Great Day in Chicago for OW Swimmers

That last couple hundred yards into the second buoy is always a little rough and Saturday was no exception. I think Tom is right, though. Once you get around the buoy the waves tend to help push you to the beach. I always try to space myself away from the seawall because of the waves reflecting off it. The other difficulty is the water gets pretty shallow a ways from shore. That final running sprint up to the beach is the toughest part of the race!

jaegermeister: I've swum there a few times. The man-made structures affect water flow around the second buoy, making that small area a bit more choppy/sloppy than it otherwise would be, but usually the entire basin is easy water, no surge/rolling waves carrying you down the home stretch along the seawall. Regards, VB

Sorry, knelson, that the slow swimmers annoy you so much. Why would you say something like this? I never said the slower swimmers annoyed me. What annoyed me is waiting two hours after I was done swimming for the awards. I think it's great that everyone who finished finished. Would their achievement somehow be lessened if awards were given out while they were still in the water? I guess one solution would be to send off the swimmers by estimated finish time and have the slower swimmers start first. This would reduce the total time of the event, but would require the later waves to pass more people. But as the director said in the pre-race speech "it's a big lake." There's plenty of room out there to pass one another. But, sorry, I don't want to ruin this thread. I love the event and that's why I've swum it now four times. I'm just offering suggestions for how I think it could be improved. I don't expect everyone to agree.

It was a great swim! I'm sorry I didn't get to meet anyone; I talked with 1 or 2 people who had an Alcatraz T-shirt. (There were alot of people and alot of T-shirts). Can I just be geek here for a minute? I think it so cool that everyone who finishes gets a medal. (And that they're different every year!) I never did athletics when I was growing up. I never got encouragement of any kind in that area. So when I get my medal after finishing the swim, I feel like I've won the Olympics. (No matter how long it took or where I came in). :applaud: Thanks again to all the people who organize and run Big Shoulders! JIM

This was my first time doing Big Shoulders, and I was surprised by the effect of the seawall on the final leg. I was anticipating there'd be a huge reflection off of the wall, but instead there seemed to be a significant trailing surge, pushing us on toward the beach. This was likely the combined effects of the direction of the wind/waves off the lake, as well as the breakwater. Anyone out there that swims the Ohio St. beach regularly? Is this a common phenomenon? Swimmy, Kirk, other posters: sorry we didn't plan a gathering. Next year look for Team Hottub t-shirts.

Aside from the mosquitoes, over which I do not believe Chicago Masters have any authority, the event was great. I almost forgot about the mosquitoes. They were pretty hungry before the event :duel: Living on the West Coast you forget how persistent those little buggers can be in the Midwest.

I think more people stayed around for awards last year and in 2005. Big Shoulders was a national championship in those years and they gave out 3 medals for each age group. I enjoyed seeing the awards and was glad that they waited for everyone to finish. Being so early in the morning I am not sure wine would make people stick around longer. Maybe coffee would!

the day was beautiful! sunny skies, cool water, very little wind! this was my first time doing the 5k and it was a blast! I can't wait to do this race again next year*** re: the mosquitos, we had such a wet August that the mosquitos have been out of control vicious lately. I came armed with Off and I still got bit, dangit! ***However: next year, as part of my training, I will pack icepacks around my feet for 20 minutes, then practice jumping up and sprinting across my lawn. Though the water didn't feel too cold, it was chilly enough and enough of my blood/oxygen was being diverted elsewhere that my feet went numb by the end of the 5k. As Kirk said, the worst part of the race was the 50m run up on the sand. At about the 25m point, my frozen feet refused to comply with the forward motion of my upper body. WHAM! I hydroplaned on the sand. One of my finer sports moments! :D

If I had known I was going to place 4th in my age group, I would have kneecapped knelson to move into the top 3. :dedhorse: This was likely the combined effects of the direction of the wind/waves off the lake, as well as the breakwater. Anyone out there that swims the Ohio St. beach regularly? Is this a common phenomenon? There were two factors that made the "current" more obvious. The turnpoint was a lot closer to the wall, compared to other years I've swam. Some people always hug the wall for the surge assist, but had to swim a little extra distance to get to the wall; not so this year. The water also seems shallower than I remember. While I could always stand up for most of the last leg, it seems to be chest-high (or shallower) instead of chin-high. I would think this would increase the wave action.

I think that awards should only be given after everyone is back, safe and accounted for. I see Kirk's view too that there is a bit of waiting around can be a little wearying after a tough swim. As for afterevents, why not right up some portable showers for the finished swimmers to get cleaned up and comfortable? Or A lunch as has been suggested. This worked at the OW I did 2 weeks ago. I sat on my butt and ate a sandwich and cookies while Dave Barrra completed a 1/2 mile swim...what's better than that?