2 www.thesportscorp.org/.../index.html Deer Creek Open Water Swim, Deer Creek Reservoir, southwest of Heber City, UT, 1 mile, 5 k, 10k, and 10 miles, sanctioned by Utah Masters, Saturday, August 15: deercreekopenwater.home.comcast.net/.../ Horsetooth Open Water: Horsetooth Reservoir, Fort Collins, CO, Sunday, Aug. 16, 1,000 yds to 10k, USMS and USS sanctioned: http://www.horsetoothswim.com/ Are you doing the Kingdom swim, in Vermont? :)