Escape from Alcatraz

Has anyone here ever done this swim? It looks pretty intimidating for a mainly pool swimmer like me but I'm intrigued by it and it would give me a chance to visit relatives in the Bay area. => Is it pretty much for elite swimmers and tri-athletes? => Do they have regularly scheduled events just for swimmers? => What kind of conditioning shape should one be in to reasonably attempt it? => What kind of training would you recommend? Thanks. AJD I was going to do this swim and read up on it. Sharks freak me out - that's why i live in Indiana - almost as far away from them as possible. I've never heard of or read about a shark attack during this swim but the possibility is still out there. People say great white sharks don't venture into the harbor past the golden gate bridge. Well i started doing research to see if this was true and came upon a site where they tag great whites and release them for tracking. MOST of them didn't go past the golden gate, but a few sure did. that was enough for me not to do it. however - some helpful hints below: => What kind of conditioning shape should one be in to reasonably attempt it? do a 2.5k or a 5k open water swim in flat water - ideally a lake. if you have any difficulty with that swim, then i wouldn't attempt this one until the flat water can be accomplished with ease => What kind of training would you recommend? -best training i came up with was going to a water park and swimming across a wave pool non stop until the guards called break - usually 30-45 min. -if you have never done an open water swim where the water is below 70 degrees, you MUST try this first. its quite a shock jumping into 59 degree water when you train in 80 degree water, even with a wetsuit. -swim 1000's picking your head up out of the water every 5-7 strokes - this really wears you out - while swimming 1000's don't touch the wall. you can do a flip, but continue swimming without touching the wall.

Has anyone here ever done this swim? It looks pretty intimidating for a mainly pool swimmer like me but I'm intrigued by it and it would give me a chance to visit relatives in the Bay area. => Is it pretty much for elite swimmers and tri-athletes? => Do they have regularly scheduled events just for swimmers? => What kind of conditioning shape should one be in to reasonably attempt it? => What kind of training would you recommend? Thanks. AJD I was going to do this swim and read up on it. Sharks freak me out - that's why i live in Indiana - almost as far away from them as possible. I've never heard of or read about a shark attack during this swim but the possibility is still out there. People say great white sharks don't venture into the harbor past the golden gate bridge. Well i started doing research to see if this was true and came upon a site where they tag great whites and release them for tracking. MOST of them didn't go past the golden gate, but a few sure did. that was enough for me not to do it. however - some helpful hints below: => What kind of conditioning shape should one be in to reasonably attempt it? do a 2.5k or a 5k open water swim in flat water - ideally a lake. if you have any difficulty with that swim, then i wouldn't attempt this one until the flat water can be accomplished with ease => What kind of training would you recommend? -best training i came up with was going to a water park and swimming across a wave pool non stop until the guards called break - usually 30-45 min. -if you have never done an open water swim where the water is below 70 degrees, you MUST try this first. its quite a shock jumping into 59 degree water when you train in 80 degree water, even with a wetsuit. -swim 1000's picking your head up out of the water every 5-7 strokes - this really wears you out - while swimming 1000's don't touch the wall. you can do a flip, but continue swimming without touching the wall.