After about 8 years of not doing any open water swims, I found out that I'm going to be on Oahu (housesitting, no less) at the time of the Waikiki swim (2.4 miles) , so I'd like to take part.
I did a 1 1/2 mile swim over the weekend and found myself drifting first to one side then the other. In other words, I probably swam an extra 1/2 mile that I didn't need to.
I swim with a Master's swim team, competed at Nationals in Tempe so I'm in relatively good shape -- for pool swimming. But I've forgotten everything I ever learned about open water swimming.
Any suggestions about training, technique or the Waikiki swim would be helpful....thanks in advance.
Parents
Former Member
Congratulations on your 3rd place finish in a real rough water swim race (finally). Your surfing background came in handy because (no wuss here) you were actually not afraid to head towards the surfzone to try and tuck inside the current. Never swim into the current - just zigzag or tack through it (changing directions frequently) feeling your way up hill. With a time of almost 3 hrs., you were not only in great physical shape, but mentally prepared as well. My only recommendation is to xtrain on a paddleboard and pre-run the course several times on it, so you can get a feel of the water. Tide charts and calendars are readily available - and so are the weather reports. Perhaps, if same conditions prevail in the future, the race officials might consider reversing the race course, and that would be a lot of fun going downhill? clyde
Congratulations on your 3rd place finish in a real rough water swim race (finally). Your surfing background came in handy because (no wuss here) you were actually not afraid to head towards the surfzone to try and tuck inside the current. Never swim into the current - just zigzag or tack through it (changing directions frequently) feeling your way up hill. With a time of almost 3 hrs., you were not only in great physical shape, but mentally prepared as well. My only recommendation is to xtrain on a paddleboard and pre-run the course several times on it, so you can get a feel of the water. Tide charts and calendars are readily available - and so are the weather reports. Perhaps, if same conditions prevail in the future, the race officials might consider reversing the race course, and that would be a lot of fun going downhill? clyde
