Yesterday I did a race which turned out to be extremely hard for me. If I was more careful I wouldn't signed up at the first place. Here's the summary, the full race report is in my blog.
The race was nearly 5 km. Last year someone with similar speed with me completed the race in around 1 hour and 40 minutes so I signed up despite it would be hot. However, when I looked at the marine forecast before the race, I found out that the current was against us most of the way at about 0.8 km/h! In the water I went easy in the sheltered bay until the turning point where the strong spring tide was against us.
Then it started to become bloody hell. I started to increase my effort as planned, but the building next to me didn't seem to move at all. I further increased my effort until the absolute maximum that I can gave out, even more than my 1.5 km race effort (that segment against the strong tide was 1.8 km long and I expected 55 minutes considering the current), and the building started to move away, but that meant I had to keep that effort which I used for a 30-minute race for nearly a ****ing hour!
I had to keep that maximum effort for as long as I could until I reach the choke point where the current diminished afterwards, which was the only sensible thing for me to do. If I slowed down even a bit I would be on the verge of being cut off. I even had to resist my temptation of stopping and getting my sports drink out at the planned time because I hadn't reached the choke point as planned in time. I couldn't complete that segment in 55 minutes as planned, but 70 minutes!!! For only 1.8 km!!!!!!!!!! When I finished the race I was so slow that the prize giving was done already, and I couldn't see my idol on stage who got the 3rd in his (and my) AG and 5th overall despite this was the first ever ocean OW race in his life (he was a pool swimmer specialising in 200 m and 400 m events 20 years before).
After finishing, I heard that a lot of people were pulled in the race. I got the last place in the result list, barely passing the cut off point in time. The experience was so horrible that I didn't enjoy it at all, and I don't think I will sign up next time if it is still held on the same day of the lunar month.
I would like to know the experience of the others when racing in a strong opposing current. Did you enjoy it or not? Or do you think if it is horrible like what I describe above?
Reminds me of the saying: "What do you call the person who's last in their class in Medical School? Doctor." This was your first OWS, right? Fly and Mr Tyson are right: you finished! You learned some things about open water. Conditions change. Even a well-laid-out course can have a lot of variables. Tides, cold spots, a weather system 700 miles away pushing currents in different directions, plantlife, wildlife. When I swam early this season in a lake, we had an odd current from the fact that that lake is an impounded river flowing toward a spillway. Two ocean swims were unexpectedly colder than anticipated. (The organizers learned some things from that, too). Another swim was first rerouted due to shark activity, and THEN changed venues entirely due to an incoming hurricane! But people still signed up and swam and challenged themselves.
Like Fly said, and one of my friends pointed out, a few feet in either direction can change conditions and distance. It just happens, which is part of the fun of open water. Go out, swim more, try another race and see what happens.
Reminds me of the saying: "What do you call the person who's last in their class in Medical School? Doctor." This was your first OWS, right? Fly and Mr Tyson are right: you finished! You learned some things about open water. Conditions change. Even a well-laid-out course can have a lot of variables. Tides, cold spots, a weather system 700 miles away pushing currents in different directions, plantlife, wildlife. When I swam early this season in a lake, we had an odd current from the fact that that lake is an impounded river flowing toward a spillway. Two ocean swims were unexpectedly colder than anticipated. (The organizers learned some things from that, too). Another swim was first rerouted due to shark activity, and THEN changed venues entirely due to an incoming hurricane! But people still signed up and swam and challenged themselves.
Like Fly said, and one of my friends pointed out, a few feet in either direction can change conditions and distance. It just happens, which is part of the fun of open water. Go out, swim more, try another race and see what happens.
