The article says that the race organizers are disputing the number of rescues being reported.
I'm not trying to start a flame war, just passing along the news as it is reported.
Former Member
jkormanik
I don't have an argument with anything you've said. I competed in 11 triathlons in 2 years as I returned to competitive athletics. I started with triathlons because of a compromised shoulder. What I found is that generalizations about why triathletes perform only adequately or poorly in the swim, are usually wrong.
My observations
1) Some simply could not swim when they started to focus on doing a triathlon, so they have so much to learn.
2) Some have never swam out of a pool and the idea of open water scares them. I guess if all the bike riding I did was on a track, riding in traffic would freak me out
3) They have 3% body fat and get cold in water colder than a swimming pool at the "Y"
4) Not many have a neoprene fetish so they freak out in a tight wetsuit, particularly at the start of the event when their anxiety level is high. Remember most OW swimmers hate wetsuits too, but get annoyed not anxious about wearing them.
5) Some are always anxious at any start and have a tendency to hyperventilate. Not a good thing to do when your face is in the water.
6) Some feel like anytime someone bumps into them in the water that the person was trying to swim over them and will do so at any minute.
7) Many feel that anytime you are doing a workout and not breathing hard, you are wasting your time. Many of the others will perform some kind of stroke drill and either don't fully understand it or are unable to integrate it into their stroke.
8) Almost all them would never consider spending the majority of their time in the pool only working on their stroke. I started into triathlons because of a problem shoulder. I developed almost all of my conditioning cycling and running. My time in the pool was all about stroke work. I would swim all out on race day figuring that if I injured it I could rest it after a race. I always finished high in the swim (and never inured my shoulder because I had not put too much strain on it in practice)
9) Some look at the swim leg just as they do the entry fee. They hate it, but consider it just the price of admission. They train for the swim leg like they write the check. Not a bit more than they have to.
10) Finally, I would say the majority of them don't have the time to train in all 3 sports so they take the time loss in the swimming leg, thinking that they can make it up on the bike and run. However if you give up 6 minutes in the water in an olympic distance, you are going to have to run a mile a minute faster. That's pretty hard for mere mortals.
As far as which is tougher: apples & oranges.
from the UK's The Independent :
"... 14 deaths among almost one million ... 13 of the 14 deaths occurred during ... the swim phase ..."
To put this in perspective, back of the envelope calculations indicate that in a typical population of 1,000,000 people, you will have about 40 people die every day.
Of course, in a typical population of 1,000,000 you probably have about 980,000 for whom a sprint tri is physically way above anything they could consider doing.
Up in the Northeast Kingdom there was an even-up Aquaman Triathlon 3.5 mi. swim, 34 mi bike, 13 mi run. It is a small sample, but the top finishers all split pretty evenly.
Up in the Northeast Kingdom there was an even-up Aquaman Triathlon 3.5 mi. swim, 34 mi bike, 13 mi run. It is a small sample, but the top finishers all split pretty evenly.
Now that is an awesome race distance
just to add one more thing being I am doing the English channel next year and have gotten up to a 16 mile swim in 7 hours. My friend that Kayaked for me is an Ironman and made time to go to Kona. She said that she thinks swimming is much harder because you cant, slowdown and walk like you could in a run, you dont get to use diffrent body parts, all your arms, you cant get food or drink unless some hands it to you with out tuching them. It very hard to pee and tread water. You have no land marks in the channel. you dont know if your at the end or not. There is no on on the other side to cheer you on. you cant hear people or talk to anyone your alone the way. You jump in the water in the dark off a boat to start.You cant stop swimming while you eat or anthing because every mintue the tide pushes you around and could add hours on to your swim. She said she would never do a marthoon swim because you get a leg cramp and you have to just go not to mention the cold. She swam 2 twice with me in a wet suit when it was 56 I was not in one. she said she would never do it agin. But I in turn thing she is cazy to run and bike what she does. It comes down to these are two very diffrent sports.
I second that how come more tris are not like that. I think in an Ironman distance the swim should be at least 5 miles.
Considering how this thread started I can see the headlines now:
" 2,000 Swimmers Rescued During Triathlon."
I'll preface my comments with this disclaimer: I am a triathlete. I've completed 1 Ironman distance event so far (with 2 additional events on the horizon), a couple of 70.3 distance events (one in Oceanside harbor) and several shorter races. I have not completed a swim of longer than 2.4 miles in any single race.
That being said: triathletes are NOT open water swimmers. They do NOT (and cannot) train with a singular focus of the swim. Most triathletes do the level best they can during the swim. The comment I mostly hear during training or prior to the start of the event is: "If I just make it out of the water, I'll be fine." With the workaday life of the average triathlete, training time is at a premium. Most triathletes see the percentages of time/distance of each event and, rightfully I might add, simply want to be "average" swimmers and excel during the bike and/or the run.
Which is tougher?? I, frankly, have no idea. But, until you swim 2.4 miles, run out of the water and get on a bike for 112 miles, then run 26.2 miles, you have no idea what a toll such an endeavor takes on your body. I know, I've been there. I do not, however, know what a physical/psychological toll marathon swimming takes on a body...I haven't done it.
I aspire to be a true open water swimmer; in fact, I have a "date" set for the English Channel in the future. In the mean time, I train appropriately for the distances I race.
For a triathlete to expose themselves to a situation which could result in endangering their life or the life of someone else is, simply put, a poor personal choice. But to say "triathlete people do not plan or train enough for these events" paints with too broad a brush. I would venture to say most triathletes have, indeed, trained properly. It is the few who do not that make the headlines.
I would agree that a lot of the triathlete people do not plan or train enough for these events.
I swam this portion of the LA Tri last year as a relay. We were part of a larger team of a bunch of relays and I was one of two people out of 6 teams that the swimmer made it out. And I emerged from the water with a split eye and blood running down my face from making contact with another swimmer who was having trouble making it through the waves. (they ended up getting pulled out of the water)
This is a perfect example of how USMS needs to make a better effort at educating and providing clinics for open water swimmers. A lot of people on the beach were clearly novices and unprepared.
I'm constantly asked by triathletes how to better prepare for the swims and the answer isn't a quick fix... its training consistently and being prepared.
