need help w/ open-water swimming and dealing w/ 1-2' waves - Triathlon Week

08-27-2006, 11:35 PM

have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
breathe, whatever else might help.

TIA
walter

08-27-2006, 11:35 PM

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
> have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> breathe, whatever else might help.
>
> TIA
> walter
>

Depending on how far away your race is, you may not have time for this.
But training to breath on both sides is a big advantage in windy
conditions. That way you can avoid, or reduce, having to breath into the
wind (and the waves).

The other thing I'd suggest is, if you do most of your training in a
pool, practice raising your head and sighting something above water
level at the other end. Practising this lets you get to a stage where
sighting can be done almost seamlessly. It's not a bad skill to have for
any conditions, but definitely important in wavy conditions.

Final suggestion is to practice for those conditions in open water.
Having a wave wash over you as you try and breath is something you
really can't train for in a pool (although swimming in a lane of
butterfly swimmers comes close).

DaveB

08-27-2006, 11:35 PM

In article <1156726749.660122.140350@i3g2000cwc.googlegroups. com>,
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:

>
> have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> breathe, whatever else might help.
>

Among other things, landmark when you are on the crest of the wave.

--Harold Buck

"Hubris always wins in the end. The Greeks taught us that."

-Homer J. Simpson

08-27-2006, 11:35 PM

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote in news:1156726749.660122.140350
@i3g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

>
> have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> breathe, whatever else might help.
>
> TIA
> walter
>

I really beleive that your mindset going into the swim is almost as
important as your conditioning/training. You are no longer in the
carefully controlled conditions of the pool, so it's important to expect
the unexpected. Sometimes you'll roll your head to the side for air, and
there won't be any. Sometimes, you'll reach above the surface to recover
a stroke, and instead your arm will run into a wave. If you freak out and
stop to get your bearings, that's fine. But if you just take an extra
stroke and try again on the other side without any big loss in momentum,
that's even better.

When something unexpected happens, you'll eventually get to the point
where you think, "Hmm, that was interesting!" instead of "Oh god, I'm in
trouble!". That simple change in mindset is good for a full minute over
1500 yards of open water swimming, maybe more. The only way to get there
is by exposing yourself to open water more frequently. DO NOT SWIM ALONE!

Good luck,

Tom

08-29-2006, 03:42 AM

Tom Henderson wrote:
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote in news:1156726749.660122.140350
> @i3g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:
>
> >
> > have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> > featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> > looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> > breathe, whatever else might help.
> >
> > TIA
> > walter
> >
>
> I really beleive that your mindset going into the swim is almost as
> important as your conditioning/training. You are no longer in the
> carefully controlled conditions of the pool, so it's important to expect
> the unexpected. Sometimes you'll roll your head to the side for air, and
> there won't be any. Sometimes, you'll reach above the surface to recover
> a stroke, and instead your arm will run into a wave. If you freak out and
> stop to get your bearings, that's fine. But if you just take an extra
> stroke and try again on the other side without any big loss in momentum,
> that's even better.
>
> When something unexpected happens, you'll eventually get to the point
> where you think, "Hmm, that was interesting!" instead of "Oh god, I'm in
> trouble!". That simple change in mindset is good for a full minute over
> 1500 yards of open water swimming, maybe more. The only way to get there
> is by exposing yourself to open water more frequently. DO NOT SWIM ALONE!
>
> Good luck,
>
> Tom

I think Tom gives excellent advice. I would add that my confidence is
always boosted knowing that I am wearing a good wet suit that keeps me
buoyant, and I am equiped in other ways for safety and comfort.

Best of luck.
Michelle

08-29-2006, 03:42 AM

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote in news:1156811353.982139.249450@
75g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

> I think Tom gives excellent advice.

Thanks Michelle!

08-29-2006, 03:42 AM

For most ocean swimmers, 1 ' wave is something you can simply
ignore. 2' wave is something that you have to get used to. You
might have difficulties in finding where you are going ,
especially in crawl stroke. You might get sea sick even if you
have practiced a lot in ocean.
Last time I tried to swim in 4' wave and I did not get more
than 10 feet from where I started. The wave keep pushing me
back to shore, whether I swim above water, or under it, at
right angle or at an angle to the wave, in either breast
stroke or crawl stroke. I finally gave up, when I got thrown
back on the beach, with a trunkful, and earful of sand, minus
one goggle.

[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] å¯«é“ï¼š

> have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> breathe, whatever else might help.
>
> TIA
> walter

08-29-2006, 11:10 PM

newsreader wrote:
> For most ocean swimmers, 1 ' wave is something you can simply
> ignore. 2' wave is something that you have to get used to. You
> might have difficulties in finding where you are going ,
> especially in crawl stroke. You might get sea sick even if you
> have practiced a lot in ocean.
> Last time I tried to swim in 4' wave and I did not get more
> than 10 feet from where I started. The wave keep pushing me
> back to shore, whether I swim above water, or under it, at
> right angle or at an angle to the wave, in either breast
> stroke or crawl stroke. I finally gave up, when I got thrown
> back on the beach, with a trunkful, and earful of sand, minus
> one goggle.
>
If you're in 4' waves I generally find duck-diving them is the only
way...

08-29-2006, 11:10 PM

Tom Henderson wrote:
> [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote in news:1156726749.660122.140350
> @i3g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:
>
> >
> > have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> > featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> > looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> > breathe, whatever else might help.
> >
> > TIA
> > walter
> >
>
> I really beleive that your mindset going into the swim is almost as
> important as your conditioning/training. You are no longer in the
> carefully controlled conditions of the pool, so it's important to expect
> the unexpected. Sometimes you'll roll your head to the side for air, and
> there won't be any. Sometimes, you'll reach above the surface to recover
> a stroke, and instead your arm will run into a wave. If you freak out and
> stop to get your bearings, that's fine. But if you just take an extra
> stroke and try again on the other side without any big loss in momentum,
> that's even better.
>
> When something unexpected happens, you'll eventually get to the point
> where you think, "Hmm, that was interesting!" instead of "Oh god, I'm in
> trouble!". That simple change in mindset is good for a full minute over
> 1500 yards of open water swimming, maybe more. The only way to get there
> is by exposing yourself to open water more frequently. DO NOT SWIM ALONE!
>
> Good luck,
>
> Tom

This is good advice, as is DaveB above.

One additional comment I would make is that you need to learn to roll
with the waves. When you're in wavy/choppy conditions, as the waves
roll you around you experience a kind of falling sensation. I find
that my instinctive reaction is to go rigid and try to fight against
this, which uses up a lot of energy. You just need to relax and let
them roll you around. You get a feeling for the frequency of the waves
and when is the best time to look up for a sight with the least
likelihood of getting a face full of water.

FWIW I would much rather swim in a "swell" than a "chop", the swell you
can ride but the chop just keeps on battering you.

HTH

Liz D

08-31-2006, 11:56 PM

<[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> a écrit dans le message de news:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]...
>
> have an upcoming inaugural triathlon and my test-swim yesterday
> featured strong winds and 1-2' waves...it was a real struggle and i'm
> looking for tips to help out...how to time breathing, which way to
> breathe, whatever else might help.

I find it better to maintain a longer stroke when the waves coming from
behind, surfing the waves, and to stroke faster / shorter when swimming
against them. Maybe it is the need to keep in some kind of sync with the
waves?

You can find some attempt to explane this here:
[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

-- Olivier