Ti 2 Y

It's being organized by the YMCA, as a benefit for that one YMCA location. www.ymcasf.org/.../subpage_embarcadero_310011.html This will be the first one, and it looks like it should be fun. Pedro Ordones has been helping them with the logistics of the swim, so I'd imagine that it will be well run. I have swum Alcatraz three times now, and this is the perfect way to do something different. Of course, I'm also doing a triathlon the following weekend in Santa Cruz, but that's another story.

Is this a new race? Who's organizing it? DOES sound like fun. That Alcatraz - San Francisco thing is getting old, and crowded...

Looks really nice! If I were in the area, I'd definitely do it. Darn - that start from Treasure Island is sooooooooo attractive! Good thing they're limiting the number of participants to 400.... Have fun! And tell us all about it!! Mary The Berkeley Girl in Florence Italy

I'll be the live reporter from the back of the pack! :)

So... I'm back, and I have survived to tell my tale. The race started in a cove off of Yerba Buena Island (apparently they couldn't get permission to start from the wharfs on Treasure Island, but the distance and the course stayed almost identical). The beginning of the race went fairly well. The current was slack, and the waters were calm. The first half of the race seemed to fly by, and I seemed to be staying solidly in the rear of the middle of the pack. But at about halfway, several large container ships must have left port, as we were hammered by a lot of large waves. I kept losing my bearing, and sucking in mouthfuls of water. My pace slowed considerably, and then I noticed that I wasn't moving very quickly in relation to the towers of the Bay Bridge. The tide was beginning to ebb, and I had to fight to stay on my course towards the Hills Brothers Building. The fact that I was able to maintain the straight course suggests that the current wasn't very strong, but it was still tough going. Eventually I managed to find my rhythm, sadly too late to do any good as far as passing other swimmers. ;) Finally, I could see the balloon arch marking the finish line. I stayed with the two swimmers that were just in front of me, passing one of them in the last 50 meters. As I climbed onto the steps, my leg (quite naturally) cramped up and I nearly fell. Thankfully they had people to guide our stagger up to the timing strip. I finished the 1.5 miles with a time of 1:14, which is 22 minutes slower than my last race of the same distance. Everyone seems to have had much slower times, so it wasn't just me (not that it could have had anything to do with swimming .75 miles, riding 24 miles and running 4 miles on Saturday. And then not getting enough sleep after watching a movie and going to a bar with some of my friends :))... Well, overall, the event was fun and well organized. Especially considering that this was the first Ti2Y swim. I'll probably do it again next year...

Maryyyyyy - Is there a list on the internet of open water races in Italy? I am toying with the idea of a vacation next summer somewhere in Europe and making it an open water swim vacation. Thanks, LBJ

F'ueco, Congrats on the swim. Nice race report! Sounds like it was a good race. Glad you had fun. Mary, thanks for the photo - what a great spot!

Hey F'ueco! Thanks for telling us about your experience... great details on departure change, tide changes, etc... just the stuff that most open water swims are made of! Congrats on finishing the swim... that's what it's all about in my book, much more than the actual time. I did a swim on Saturday that was supposed to be 1 mile, but they reduced it at the last minute because there were so many jellyfish in the little port we were swimming around. Anyway, I said to myself, ok, it's a short swim, I'll push hard. BOY DOES THAT EVER HURT!! Came out with wooden arms! And jellyfish wounds too... but those will pass. I actually did a pretty bad race, and in the end, wished I'd just taken my time and looked at all the pretty fishies instead of trying to go fast and bumping into jellyfish instead!! Keep those stories coming and I will too. I'm attaching (I think) a photo of the port where we did the swim. Mary

Leonard, The FIN OW calendar is posted on this siteNuoto Master Fondo Of course, what you'll see now is the 2005 summer calendar. The 2006 calendar will be posted around April - May. You can always contact me too, and I'll help you out. lokken@nuoto.it Another resource for OW swims in Europe will be the LEN site: European Swimming League As you can see, this year there were about 50 races all around the boot of Italy, plus in Sicily, so you've got a lot of choices. Just bring your USMS Masters card with you, and you can USUALLY sign up the day of the race (exceptions will be longer swims 10KM-25KM, or in difficult areas like the Strait of Messina where safety issues are critical). The price varies on the length and features of the race, from 10 euros to 25, up to 65 for one 10KM Race this year (in the Bay of Poets - the Byron Cup). One thing to say for Italy - we've got a LOT of beautiful coastline!! :cool: Ciao! m

Tomorrow morning I am doing my first triathlon (Santa Cruz Sentinel (1.6k, 40k, 10k). Before you get all bent out of shape about me posting this here, it starts with a one mile ocean swim. :) And of course, I will be one of the few doing this one without a wetsuit. This will make my transition quicker, and I can't wait to see how fast I can ride my bike after swimming in 59 degree water (also given that the cycling is my strongest event relative to everyone else). And I fully expect the run to kill me. And I will still have fun at the Bluegrass Festival in San Francisco afterwards.