Signed up for my first long swim and after hearing the reaction from family and friends (haven't told anyone at work yet), I'm wondering how other people respond when you tell them that you're going to do a swim.
Here's some of what I got:
"Why on earth would you want to do something like that?"
"You're nuts!"
"You could drown!"
"That's so dangerous!"
"You'd better get your will done first."
"What are you thinking? You have a family!"
"You could get eaten by a shark..."
"The jellyfish will get you..."
"People invented boats and bridges to get across rivers, we're not supposed to swim across them."
"Are you going to use a gas mask?"
"The water's so polluted, you are going to get sick."
"If you want to swim, can't you do it in the pool where it's safe?"
Only one person said "That's awesome, you must be in great shape."
Do you get similar responses? And how do you answer them? I'm beginning to wonder what the rest of the world thinks of us...
"Why on earth would you want to do something like that?"
I LIKE LIVING ON THE EDGE
"You're nuts!"
QUIT LIVING YOUR LIFE ON THE SIDELINES AND GET IN THE GAME
"You could drown!"
YOU COULD DIE IN A CAR CRASH ON YOUR WAY TO WORK TODAY
"That's so dangerous!"
SO IS HAVING HIGH CHOLESTEROL & HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
"You'd better get your will done first."
I DON'T PLAN ON DROWNING
"What are you thinking? You have a family!"
I KNOW & GOD BLESS 'EM - THEY SUPPORT ME 100%
"You could get eaten by a shark..."
YOU'VE BEEN WATCHING TOO MUCH DISCOVERY CHANNEL
"The jellyfish will get you..."
LET 'EM TRY
"People invented boats and bridges to get across rivers, we're not supposed to swim across them."
BOATS & BRIDGES ARE FOR WIMPS - LET'S SWIM!
"Are you going to use a gas mask?"
??????????????
"The water's so polluted, you are going to get sick."
I KEEP MY HEPATITIS VACCINATION CURRENT
"If you want to swim, can't you do it in the pool where it's safe?"
SOOOOOO BORING
Only one person said "That's awesome, you must be in great shape."
THANKS - I APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT
Not that experienced w/ o.w. swims, but I've had such responses. I think my family sometimes teases me about sharks and drowning, etc., but I usually laugh it off when they do b/c I know they're just messin' with me.
Also, I have to admit sometimes I ask myself all those same questions lol. :o
Which isn't to say I won't go ahead with whatever swims I have planned, just that I'll sometimes say to myself, "SELF, ARE YOU NUTS?" And self answers, "yeah, what's your point." :p
My one ocean swim had me very afraid about sharks, but I figured too that if they were holding the swim every year without incident, why should the year I was swimming be any different.
I'm now planning a 5.25 mile bay swim. And yes, it's a stretch for me, but there are boats and each swimmer is required to have a kayaker. There's also a four hour time limit, so they will pick up swimmers who don't look like they're going to make that cutoff. That I accept as part of the game. Obviously, I want to beat the time limit and finish the race, but I'm grateful that they have that safety feature in place. And I can actually sympathize somewhat with the concerned questions, but I also assure ppl that this isn't a suicidal risk. I don't do suicidal risks. I like to stretch my limits, and at the same time, I respect those limits and know that it would be, for instance, foolish for me to attempt, let's say, a channel swim, at least at my current stage of swimming development.
Sometimes all those questions are just ways of saying "that's awesome and I'd be scared to death to try it myself!" Kind of an indirect compliment. No one bothers asking questions like that if the whole project doesn't interest them.
Do you get similar responses? And how do you answer them? I'm beginning to wonder what the rest of the world thinks of us...
Sounds like you have been talking to my Mom. Yes, I have gotten all kinds of responses to several things I've done over the last few years and my answer is always something along the lines of "I'm doing this because I have enough confidence that I can finish it and it sounds like fun."
You signed up for the Potomac River Swim, right? I had signed up last year and trained pretty well for it. Cheryl is awesome and everyone involved in the swim is really great too. I had so much fun meeting all of the open water swimmers who were much more experienced than I am.
Have fun, and don't worry about what people say. You signed up for this because you know you can do it...now go do it!!!
Julie
Funny, today i got some of the same questions!
DOn't you worry about sharks? I can't imagine, what about drowning?
I just said, well the jelly fish will definitely sting you, the sharks are likely to keep away, and i suppose you could drown, though not likely. And if you worked in my trauma unit you'd see that life is way too short to worry about sharks!
Good luck!
It looks like that one is 6.2 miles- has anyone done it around here?
I have to admit I'm a little confused b/c in some places on the site, it's listed as 5.25 miles and other places, a 10k. They changed the course recently which might account for the discrepancy.
Chaos, they make sure to choose a time when the current is most favorable to swimmers... heh, I'll need all the help that way I can get!
Where? When?
Here y'are: www.greatsouthbayswim.com
I hope the link works... for some reason the computer wouldn't let me do copy/paste today.
But in case it doesn't come up, the swim is on 8/3, starts from Fire Island (near lighthouse) and proceeds across the bay to a park in Brightwaters.
I've watched so many sunsets on that bay, slid over it by ferry, sailboat, motorboats of various types.... and to know that Fire Island continues to offer me "firsts" after so many years is just amazing to me!
People should not stop having "firsts" in their lives.
It looks like that one is 6.2 miles- has anyone done it around here?
i haven't done it, but judging from the 06 finish times i would say that there are some favorable currents.
Signed up for my first long swim and after hearing the reaction from family and friends (haven't told anyone at work yet), I'm wondering how other people respond when you tell them that you're going to do a swim.
Here's some of what I got:
"Why on earth would you want to do something like that?"
"You're nuts!"
"You could drown!"
"That's so dangerous!"
"You'd better get your will done first."
"What are you thinking? You have a family!"
"You could get eaten by a shark..."
"The jellyfish will get you..."
"People invented boats and bridges to get across rivers, we're not supposed to swim across them."
"Are you going to use a gas mask?"
"The water's so polluted, you are going to get sick."
"If you want to swim, can't you do it in the pool where it's safe?"
Only one person said "That's awesome, you must be in great shape."
Do you get similar responses? And how do you answer them? I'm beginning to wonder what the rest of the world thinks of us...
Hi Sharkbait!
I get all of those comments. Especially when I did Alcatraz! Just ignore them. Most people in the non swimming world will never understand.
Good luck on your Potomac swim. Maybe we will see each other at some races this summer. What else are you doing?
I am probably doing the Chesapeake and Swim for Life and some others.
Swimmy :)
