Big Shoulders chicago swim

Unless you specifically want to do the 5k Championship swim, twice around the course, 2.5k is a perfectly fine option and more than enough distance to get really bored. :) Except for those few who are in it to win (out of 650), it's really just a big community swim. Dogs have done it. Ppl in flippers have done it. Go long, write a novel in your head. The last 3rd of the course is by the seawall, and you can put your feet down and take a rest, walk home.

Big Shoulder's is a GREAT ow swim. If you like breathing to the left it's perfect since the triangle markings will be to your left during the entire swim. I would practice a little bit of "lifting your head" every 25 or so strokes(depends on how straight you swim) to make sure you stay on course. Try to lift just to the tip of your goggles so you can see your markers and make sure your on course. Do not lift your entire head or *** stroke; that will slow you down too much. If you are uncomfortable swimming in lakes you might want to practice some longer swims in a lake. Go early in the morning, in a group, wear bright caps, and have predetermined "meet-up points to re-group and make sure everyone is still with you. A kayaker would be great too...if you have one available. If you really do "freak out" anytime you race over 100 yds. I recommend doing 3 or 4 one hour swims(pool or lake). These will give you the confidence you may need if this is your 1st ow swim....if you were just kidding I wouldn't worry about doing them. have fuln! :angel:

I think it's actually Ohio Street Beach. You're absolutely right, Kirk! I keep getting those confused. It's Ohio Street Beach and Olive Park. Matt, here's a link for the Crystal Lake Swim: Crystal Lake Open Water Swim JIM

One of last year's online coaches always included a distance-training swim in his weekly sets. Otherwise, these htreads may have something: Any tips for a FIRST time OW swim? - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums Cross Training for Open Water - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums OW Training routines? - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums 5K Training Advice - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums Cramping in Open Water Races - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums Lake Michigan Workouts - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums Newbie Question about Open-Water Racing - U.S. Masters Swimming Discussion Forums There are others. A bit of prowling through this forum will turn up similar threads. Good luck! Go long! Thanks everyone...I really just decided to do this race, the other day..So im hoping 4 months of solid training I can atleast finish :) My sprint background is what makes me nervous...Anything over a 100 is scary. :blush:

I believe that there are several masters groups that have training for OW swims. You might want to check around your area, since you are in Chicago there are likely a lot of people training for this. When a colleague of mine was training for OW, she had the lifeguards take one of the lane lines out and she essentially swam in 2 lanes with several other people to create more waves. Not sure if that will work for you, but it worked for her.

My team (Napervillewaves.org) practices at Ohio St beach a few Sundays every summer. There's always a lot of people there swimming up and down the seawall. They have lifeguards and it's usually shallow enough to stand up. there's a half submerged shopping cart about halfway up the course, which is always a point of interest :)

I think it's actually Ohio Street Beach. Training in open water is certainly a good idea if you can, but I swim open water races and usually never train open water. If you can get in some open water training the main thing to work on is sighting. You don't want to have to stop and look around to see where you're at. You should be able to just lift your head a little and pick out landmarks. In the pool I don't think you need to train much differently than you would for pool racing. Obviously you want a good aerobic base and the ability to swim at pace for an hour or more. In my opinion, though, that doesn't mean you need to do lots of long distance swimming in the pool.

Yea im in the same boat..I wanna try an OW swim, but I have no idea how to train for this, where to start training...I really like following the black line on the pool floor.

Katie and Matt, Big Shoulders takes place at Olive Street Beach, which is just north of Navy Pier. One of the best ways to practice is to swim at the actual site of the race. The beach will open Memorial Day weekend, in about a month. You can swim for 1/2 a mile one way, next to the concrete sea wall, which is parallel to Lake Shore Drive. This will give you a good feel for the water and potential conditions. Until then, maybe work on endurance. Are you able to swim 3 miles (5K) right now? The other thing you might want to consider, if you've never done a 5K before, is to think about doing the 2.5K instead. That's only a 1 1/2 miles. Maybe try that one first and see how it goes. If you want to try a warm up swim before that, there is a 1 and 2 mile swim in Crystal Lake in July. Hope this helps. Good luck! JIM

Katie and Matt, Big Shoulders takes place at Olive Street Beach, which is just north of Navy Pier. One of the best ways to practice is to swim at the actual site of the race. The beach will open Memorial Day weekend, in about a month. You can swim for 1/2 a mile one way, next to the concrete sea wall, which is parallel to Lake Shore Drive. This will give you a good feel for the water and potential conditions. Until then, maybe work on endurance. Are you able to swim 3 miles (5K) right now? The other thing you might want to consider, if you've never done a 5K before, is to think about doing the 2.5K instead. That's only a 1 1/2 miles. Maybe try that one first and see how it goes. If you want to try a warm up swim before that, there is a 1 and 2 mile swim in Crystal Lake in July. Hope this helps. Good luck! JIM Im pretty comfortable swimming a 5K....I think. Im just gonna have to get out there and swim on the lake. And I really got to check out that swim in crystal lake. I just need to find something to do this summer..I really have no where to train for LC meets so I figure why not give OW a chance :bliss: