Last year, my open water season ended during the first week in November. At that time, the water was getting just too cold, even with a thermal wetsuit, booties, a hoodie, and gloves. This year, it was cut short because of the need for meniscus surgery. I swam until October...
Swimming Against the Current
I've been swimming a lot lately in preparation for the 5.5-mile Cross Bay Swim. The other day, I asked my son, who will be my kayaker, to come for a practice swim. I usually go to Tobay in the morning but since he likes to sleep in, I went at...
First Few Open Water Swims of the Season
By the time you read this blog, it will probably be the end of June. When I wrote this blog, it was June 2 on day 3 of open water swimming. The water temperature is in the high 50s, low 60s. The air temperature is around 62. The first swim...
How to Swim in Choppy Water
At the end of August on Long Island, it felt like fall had already started. I had a swim date to meet my friend, Lisa, at Tobay Beach, about five miles east of Jones Beach. When I got to the beach, I met another teammate, Peggy. Choppy Water "Wow, the...
Swimming in Tobay Beach – Bay Side
There are groups of people who go out to Tobay Beach on the Bay side nearly every day during the summer. When the sun rises, most go out at 5:30 am, but as the sun comes up later, 6:30 am is our time to swim. If you've never seen swimmers...
Beginner Triathlon Training: Swimming In the Open Water
This blog post was written in August 2014, right before my first triathlon in Florida. I had never been in the open water and went to the Open Water Swim LI Robert Moses swim. I was terrified. Here's what happened: ------ My first experience in the open water was not...