2012 GREAT LAKES OPEN WATER SWIM SERIES - GLOWS - Final Summary

	2012 GREAT LAKES OPEN WATER SWIM SERIES
Great Lake Zone Members will earn points for their place finishes in each of the following
events, which have been designated as "GLOWS" swims. In order to earn a GLOWS award,
you need to participate in at least 2 of these swims.  Zone Members will also receive 50
Participation Points for each event they start. Finish points will be awarded according to
the USMS Long Distance Rule 307.12.1 found on page 61 of the 2012 USMS Rule Book at
www.usms.org/rules/part3.pdf. Point totals will be updated throughout the summer.
Award winners will be announced at the USMS Convention in September.
2-Jun	OHIO	Greenswell OW Swims			1/2-mile, 1.0 mile, 2.0 mile
23-Jun	INDIANA	USMS 3 - 6 Mile OW National Championship				5k
14-Jul	ALLEGHENY	Search For Mononghy OW Swim			1.2 mile and 2.4 mile
28-Jul	LAKE ERIE	Lake Erie OW Swim			1/2-mile, 1 mile, 2 mile
11-Aug	KENTUCKY	Ohio River OW Swim			0.5, 1.2 & 2.4 miles
18-Aug	WISCONSIN	Madison OW Swim  MOWS			1.2 & 2.4 miles
8-Sep	ILLINOIS	Big Shoulders OW Swim			2.5k & 5k
	TOTAL EVENTS		7
	TOTAL "SPLASHES"		1878
	TOTAL SWIMMERS		1657
	TOTAL WOMEN		679	41%
	TOTAL MEN		978	59%

3000 Yard Postal Is Done!

Yesterday Diane and I swan the 3000 yard postal. I timed her. Then she timed me. I swam the first 1500 yards in 26:11 and the second 1500 yards in 26:43.  I was 32 seconds slower in the second half. I'll take that. But I still want to cut about 5 minutes per mile to be competitive nationally. The pool was a 25 yard pool. That's a lot of turns. I put my dry-land pumped stomach muscles to work during the swim. More work is required in the stomach department. Diane by the way was about 9 minutes faster than me which is normal for us.

If you are interested in learning more about this event, go to https://www.clubassistant.com/club/meet_information.cfm?c=1287&smid=3918. I entered the event online yesterday. Cost to enter is $7.00. Check the website before you swim.

So what did I think about while swimming. I kept asking myself what condition is my condition in? Are my feet at horizontal for minimal drag? Am I getting a good push off the wall for fewer strokes?  Am I using the large body muscles or am I swimming with my arms? And where the heck is Diane's signal that I have 300 yards to finish?  I did the best I could in that place and at that time. I can't complain. Gotta go pump some iron.

Open Water Swim Feedback

Pool swimmers get immediate feedback on their swimming performance. It’s called the clock. They get a time. They know how their time compares to the other swimmers in the event. They know how their time compares to their previous times.  They can make adjustments for the next race. Open water swimmers see the clock at the end of a swim. By then it is too late to adjust.  Open water swimmers must make their adjustments during their swim.

My non-swimming friends and pool swimming friends ask me what I think about during an open water swim. I tell them I think about what condition my condition is in. Or, in short, how do I feel.  I say “Boiler room, this is the Bridge. What’s going on down there?”  If the boiler room reports back things like the right shoulder hurts, the left leg is drifting left, the chest is tight, hands are slapping the water, hands are pushing down at the catch, head is popping up too often, left arm is crossing the center line, feet are pulling me out of horizontal, I am drifting right, well, then I have to adjust.  All this without benefit of a clock. 

Usually the adjustment is a matter of paying closer attention some part of my stroke. Adjustments can be small or large.  Confirm high elbows on the recovery, ditto high elbows during the push, reach for the catch, rotate into the reach, start the exhale sooner, breathe at 90 degrees, at least twitch those legs, find the rhythm and let it flow.

And then we check back with the Engine Room and start the process all over again.

How To Be a Little More Safe on the Water

"PFD 3007 Youth Boating Vest in Red" (Google Affiliate Ad)


Did I mention that Diane and I like to swim up the beach for lunch?  We tow our lunch apparel and funds in a device sold by the International Swimming Hall of Fame.  The ISHOF Safer Swimmer Float is specifically designed to provide a safety aide for open water swimmers, serving three important functions without hindering performance or hindering your stroke.  1) It makes you visible to boaters, jet skiis, kite boarders or other potential human hazards while you are swimming - a little peace of mind on the open water is a good thing.  2)  It can be used as a floatation device when you need it in the case of cramps, dizziness or injury and it can also be used to rescue others - we've been fortunate so far and have not needed this feature. 3) It can also keep your “stuff” safe while you are swimming or allows you to take along your “stuff” on one-way swims across rivers or lakes - yep, this is why we got one. It's a good thing Diane's waist is small enough to get the belt around herself.

How To Prevent Shoulder Injury

I just got back from the United States Aquatic Sports Convention in Greensboro, NC where I attended a very informative and useful seminar conducted by Dr Jim Miller who is very active in both Masters Swimming and FINA. FINA regulates international swimming. I sure don't want to try to explain how FINA, USA, USMS et al fit together. Maybe I'll try that some other time. At any rate, Jim took us through dry exercises which are intended to strengthen shoulders BEFORE injury occurs. He made a point of reminding us that OTHER exercises would be better if the shoulder is already injured. A video of the exercises may be found on the FINA.org website at ....

http://www.fina.org/project/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1435&Itemid=496.

At the Convention, it was made painfully clear to me that despite all the yards and miles I swim, I am not as strong as I could be.  My cardiovascular conditioning is good. My stroke technique is not bad. But my core strength is weak. In the coming months I plan to put more time into dry land exercises and less time into being in the water. And I'll work on shoulder strength as well.

Lake Erie Virtual Swim - How long is a mile?

Garmin n vi 2555LMT 5" GPS - Electronics (Google Affiliate Ad)

So the question is...how long is a mile?  A one mile swim in the pool is 1650 yards.  But we all learned in grade school that a mile is 5280 feet = 1760 yards. Let's call 1650 yards a "pool mile". And let's call 1760 yards a "lake" mile. Open water purists, such as yours truly, use lake miles.  This summer, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, I swam 100.77 lake miles although not all yards were in the lake. For the Lake Erie Virtual Swim, this means I made it across to Canada but did not quite make the return trip to the US. So I will be stranded on an iceberg for the winter. But if I recompute lake miles to pool miles, my mileage increases to 107.49 miles. This puts me on the Cleveland water crib for the winter. This is a choice between a rock and a cold spot. As you can plainly see, swimming is not all about swimming. It's about having fun.

1-Mile Open Water National Championship - Lake Lure, NC

                          From L to R: Doug, Marianne, Diane, Tom, Judi, Gerry, Luise, Julio

                                                         Trying to spell "O H I O "

                                     Tom awaiting the start of his wave - holding his own hand.

                                    Lined up - ready to go - let's get this show on the road.

                                                               Show is on the road.

                             32 minutes later Tom splashes to shore looking for the finish line.

The 1-Mile Open Water National Championship at Lake Lure, NC was a well run event. The weather was perfect. So was the water. Our group of swimmers from Ohio had 3 first place finishes, one second place finish, one fourth place finish and one fifth place finish. This is not bad for a group of eight swimmers. The fifth place finisher was me. My long term plan is to outlive the old guys. So far, it's not working. Apparently, the old guys' plan is to outlive me. 

It was a lot of fun as was the entire trip to Asheville, NC. This just about wraps up open water swimming for this year. We go back inside Wednesday after Labor Day.

Next up is the Aquatics Convention which will be in Greensboro, NC this year.