I'm hoping to swim in open water some day. Just read some articles about what to pay attention to and all sorts of accidents that can happen--losing goggles or cap when the race just started, for example. Some people bring an extra pair of goggles and wear them on their ankles or necks??
It will be interesting to hear what kind of accidents people have actually experienced in OW swimming--goggles/cap accidents, cramps due to cold water, losing direction, animal bites, needing rescue... And if you had the rare chance to see what the inside of the stomach of a shark was like that would be exciting to hear :D
I was joking, but read this story and take a look at the picture, would you not hesitate to swim in the ocean? :eek:
I have to admit that reported shark attacks on NJ beaches within weeks preceding my first ocean swim race did nothing to calm my fears. But I reasoned to myself, things can happen anywhere--a tree limb can fall on me while walking down a street. I was quite grateful, though, not to learn until after I did that swim that a friend mentioned he'd almost turned around when he "saw something in the water" near him that (although I didn't ask him what that something was) might have been a shark. He continued, unharmed.
It's always in the back of my mind in ow swims... in my long bay swim, I felt something rough brush against my leg... never figured out what it was, didn't stop to look... some stuff I just don't want to know. :eek:
I was joking, but read this story and take a look at the picture, would you not hesitate to swim in the ocean? :eek:
I have to admit that reported shark attacks on NJ beaches within weeks preceding my first ocean swim race did nothing to calm my fears. But I reasoned to myself, things can happen anywhere--a tree limb can fall on me while walking down a street. I was quite grateful, though, not to learn until after I did that swim that a friend mentioned he'd almost turned around when he "saw something in the water" near him that (although I didn't ask him what that something was) might have been a shark. He continued, unharmed.
It's always in the back of my mind in ow swims... in my long bay swim, I felt something rough brush against my leg... never figured out what it was, didn't stop to look... some stuff I just don't want to know. :eek:
