I have been looking around at a lot of different distance open water swimming sites lately and then looking at the times. It seems to me that the times are way to fast. Then again I'm not an open water swimmer, though that will change this year. I'm still confused by the times and speed I seem to be seeing. Here are just a couple of examples:
Little Red Lighthouse swim, best time: 1:07 for a 7.8 mile swim!
Manhattan Island Marathon Swim, best time 5:45 for a 28 mile swim. Heck you have to finish in 10 hours.
And then from here: 47-year old Slovenian ...He also broke the world record for non-stop swimming when he covered 313 miles of the Danube in just 84 hours in 2001. That's an average of 3.7 miles an hour.
I can see that the tides and water flow would help, but still I have seen a lot of averages of 3-4+ miles an hour. Those would be close to 1500 WR times in a pool. How can people sustain such speeds for so long? What am I missing here because I'd like to be able to do those kinds of speed.
Parents
Former Member
Just a note to Lefty -
The Manhattan Island Foundation Events (Manhattan Island Swim, Little Red Lighthouse Swim, etc) - times are correct and they are in miles.
The 28.5 mile Manhattan Island Marathon Swim can only be done on certain days of the year when all the currents in the many waterways surrounding the island are favorable. This year the race will be on July 3rd (I'm an alternate for a relay). Successful navigation through the rivers is key to success on this one and a good kayaker guide is worth his or her weight in gold.
Having swum some of the shorter Hudson River events (yeah, only 2.8 miles), I can vouch for there being a freight train current at times.
This is not to say that the swims with a fast current are that much easier; rather it just presents different challenges, as Tom pointed out. The biggest issue with a strong current is that many swimmers can and do miss the finish and are unable to overcome the current to swim back and have to be brought in by a "catcher" boat. This is besides the risk of being swept into the pilings of a pier or boat or other factors that you suddenly find yourself about to confront.
A couple of years ago in the 2.8 mile Great Hudson River swim, more than half the field had to be pulled after the current changed midway through the race.
The lesson here is this: learn about the body of water you plan to swim in and listen carefully to the race officials and those who swam the event in earlier years. With the MIF race, mandatory pre-race briefings are mandatory for a reason.
When evaluating the results of open water events (ocean and river races, anyway) like these, don't look at the times as much as the placings.
Just a note to Lefty -
The Manhattan Island Foundation Events (Manhattan Island Swim, Little Red Lighthouse Swim, etc) - times are correct and they are in miles.
The 28.5 mile Manhattan Island Marathon Swim can only be done on certain days of the year when all the currents in the many waterways surrounding the island are favorable. This year the race will be on July 3rd (I'm an alternate for a relay). Successful navigation through the rivers is key to success on this one and a good kayaker guide is worth his or her weight in gold.
Having swum some of the shorter Hudson River events (yeah, only 2.8 miles), I can vouch for there being a freight train current at times.
This is not to say that the swims with a fast current are that much easier; rather it just presents different challenges, as Tom pointed out. The biggest issue with a strong current is that many swimmers can and do miss the finish and are unable to overcome the current to swim back and have to be brought in by a "catcher" boat. This is besides the risk of being swept into the pilings of a pier or boat or other factors that you suddenly find yourself about to confront.
A couple of years ago in the 2.8 mile Great Hudson River swim, more than half the field had to be pulled after the current changed midway through the race.
The lesson here is this: learn about the body of water you plan to swim in and listen carefully to the race officials and those who swam the event in earlier years. With the MIF race, mandatory pre-race briefings are mandatory for a reason.
When evaluating the results of open water events (ocean and river races, anyway) like these, don't look at the times as much as the placings.
