New race suit: Sink or swim ?

Date: December 10-12th
Location: Boston University, MA, USA

So let's back up to December 10th, 2010, day one of the New England Masters Short Course Championship Meet in Boston, USA. United States Masters Swimming is open to athletes 18 years and over and this meet is one of the largest masters meets in the country, good competiton. This year is no exception there are just under  600 swimmers racing.
 I am curious to see how my times are after one year of training that is geared towards preparation for my 2012 English Channel attempt, my training has shifted to higher mileage in the pool and more time in the Open Water taking me out of the warmth of the pool and it's firm walls to blast off, along with this little to no time swimming non Freestyle strokes.
 At this very same meet in December  2009, I raced in a speed suit, it was cat woman suit tight, zipping up the back, full leg length but bare shoulders, it was so tight it took about 20 minutes to squeeze into and to make it easier I would slide a plastic bag over my foot and lower leg to help get the process of getting into the suit started, it was quite the mission getting suited up let alone racing.
 Since being introduced in 2008 speed suits have led to nearly 200 world records, studies have showen them to improve performance, a study of a group of competitve swimmers showed 25 Free, 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free, 400 Free and 800 Free distances raced were 2-4% faster in a full body suit, the suits tested were focused on reducing drag loses not adding buoyancy, the researchers measured performance, stroke rate and distance per stroke.
FINA the governing body of swimming issued regulations early in 2010 banning the suits, so I am not swimming in a speed suit this weekend, what will happen to my times? All indicators point to me swimming 2-4 % slower, hmmm let's see if that is what happens to this little science experiement, first we have one more thing to consider, " the Taper",or lack of it in my case....usually before a championship meet I will decrease my mileage as the meet gets closer, I slash my training distance, only swimming fast short bursts at race pace speed with a slow ez swim before and after the race pace blast, I will do this a number of times during a training  session along with practicing starts off the blocks and turns, end result is your body is fine tuned for fast swimming and has had lots of rest and ez swimming in the days leading up to the meet, the body is stockpiling excess energy and feels strong and rested by meet day..... the body and mind are just itching to perform, edgy and sharp, the  peak performance window is wide open.
 BUT this year is different, I am not focusing on the meet, it is not my training goal, I am sticking to my distance training plan and still honkering down to meet this new  1000 miles in 2010 goal, instead of a taper I swim 47,500 meters the week before the meet.
What distance do I usually swim for a taper week? 7,500 meters....., that is about 40,000 meters over the regular taper distance:" she'll be right mate, it's only a wee bit off", as we'd say in New Zealand, and that was my good old Kiwi philosophy going into the competiton " no worries mate!"
 Yes this is clearly going to be a different approach,  my own little science experiment so to speak!

 The 800 meters is the first event, it is held on Friday evening, Paula, Deb and I set off from Stowe, Vermont at 11:30am, the drive to Boston can take anything from 3.5- 7 hours depending on the weather, fortunately for us the roads are dry, no snow storm today!
 We arrive in Boston in good time and check into the meet, the pool opens for warmups at 4:30pm the meet starts at 5pm. I am fairly confident that I am not in the fastest heat, there are 10 lanes and I am seeded 11th fastest out of 76 swimmers, the 10 swimmers seeded ahead of me are all faster, the age of each swimmer is listed alongside their seed time, 22, 25, 28, 26, the list goes on until I reach number 11, Charlotte Brynn 44.
 As swimmer 11, I will fall into heat number 3, there will be the fastest heat of women first, followed by a heat with the fastest men, then my heat, cool, I can relax and take my time warming up, hey maybe I'll throw in a few extra meters to go towards my 1000 mile goal that I have challenged myself to reach before the end of the year. I swim a few 1000 meters and slide on out of the pool at 4:55pm, "better check out the heat sheets before I take a hot shower and change out of my warm up suit and into my race suit", I think to myself, " "then I will suck down a  snack and kick back and watch the first heat, I like to gulp down a whey protein and gatorade mix before I race.
 I get out of the pool and stroll over to the heat and lane assignments posted on the wall behind the starting blocks, to my horror I discover I am in the first and fastest heat of women swimmers, I am in lane 10 the "slow" lane," aww mate", I say as I look, not only am I going to be the slow poke in the fastest heat, but I race in 5 minutes and don't even have my race suit on!. I hastily rinse off in the showers, pull on my suit, cap and googles in hand swiftly make my may to stand behind block number 10, I have had to accept the fact there will be no feed, I will race on an empty stomach, YUCK.
 My heart is pounding, I force myself to not look at all the other swimmers, there seed times are much faster than mine, I feel jumpy and unsettled, " OK just swim your race I tell myself". I look at Deb at the other end of the pool, she is my lap counter, I know I'll be OK when Deb is there, she is calming.
 The whistle blows signalling me to step up on the block, take your mark, my hands grab the front of the block, beeeep, every muscle in my body responds and I explode off the block and into the water, tight streamline and then I am off for my strong first 75 meters, my heart is pounding and I am excited, I can't wait to get this show on the road.
 First 75 down and I lower my stroke rate swimming fewer longer and stronger strokes, my Channel training has really helped me get a better feel for my stroke rate or tempo, it is like cadence if you are training on a bike. After 200 meters I notice that there are other swimmers who are behind me, what's up with that, I am in the booby prize slow lane, I can't fathom why there seem a good part of the field behind me WEIRD, I decide not to think about it and swim on feel and I do. I focus on staying long, relaxed and being as quick as I can in and out of the walls. At 650 meters I feel my intensity level start to creep up, it begins knocking on the door of my anaerobic energy system, this is when my working muscles recruit fuel from stores in the body, there is not a very big store, it does not last for long and the byproducts of this energy conversion make the body feel tired and uncomfortable, end result perfomance drops, you got it...YOU SLOW DOWN. Agghh time to adjust I pull it back slightly to stick in  my aerobic zone, at 100 meters I make my move to increase my stroke rate, I do and barely hold on spinning my arms fast as I swim into the touch pad to finish.
 My previous personal best time for 800 Free in the speed suit = 10:24.14
This year = 10:20.77
Where did I finish in the heat ? 5th
Where did I finish in my age group? 1st

The " she'll be right mate" attitude worked, I am happy.
 Saturday and Sunday I swam another 10 events, my times were all slower than 2009 by about 1 %, I felt great during the whole meet and spent as much time as I could warming up and swimming down to clock some extra milleage. All told I swam 4,800 meters each day nudging me closer to me 1000 miles goal.
 Next up preparation for the Holiday Swim in Stowe Vermont: 100 repeats of 100 meters, each 100 meters has to be swum in 100 seconds or less, that is 1:40 to swim and rest and I can't wait.
 Do I have some goal times for this swim YOU BET!
What are they? I'll keep you posted

Motivation can be right in front of you!

Sunday December 19th, 2010
Location: Indoor Lap Pool
Workout: 4,500 meters

 Wahoo, it's Sunday, my usual rest day of the week, but not this Sunday, I have scheduled a 4,500 meter swim to keep me on track to hit 1000 miles before the end of the year and the clock is ticking.
 I am excited about today's swim, I am feeling better than I did yesterday and I know today's dip is going to be short, if all goes well I will be finished up in 1.5 hours or less.
  I am not planning on swimming fast today, in fact I decided to not focus on the clock and kick back after grinding it out through yesterday's tough swim, " why not take it easy on yourself today", I say to myself when I wake up, the conversation goes on " sterling idea, don't mind if I do". As soon as I made this decision I felt relaxed, essentially a goof off swim, what fun.
 I head down to the pool, the memory of my " Solo" swim fresh in my mind from yesterday. I am relived to see Paula, my swim buddy and crew member already in the pool, excellent, someone to swim with, all the lanes around Paula are occupied with swimmers working away on their own fitness goals and Paula is close to finishing up her swim and getting out, RATS!
 I know today I need company in the pool in the worst way, I spy Peg in the lane next to Paula. Peg has great energy, she is as bright as a button and when you are around Peg you can't help but smile,
Unbeknown  to her she is the one who can get me to perform my best today, how?.... just by sharing a lane with me, Peg has been doing a great job of working on her lap swimming over the last few months, I have noticed her getting stronger in the water, however I don't think swimming with me is top on her " things I want to do in 2010 list...swim with Charlotte".  I stroll up to her lane " mind if we split the lane?", Peg's eyes become as wide as saucers, she answers by saying" I may not be the best one to share the lane with you" , "you'll be great and I promise not to hit you" I blurted out, then jump in and pushed off before she has a chance to voice any further doubts.
 Peg swims great, sure we swam at a different pace but we were both working in the same pond, I did my workout and she did hers, I kept my promise and didn't hit her and spent as much time under the water as possible, especially when we passed each other near the walls.I had fun.
 I started with my 10 x 200 meters set, I felt relaxed and pleased to have a familiar face in the lane, even if we had never swum together before I spent plenty of time with Peg on land.
 I know I had made a deal to not look at the clock today but after the 2nd 200 I decided to look at the clock after all, I was amazed to see my times were the best I had hit in weeks, it turned out to be a great swim, all thanks to me relaxing and having Peg, my magic lane mate for the day. Before I knew it 4,500 meters was done and I was out of the water.
The lessons from today's swim....

1. One day at a time, never assume something is going to be rough( or a cake walk) just because it was yesterday
2. Relax, it makes everything easier
3. Motivation can be right there in front of you.....seek it out.

Today's Swim
10 x 200s on the 3:00 Interval
#1-4   2:50 seconds
# 5      2:45 seconds
# 6-9  2:40 seconds
# 10    2:35 seconds

6 x 250s ( kick/ Pull / Swim)

4 x 250's Paddles

50 Goof Off!

Total Distance 4,500 meters

 Next up off home to eat lunch and then up to Trapp Family Lodge for an afternoon Nordic ski, it was the first cross country ski of the winter, it is funny that I could be swimming in water this morning and then essentially skiing on another state of water this afternoon, this time in the form of snow cover....weird!
 I felt clumsy on skis compared to swimming but it was great to get out in the woods and feel some sun light on my face.




Trapp Family Lodge Ski Trails Stowe, Vermont


So the clock is ticking, how far left to go to make 1000 miles before the end of the year?
43.27 Miles
That is 69,636 meters or 2,785.44 lengths of the indoor lap pool
 Next time you drive 43.27 miles think of swimming it instead of driving your car, we will conquer 1000 miles together!

Draggin....in the pool

Saturday December 18th, 2010
Location: Indoor Lap Pool
Scheduled Distance: 10,000 meters ( 10km )

 Today is one of those non glamorous days, no excitement just the reality of grinding it out. I woke up feeling sick, the day itself was beautiful, fresh snow, sparkling sunshine and excitement in the air, Stowe Mountain resort is reporting great conditions, Trapp Family Lodge has it's Nordic center up and running for the winter season and there is a buzz in the air, people around town excited to snowboard, downhill ski, cross country ski all the good stuff. I am excited for them including my husband Jeff and the kids who are all off to bomb around the mountain for the day.....not me, I have a 3.5 hour date with the pool, my body feels heavy and tired, I have a self diagnosed sinus infection, the one where you feel like there is an alien being in your nose and forehead with a pulse that goes BOOM BOOM BOOM, I know that as soon as I go under water this pressure will be intense.
 English Channel goal in mind I set off to the pool, I am due to meet Gail at 8:00am, we start the swim with:
10 x 250's ( 50 kick/ 100 Pull / 100 swim)
these went by super fast, I hadn't swum with Gail for 2 weeks and it was good to catch up.
Followed by :
5 x 200's on the 3:15
then Gail had to leave and I finished up:
5 x 200's of Free on the 3:00 interval, each 200 took 2 minutes and 55 seconds, I was slow today.
Next up:
 8 x 250's of Pull, this is when I swim with hand paddles and a pull buoy, followed by 500 Free easy.
OK that is 7000 meters down and I am feeling like a beached whale, every stroke hurts, my body aches and I still have 3000 meters to go, it seems impossible...I look around the pool and the lanes are empty, aggghhhh NO!
 Than I catch a glimpse of a black blurr, it is my buddy Margaret, she has slid into the pool in a full length speedo speed suit, she looks sharp and fast. She is practicing for the 100 x 100's swum on the 100 seconds and looking to see if the speed suit is (a) comfortable, and (b) helps her swim her 100s faster.
 The speed suit is a tight full body suit, Speedo released the fastskin lazer in time for the Beijing Summer Olympics, it was said to be the fastest suit on the planet, made of light weight fabric, it offered compression to provide core stability and the lowest passive drag, combine that with a water repellent fabric and a lower surface friction than other fabrics and you have one fast swim. The full body suits and the swimmers in them broke numerous records giving the swimmer that extra edge, the rules have recently changed banning full length suits in competitive swimming, now suits must not cover the shoulders or go below the knees for female swimmers.
 Back to Margaret, I have 3000 meters to go and I am hoping Margaret will stick around and keep me company. I pull up to the wall and ask " Margaret, what have you got left to swim?" , " just a few hundred pull to swim down" , she replies, " Excellent I blurt out, " how about 5 x 200's for you and 5 x 250's for me?" OK, replies Margaret , " I will sacrifice myself and keep you company", I am thrilled, we set off and I instantly feel stronger, like I could take on anything, Margaret, took the thinking out of today's swim and I am super grateful. Before we know it the 5 x 250 meters is done and I only have 1750 meters to go...I am over the  moon, I know I can pull my sorry a$#$ 1750 meters up and down this pool to complete today's swim.
 Margaret gets out and suddenly I feel very alone, there is no one left in the Olympic sized 8 lane pool but me, I am down, this is the life of a " SOLO " swimmer I think.
 I shake it off and decide that I am good and tired, I have 8,500 meters under my belt, my arms feel like lead and this is a perfect time to practice swimming fast against the tide of France! I instruct myself to begin swimming faster....I do,  I have 6 x 250's left to swim plus a final 200 meters any way I choose...NOT, I am going to swim the final 200 meters all out like I am swimming through the current to reach France.
 During each 250 meters I get a little faster, I feel like I am dragging myself through the water, nothing comes easy, my head is pounding, I am beat.
 The final test, 200 meters all out, all week my times have been off, sluggish and slow from coming off the New England Championship meet at Boston University, I skipped the post meet rest to get back onto the 1000 miles in 2010 goal and I am paying for it...achy body, slow in the water and lethargic, even my mood is down, normally I am excited to swim, today I have been dreading it, willing it to be over.
 So now it comes down to the final 200 meters, the English Channel could come down to this, tired, down and so close to the shore, if you push hard you make it if you slack up you fail.........the bitter truth.
 I push off the wall for the final 200 meters, all week I have swum nothing faster than 2 minutes 40 seconds for a 200 meter all out swim, what will happen today?
 I push my achy body off the wall and will it to perform...it snaps into gear and explodes into it's performance zone, what I have trained it to do time after time over the last 11.5 months, it all comes together.
 First 75 meters is hard with a high stroke rate, then at 75 meters I settle into long strong strokes, I feel fantastic, " how is this possible, and where did this come from?" I think, before I know it I am powering into the wall and yanking my head up to see the clock....2 minutes, 35 seconds YES, I am psyched!
 50 EZ stretch and my 10, 000 meters is complete.
 Out of the pool, home to eat and off for a 2 hour nap, then I drag myself out of bed to make a 4pm Yoga class. Do I feel better after today's training...NO, did I do it?....YES.
Distance swum  to date in 2010: 950.17 miles ( or 1,529,158 meters )
How much to go to reach my 1000 mile goal before the end of the year? 49.83 miles!

What am I doing tomorrow, Sunday December 19th? Swimming of course
How far? I'll keep you posted and fill you in on how things went at the New England Short Course Meters Championships at Boston University last weekend.

1000 Miles: Mode of transportation = Swimming

December 4th, 2010
Location: Indoor Lap Pool
Water Temperature: 81.6 degrees
Air Temperature: 86 Degrees

  After wrapping up the final cold water training for 2010 my focus has shifted from time exposed in cold water to the amount of time in the water and the distance covered in that time. Specifically training long distances at a steady aerobic pace, I am practicing a pace I can continue for extended periods of time. The other thing I am practicing is being able to pick up my pace after a long set of my forever stroke, it is like changing gears in your car if you drive a stick shift, you are striving to not cough and splutter the engine or grind the gears, simply seamlessly slide into the next gear and accelerate.
 After every long set, I sprint all out and visualize beating the tide, blasting through the current and seeing the rocks under the water as land nears, French rocks, it always hurts, this final push.
 Today's swim is no exception, the distance on my training schedule is 10,000, I am fortunate to have company for the entire swim, Gail swims with me 8:00-9:30am, Luke from 9:30-10:00am and then at 10:15am we have a special masters practice session, some of our masters group is swimming a special holiday set December 24th, it consists of one hundred repeats of 100 meters all swum on the 100 second interval. That means each one hundred meter swim and rest must be completed in 1 minute and forty seconds. Distance 6.2 miles or 10km.
 Today we are having a dress rehearsal of 40 x 100's on the 100 seconds, perfect for me to work on my endurance, a steady pace with a final blast to the shore for the last 100. The entire set I am practicing patience, waiting for my cue to slam my foot down on the gas pedal and beat the tide when  one hundred # 40, arrives, until then I have to wait.
 Repeats 1-20 each 100 takes 1:30
              21-30 each 100 takes 1:28
              31- 35 each 100 takes 1:27
              36-38 each 100 takes 1:25
              39 is a 1:23
              40 time to beat the current, the time a 1:15
Why do I put myself through this discomfort multiple times during a training swim?
This account of fighting the current from a successful EC swimmer who made the crossing this summer reminds me why:
.....than the Captain said " You are going backwards mate, you need to SWIM HARD!"
and apparently so I did. I didn't feel like I did- I was still just swimming as hard as I could. At my next feed my crew said " you are doing well, you are breaking the current!" What I didn't know was I was all but standing dead still. Apparently the headway I was now making was 150 feet in 10 minutes!

Gulp....keep the beat the tide sets coming!

Distance Today 10,550 meters: 550 Meters Over.....what gives?
 December 2nd I finally finished loading in the last of my fall training swims into my swim log, the grand total for the year to date is......drum roll 1, 435, 328 meters ( 891.87 miles).
My goal for the year was 850 miles and I have blown by that without noticing, I look at the numbers, hmmm......next milestone 1000 miles, could I do that? I ponder the thought, I would have to swim
174,016 meters ( 108.13 miles)before the New Year rings in, the equivalent of 4.5 English Channel crossings in the next 29 days and 3 of those days will be chewed up racing at the New England Short Course Meters Championships at Boston University December 10-12th, hmmm....., again I ponder.
 Well, the water won't be cold I justify to myself, then I read a quote from my hand written list in my English Channel Training journal that I write training notes and advice tidbits in, the quotes are on my" Quit being a skirt and do it" page.

 " The Difference between the impossible and the possible lies in the determination" - Tommy Lasorda

 That was all it took and I plugged in a newly revised goal, 1000 miles by the end of the year, just couldn't help myself. Once entered the log told me " You'll need to pickup the pace to achieve your goal this year" and I have. I have a new short term goal and sense of purpose to keep me sparked up.
 I immediately calculated my required distances for each day through until December 31st, I am cutting it fine and am scheduled to swim an 8000 meter swim New Years Eve, if all goes well that will bring me to my goal of 1000 miles before the New Year rings in. I am also stockpiling meters, adding 250-500 meters onto each daily swim, to help me be prepared for the unexpected set back.
 So if I make it here is how far I will have covered in 2010:

• New York  to Kansas City, Missouri ( well almost that is 1098 miles)
• Sydney, Australia to Christchurch New Zealand ( not all the way but I would have broken the back of it that is 1,337 miles)
• The length of New Zealand ( and more that is 730 miles)
• Finally 42 English Channel Crossings ( this is my favourite comparison)

How far will I get this week, I will keep you posted!

Sub 50 Degree Dip & Jelly Fish

Sunday November 15th, 2010
Air Temperature 47 Degrees
Water Temperature 47.5

I can't believe it is here, the last cold water acclimatization swim of 2010, when I scheduled dates for cold water swims this fall it was uncharted territory, back in September I would look at the list of dates, there always seemed to be so many more to check off, "how am I going to endure all these?" I would think to myself, one swim at a time and the list got shorter and shorter, now here we are only " one " remaining and you know the last is going to be the coldest.
 Since September 4th ( Labor Weekend ) I have trained outdoors 26 times, there have been 15 swims in water under 65 degrees Fahrenheit, a grand total of 19 Hours in water 64 degrees or colder and now all I have to squeak out is a mere 30 minutes to wrap the fall training up, no worries right? Wrong.
I woke up this morning  to find the water temperature reading 47.5 degrees on the Newport harbor buoy.....GULP!
 The good news is that I have been adding insulation through the fall months, I am proudly sporting an extra 4 pounds of fat and 2 pounds of muscle.Gaining weight for most people is a no brainer, many find it way too easy, if someone notices you have gained body weight they are not likely to come up and give you a slap on the back " well done old chap, how did you manage to do it, you look like you've fattened up a bit!"
  I am thrilled with myself for adding a few pounds, it has been no easy task, you have to consume more fuel( calories) than your body needs daily. During the summer months I was consuming a whopping 5500 calories/day just to maintain weight, in the fall I knew I had to step that food intake up, taking in extra calories that my body didn't need so it could stash them away in the fat cells in my body, safe and sound ready to use at a later date, this fat storage will help keep me warm.
  Next up, building more muscle to help with insulation and keep my core strong to improve my stroke and reduce the risk of injury.
Through the fall my strength program has consisted of the following exercises 2-3 times per week.
Squats 3 x 10 reps 225lbs
Plyometric Jumps on the Leg press 3 x 10 reps 130lbs
Leg extension 3 x 10 reps 125lbs
Leg Curl 3 x 10 reps 80 lbs
Hip Adduction 3 x 10 reps 125 pounds
Hip Adduction 3 x 10 reps 105 pounds
Walking Lunge 3 x 20 with 5kg Medicine Ball
Low Row 3 x 10 72lbs
Pull Ups 3 x 6
Dumbbell Front Raise 2 x 15 5lb dumbbells
Rear Delt 3 x 10 35lbs
Biceps Curls Kneeling on Resistance Ball 8lb Dumbbells
Triceps Dips 3 x 10
Hip Thrusters on incline bench 3 x 10
Bosu Ball Side Crunches
Resistance Ball knees in and out



 So all the eating has added fat, the strength training has added muscle, now it is back to the swim at hand, 47.5 degree water for 30 minutes! Me and my new fat and muscle are scheduled to meet Tim at second beach at 8:30am for the final dip of 2010, the day is outstanding, the sun is out and it makes everything brighter and seem warmer. Once again Tim and I ponder the swim over hot drinks while looking out at the ocean, the water is colder than I have ever swum in before so we talk about a plan....how to tell if I am getting hypothermic, keeping me swimming close to shore and what hand signals to show me when it is time to turn around turn.
 I am distracted with mixed feelings about this swim, it is so beautiful looking out over the beach and into the ocean, I want to drink in the scene and clutch onto it, it is my last trip to the beach and I am sad that this is my last outdoor ocean swim, early in September I was willing them to be over and now the time is here I am sad they are nearly done, I know that once my toes enter the water it will be the start of the end, my last pre swim ritual, I feel down.
 I start to strip down, Tim gets suited up, he and his board are ready to go, the beach is quiet only one or two bystanders, my toes hit the sand and my mood instantly lifts...I am excited to take on this swim in 47.5 degree water, "what on earth will this feel like", I think to myself?
 On the beach a surprise, a clear Jelly Fish, how fitting after all these weeks a wee jelly fish should choose to make an appearance on the day of my last swim, I am pleased.

Tim, Stand Up Paddle Board support second beach Rhode Island

 Tim is off into the water, up on his board and paddling out to sea, I begin to wade in ......WHOAAH  cold would be an understatement, this is something else, like a million pins pricking my legs, ohhh this is not good, a million thoughts start racing through my head, I don't really need to swim today, maybe I'll just shout out to Tim and tell him I want to go in, meanwhile I am still wading out, deeper and deeper I edge, first the water swallows my hips, then my belly ( hang in there extra fat!), up over my belly button, next my rib cage and then....awww crap a breaking wave completely soaks me, no getting around it now, I dive under to prevent getting nailed by the next breaking wave, the cold water seems to compress every part of my body, it is like having a ton of bricks tumbled upon me. I begin to swim hard, I knock out my first few hundred strokes hard and fast and nothing, not an inkling of warmth, " regroup" I say to myself, " alright, I will swim out to Tim and tell him I am bailing out today, I will tell him that today I am giving up". I continue the discussion in my head "well that doesn't sound like a good plan, here's what is going to happen, swim out to Tim, keep your head down and take it one stroke at a time, the shore is right there if you need to bounce out" . A sound plan and one I stuck too, I swam out to Tim, he began navigating like an old pro and before I knew it we were blasting down parallel to the beach. The thing that troubled me was I hadn't warmed up yet, my arms and legs ached from the cold, they felt like they were burning and I was focusing only on how much they hurt, " I have to change my head space" I thought, I did, " what feels warm? my core, in fact my heart is toasty and pumping strong", I thought of that and pulled hard with each stroke, I was willing Tim to give me the turn around signal, it seemed to take forever but it came, we turned around and at that point I knew I was going to make it. On the return to the beach the sun was on my back, I kept up the high stroke rate and could smell success, my arms stopped aching and warmed up, what fun! Once I could feel my arms I noticed I was feeling some little clear jellies bumping into me, they did not sting and I was excited to have finally bumped into some jellies when I was swimming, even if they were small, it's the thought that counts I kept telling myself.
 The return trip down the beach seemed to go so fast, I stole a peak to see where we were, we were already back at the end of the beach and it was time to swim in, as we neared the beach I felt the water warm up, the surf started to pick me up and roll me into the shore, I didn't want it to get out, I was feeling GOOD!
 We surfed into the shore and started walking out of the water, well that is not entirely accurate I was so excited that I was skipping along the sand thrilled with myself because I not only felt great but could talk, walk and function, finally Tim suggested it might be a good idea to go up to the car and get some warm clothes on, he was right, I scurried up to the car and got loaded up with clothes ready for the shaking that I knew would follow. It did but not for long, this the coldest swim was my fastest recover. Before long I was off to the outdoor shower and then packing up to head back to Vermont.
 The last swim, the training paid off, I was feeling more comfortable in the colder water. Back to Vermont, I arrived to snow and the prospect of training indoors until the spring. What's up next, planning 2011's big outdoor swims, a recap of the 2010 big swims and the New England Short Course Masters swim championships in Boston December 10-12, what will go down....I'll keep you posted.

Here's the Jellies I swam with.....



...compared to the English Channel Jelly



Swimming with the " Suits"

Sunday  November 7th, 2010
Water Temperature 50 degrees
Air Temperature 40 degrees
Wind Chill 33
Location: Second Beach, Newport Rhode Island

Second Beach, Newport RI

 Today is the second to last ocean swim of 2010, on the menu a mere 30 minutes in the water, I am due to meet Tim at 8am at second beach, the plan to drink a hot tea and speculate for a bit before preparing for the swim, by prepare I mean Tim layering up in a 5mm full wetsuit full with hood and booties and unload his SUP( Stand Up Paddle Board), for me it means controlling my elevated heart rate due to the pending date with the frigid water, put in my ear plugs, on with my cap and goggles and off with the layers of clothes that are currently keeping me toasty warm. We also need to talk about safety, what the plan of action is if I start getting disorientated and drifting away from the board, also if I mumble and stumble my words, another sign to watch out for uncontrollable shaking of my hands. We talk about how long the trip is and a turn around signal, all the time we are discussing the details I am taking in the view at hand, the waves are tumbling in, a spray of foam cascading off the top of each wave as it breaks, the skies are dark, it seems such a contrast, the grim look of the sky and the sparkling beauty of the crashing waves, it is very soothing.
 The tea is gone much too quickly, that means it is time to move on, Tim starts getting ready, I choose to stay put just a little longer, Tim had kindly turned on the seat heater and unknowingly I had been sucking in the heat while we pondered the swim, " I just broke my rule of no seat heater until after the swim" I tell Tim, he apologizes, and I quietly leave the seat heater on figuring I can stock up a little rump heat to help get me started on my swim, " what's the harm in that?" I justify to myself quite happily.
 Before I know it I am stripped down to my black TYR suit, I have a generous layer of baby oil on my body, so much I feel like if you grabbed me by the arm I would slip out of your hand like a wet fish.
 Tim is into the water already and wastes no time heading out past the breaker waves, I dawdle behind him stretching my arms overhead before I dive in, I don't really need the stretch this just buys me a few more seconds before I surrender to the water. Then I am off, today I don't need to do the few hundred crazy fast strokes to get comfortable, right off the bat I am feeling calm, controlled and not uncomfortable. We travel down the beach parallel to the shore, I am swimming right beside the board, I worry for a bit that I am drifting left and Tim is following me and that I am swimming us right into the shore, I am not Tim holds a good course adjacent to the beach. The wind is cold, I can feel it on my cap chiiling my head down, just as I am noticing my head beginning to feel cold there is miraculously a break in the clouds and the sun streams through, it warms my back and instantly brightens the water, it gives me a boost and I feel strong in the water, before I know it we are turning around, then it is back to the beach where the car is parked, the wind picks up on the way back and the waves begin to jostle me around, I take in a few good mouth fulls of water as I swim but not enough to  frazzle me, soon the cliffs are upon us and it is time to turn to shore, swimming in is FUN, I love this, with not looking up I am unaware of when a wave is breaking, rather than sight I go on feel, I feel the wave building behind me, I drive my head down and stroke hard to catch the wave for a ride in, good times. What a good swim, I know that once I get out of the water I will not be able to communicate, I swim over to Tim, " good job, we did great", then I walk out of the water, it takes the cold wind only a mere few seconds to render me useless, I scoop up my towel and clothes, shuffle up to the car and start the battle of getting dressed, it seems to take forever, my hands and feet were great while I was swimming now they are like blocks of ice, into the car, engine on , heated seats on high, now I sit and wait.....wow when am I going to feel the heat of the seats, the warm air blowing from the heater, today it seems to take forever and hurts inside while I wait, it makes me want to throw up, but I don't, I know it will pass soon.
 Finally I am feeling recovered enough to drive, back to the house, into the hot showers, ahhh pure bliss.
 Next a snack then off to an 11:00am Yoga class in Newport, it felt great and warmed my body right up, afterwards lunch and into the car for the journey back to Vermont.
 Whats next, a good dose of pool swimming this week and then back to Rhode Island for the last out door swim of 2010, how much will the temperature have dropped by next weekend? I'll keep you posted

Chillin in Potters Cove, Rhode Island

Saturday November 6th, 2010
Air Temperature: 46 degrees
Water Temperature: 51.6 degrees
 Location: Potters Cove, Rhode Island

Today I am meeting Ray, Joe and Rich for a 9 o'clock swim at Potters Cove , Potters Cove is tucked away under the Jamestown Bridge, it is scattered with empty boat moorings, and seaside houses that look like they are either closed up for the summer season or simply have the hatches battened down in preparation for the pending winter, the docks are empty and there is an eerie silence, no boats on the water, nobody playing outdoors, there is a cold wind blowing and the skies look ominous, grey and threatening.
  I arrive a few minutes before 9:00am, there are two cars pulled up in front of the Cove already, it is Joe and Rich, I have not swum with them before, we quickly introduce ourselves and begin getting ready as we wait for Ray to arrive, for Joe and Rich that means pulling on wetsuits, for me it is putting in my ear plugs, cap and goggles on, and then deciding which of my 3 layers of clothing not to take off yet.
 Ray arrives, we talk about the temperature of the water and where we are going to swim to, landmarks are discussed, " we are going to head for those white buoys", says Ray, " sight the flag pole", chimes in Rich, I of course can see none of the landmarks, I struggle to see details that are a distance away and use glasses for driving, a few times I have used contact lenses when I have swum Open Water but today isn't one of them, " is there a bigger landmark you can point out....like a house?" I ask, Rich quickly points out a big brown house with a green roof, great I am set.
 We walk down the waters edge, " we are going to stick to the shore and swim shallow today", says Ray
 " hug the shore", he says again, Joe and Rich are already in the water, Ray and I are yet to take the plunge " this is the hard part, we will feel much better in about 10 minutes" says Ray as he dives in to begin the swim, I follow suit and we are off. It has been 11 days since my last cold water dip, I am about to find out what my body remembers about how to function in the cold water.....or if it forgets completely, it feels like Russian Roulette as I slide into the water and wait for my brain to report back to me on how things are sizing up today.
 Into the water and my arms are thrashing as I stroke like a maniac to get some warmth into my body, head down and swimming hard, not once do I sight or orientate myself to the shore or the others, not only was I swimming hard, but also in completely the wrong direction, after a few hundred strokes I sight and see Ray, Rich and Joe looking over, they are hugging the shore, I am heading straight out across the cove.....not in the game plan, I sheepishly put my head down and swim towards them in a more controlled manner, I am embarrassed.
 From here on out I follow the shore, I can see the bottom as we weave in and out of the shoreline, I see shells, stones, rocks, sand, I bump into things..... and swim on, I also keep Ray's bubbles in my sights.
 We swim to the white buoys, "how are you feeling?" Ray asks, great I reply, we seem to be in a warm pockets of water and I am enjoying the few degree increase in temperature, yes 54 degrees can feel dreamy when you have just swum through 51.6 degrees I think to myself.
Before we started swimming Ray and I talked about checking on each other, he asked if my jaw locks up making it hard to talk, " yes it can do" I tell him, I also tell him that when it is this cold I have to keep moving.
 Actually today turned out to be pretty good, no jaw freeze, I was able to stop and talk a number of times and tread as we counted heads to account for everyone, it is really cool the way these guys are so in tune to looking out for one another, good safety.
 Before we know it we have reached the Pier on the far side of the cove and it is time to turn around and high tail it back to the cars, we do and are there in no time at all. Now comes the hard part, navigating getting dressed. We all understand that on shore the priority is to get warm, no chit chat or dilly dallying around....car on, wet suit off, fleecy leggings on, sweater, possum hat, down jacket and then into those heated seats in the mini. I look over and Ray is also in his car all bundled up, after a while he gets out of his car and taps on the mini window, "let's talk", he jumps in, he is wearing what looks like a full on snow mobile suit that zips all the way down the legs and arms, I have snowmobile suit envy. I look down at his legs, they are shaking uncontrollably, I instantly feel bad for him, this poor guy, I think, that must feel miserable, then I look down and see that my legs are the same, shaking at the speed of a hummingbird's wings,  "how hard  it must have been for my crew to have been watching  me go through these defrostings for the last 8 weeks" I think to myself
 So Ray and I chat, a defrost chat goes a little like this:" nice car",chatters Ray " "mmmm", I mumble, " this and the getting in is the hardest part", chatters Ray ", " mmmm" getting out is tough" I mumble through a clenched shut jaw. Next thing Ray is out of the car,  that is all the conversation we managed  however I found it extremely comforting to share this post swim ritual, you know you are going to have to go through it, no one can do it for you, however much you want the help, you are the one recovering, we had a kind of unspoken communication and in a weird way it was comforting having Ray there going through the stages of rising the core temperature back up with me, a defrost buddy.
 Before long I was back in Middletown where I am staying, into the outdoor shower and a good serving of lunch. The day never really warmed up past 42 degrees but the sun did come out and I made the most of it with a 45 minute run along the cliff walk trail in Newport, I got to gaze at the angry surf as I ran and take in the amazing Newport Mansions. Our swim time today was 45 minutes, longest yet in this temperature, I am pleased.
 Next up another ocean dip, this time at second beach, Tim is supporting me on his Stand Up Paddle Board tomorrow, my plan to hug close to his board and swim 30 minutes, the surf is heavy today, so we will need to re evaluate conditions in the morning to pick the best beach to swim and SUP
 Will we get jostled around, I'll keep you posted.

Underwater Adventures in the Lap Pool

Wednesday October 27th, 2010
Location: Indoor Lap Pool

Today I am up at 5:15am and into the pool for an early morning swim, a recovery swim is on the books after the 10km ( 6.2 mile ) swim yesterday, this morning I swim 3300 meters then am off to teach a jump rope class at 8:00am, later in the day I am due to meet Peter to check out his in water digital coaching tool, I know it has a touch pad and under water screen to view swim times, I am expecting Peter to lug in a big pile of equipment, he doesn't his system is neatly rolled up like a Yoga mat except smaller and much more compact, it  fits easily into his duffel bag. Peter and I chat for a while about his timing system, within no time at all I learn how it records data and how I can view it both in the water and send it to my laptop, remember my problem of losing count of my laps in the lap pond during my 20 x 200's, number 5, number 5, was that number 5......not a problem today with this in the pool, I feel confident that I will not swim repeat number 5 three times, " excellent" lets give this baby a try.
 Peter and I head out to the pool, the touch pad mounts easily onto the wall and is secured  either side of the lane line with clips and the in water display screen is simple to set on the bottom of the pool.
 I set off for a few hundred meters to warm up, as I do the display screen gives me my 50 split time each time I hit the wall, it is fun to have something new to look at on the bottom, I love having stuff to look at when I swim and this is even more fun because it talks to me...." hey slacker pick it up" I imagine it saying when my swim time slows to 41 seconds for my last 50. After a few hundred I stop and adjust the display screen, I move it further away from the wall and off to the side of the lane so I can see my time before I begin to execute my turn,  when we set up we put the screen right at the base of the wall and I found myself picking up my head to look for the screen causing me to de-accelerate into the wall, a perfect formula for a slow turn, a quick reposition of the screen away from the base of the wall and problem solved, I easily see my time before the wall without lifting my head.
 " Want to swim one of the preloaded demo workouts so you can try the interval count down feature?", YES I reply, any thought of recovery are out the window, this sounds fun, Peter talks me through how to pull up a workout on the touch screen, couple of touches of the screen and I have myself 10 x 100's on the 1:45 interval, " the interval may not work as I set the intervals for yards and this pool is meters" , no problem, I reply, "much more leisurely than my regular 1:30 interval, I am looking forward to an easy stretch, hmmm maybe I 'll swim one or 2 fast for grins" , I think to myself.
 When I am ready to start I push the " game on " button, no turning back now, the display screen starts the countdown in big bold numbers....5 , 4, 3, 2 , 1, GO, an electronic beep sounds and I am off, first one hundred complete, my time 1:20.04, I enjoy the rest and before I know it I see the numbers counting down again, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 GO, I am off for the 2nd 100, I notice my first 50 split is faster than in my first 100, my time 1:20 flat. The clock is relentless keeping me on task, 5, 4 , 3, 2, 1 GO, off again and my body opens up, it wants to swim, my time for # 3 1:17.60, " I wonder if Peter wants to chat ", I think for a fleeting moment, the thought is quickly replaced by 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO, adrenaline starts to run and my body wants to play with this new enforcer in the pool, " OK clock lets see what cha got"...bam a 1:16.60, take that clock" , it did and quietly gave me a little time to savour the moment and then volleyed me back another command " bet you can't beat that one 5 , 4 , 3 , 2 , 1, GO Beeeeep " the starter sounds and I am off for number 5, well I think I am only swimming number 5 once today so I am going to give it heaps, my time 1:15.60, 5 x 100's are complete, a good time to pull up and talk to Peter, but I can't there are 10 x 100's listed on the commanding display screen and that is what I am doing.
 I am off again, I decide to take the next 5 x 100's and descend them again, # 6 is a 1:22.30, # 7 is a 1;20.80, # 8 is a 1:19.50, # 9 a 1:18.10, and then it is time for the final 100, the last in a set like this is the sprint to France, the spin the arms fast and pull hard until you see the rocks on the bottom, French rocks, not much time to think now, my new little digital playmate is not waiting for me 5 , 4, 3 , 2 , 1 GO and I am off 100 meters to go it all comes down to this, I know I have to take my first 50 out hard and fast, my 50 meter split time needs to be faster than it was during repeat # 5 if I am to beat the 1:15.60 recorded from that swim, the first 50 meters my arms are spinning fast, as I approach the display I read 37.5, repeat # 5 read 37.8 at this time I am ahead, now I have to finish strong if I am going to beat 1:15.60, last 10 meters head down don't breath, pull hard and fast, punch the wall beat that time, bonjour 1:15.30.

 That was a kick, with a tap of the screen I am able to look at my times, thanks to my new little friend under the water I got a good old fashion ass kicking, and with the starter beeper there was no chance of cheating by rolling off the wall early, good stuff.

Me, Peter and the in water display screen and touch pad

  Next up back to Rhode Island for some cold water ocean swimming, water temperatures are reading 56-58 degrees this week, what will Saturday bring.....I'll keep you posted.

Vermont Open Water- The Final Dip 2010 & Broken Goggles

Tuesday October 26th, 2010
Air Temperature 68 degrees
Water Temperature 50- 56 degrees

I was due to complete my final open water Vermont swim on Sunday October 24th, Sunday's weather was grubby, it was raining, damp and cold and the temperature dropped down to 32 degrees overnight. I had just flipped through a few paragraphs from the 64 page post English Channel Swim report synopsis, I had previously  highlighted  areas that contained approaches that I wanted to explore and experiment with myself.
I glanced on this:
" You have to try and stay healthy and be flexible with your training".......flexible with your training, I read it again then glance outside at the rain pelting down, I pull up the Stowe weather forecast on my laptop and discover that the upcoming Tuesday and Wednesday look mighty fine, in fact an ideal day for an end of season cold water acclimatization swim, I also look up my training log.......last day off training 34 days ago, that's it " I declare today as a rest day" and postpone my final out door swim.
 I email my training crew to see if they are willing to join me on Tuesday October 26th, it's a yes, fantastic. Tuesday is here before I know it, I am up at 5:45am for the first of 3 training swims, into the pool at 6:40am for a workout # 1, a 3500 meter swim, out to teach a 30 minute Kranking class, then back in the pool for workout # 2, a 4500 meter swim, later in the afternoon, after a sizable lunch  I meet Paula and Deb at the Green River Reservoir, it is a beautiful afternoon a  " she's a real beaut" day as we'd say in New Zealand.
 Down to the water wearing only my suit, a Tshirt and a towel, "this is decadent" , I think to myself, soaking up the warmth and heat from the sun. Picard is with us today, he is beside himself with excitement as we near the canoe launch.



Picard


 Today Paula is kayaking and Deb is holding down the fort on shore, while Paula launches I tip turtle in for his last Vermont dip in 2010. Picard stops whizzing around and intently watches the Turtle Thermometer with me, we pull the turtle out, " 56 degrees Turtle declares ", can't be I think, that's too warm, Lake Champlain is reading 50 degrees today and I know the reservoir should be the same if not a degree or 2 cooler, I toss Turtle back in, " defiant little monkey", I say under my breath, " go take another reading", he does and comes out a shade under 56 degrees, so be it I decide, I should be feeling relieved, but instead find myself feeling disappointed that it is not colder.

Paula paddling out to wait for me to take the plunge....no more Fall colors to warm me up today

 Baby Oil on and into the water, I am off, a fast 50 or so strokes then I relax, " this is feeling lovely today, 56 degrees is delightful, I am going to relax and savor this last swim today, then came the change........I got out from the canoe launch inlet and the temperature plummeted, it dived like a submarine, I couldn't believe how dramatic the drop was, " this is intense, better pick up the strokes and get this done FAST". I don't know what my stroke rate is, early in the swim my right eye glass filled with water and I can't see Paula's face or hands, I can make out the boat though and stick to it like glue, I consider stopping to fix my goggles but am unsure if I could stand being still in this frigid water and know it will be hard to put my head down in and start swimming again if I stop....so I soldieron and ignore the water in my right eye and the fact that I can't see. Ahhhh complete heaven, we are nearing Blueberry Island, I can feel the water warming back up, I savor the warm waters of the Island and then prepare for the cold of the main lake again, the water gets choppy, I have to work harder to swim through the rougher conditions and this distracts me from the cold. What a sneaky deal I think to myself, the reservoir has put me right back in my place, I was complacent today, cocky even, " 56 degrees , how disappointing, that is not challenging enough today", I had told myself once I saw the shoreline reading, then I got a " sit up and take notice" order from the reservior when it unleashed the colder water in the main lake on me, the 50 degree water that was predicted today was delivered to me like a slap on the face with a wet fish.
 Soon I felt the water warm once more as we neared the inlet, it felt like silk, like I was wrapped in a down comforter, the sun was warming on my back and shoulders and I feel strong, Paula and I power in to the shore, I am amazed that 56 degree water can feel like this good.
 We land, I walk up the " the rock" that I always leave my swim bag on and start wrapping up in warm clothes, immediately I am able to communicate and function and I very proudly help Paula and Deb carry the Kayak up to the car. Into the mini heated seats and hot tea, then off home. Today's swim was a treasure.

 What's up next? Tomorrow it is up at 5:15am and back in the pool for a training session, later in the day I am meeting Peter, he has asked me to demo his company's Hytainium Aquatic timing system to give him some feedback, the system has a wall mounted touch pad and an in water display screen that shows times, heart rate, counts laps and has training video feedback , it is essentially a digital training tool that views and records data with real time feedback, heck sounds so good maybe it can toss me a feed bottle too, will it? I'll keep you posted.

Today's swim cap and my goggles which snapped ( fortunately at the end of the swim)

" Big Ned's" in the Pool

Thursday October 21st, 2010
Water Temperature 81 degrees
Location: Indoor Lap

I wake up before my alarm is due to go off at 4:45am this morning, I am due to meet Ned at the pool at 5:45am and I am not going to be late, my plan is to be on the pool deck, cap and goggles in hand ready to go when he arrives, I am.
 Ned emailed on October 3rd, the Subject line read: Ned will arrive in Burlington 19th October/ depart 23rd early in the morning. The email consisted of this: You around during this period?
 One more brief email and we are set up to meet at the indoor lap pool at 5:45am for a training swim, over the next few weeks I have no idea what to expect, a few days before our scheduled swim Ned sent this email....

Subject: Preparation and Expectation Settings

•  Bring a couple of bottles of your normal carbo drink
• You may want to bring a banana, some washed seedless grapes or pre cut strawberries or god help us those slippery little peaches from a can....a few of these in Tupperware seem to keep pool swimmers sane on longer swims...up to you
•  I will not talk much in the water. You can talk to me as much as you want.....with my ear plugs in I only hear the things I want to hear- like " see the shark?", or " you are swimming great Ned"....the rest never gets through!
• Try to take you drinks in the deep end- treading water- and FAST ....less than 10 seconds
• If you have to pee ( probably) just get out and then come back.....don't ask-don't tell just go
• You have opted to follow- so I'll lead. Please leave a real 3-5 second delay before you follow me. I leave a massive drafting trail....which will cheat you out of a real workout if you are too close. If you need a breather go ahead and draft for a while - but understand that you are making a choice.

And there we have it, clear instructions, I know what to expect, or do I? I have no idea how long we will be swimming, how far, how fast and....... there is NO way I am going to ask.

  During the next few days I am both excited and nervous to swim with " Big Ned". On Wednesday evening I pack up my feed for the swim, 1000 mls of maxim ( a carbo drink) I add in a few splashes of Ribena for flavor. Ribena is a concentrated  Black Current juice drink, it is rich in vitamin C, you add it to hot or cold water for either a hot or cold drink, I remember drinking it in New Zealand as a kid, the bottle I have is made in England, it was a gift from Paula. I learnt about adding Ribena to my carbo feed after reading a 64 page English Channel Crossing Post swim report, a synopsis written by a swimmer who made the English Channel crossing in 2008.
 Early to bed on Wednesday night, my son wakes me at 1:30am not feeling well, disrupted sleep that will be tough, I shrug it off, it will be no different the night before the Channel, probably not much sleep then too, may as well get used to it.
 I arrive at the pool early and lay out the following at the deep end of the pool

• 2 x  500ml containers of Maxim ( with a wide mouth to allow fast gulping)
• 1 x container of sliced strawberries
• 1 x container holding a peanut butter sandwich cut into bite sized cubes
• 3 x bottles of water
• 1 banana

I am ready and waiting, " Big Ned' appears, he so tall I feel I need a  step ladder to shake his hand, I don't, he leans down to shake my hand while clutching an armful of drinks and a few bananas in his free hand, " split the lane or circle?" I ask, circle he replies, he puts in his ear plugs, cap and goggles on, turns to the pool, jumps in and is gone, I quickly put my goggles on and launch into the pool after him so as not to get left behind, "WOW no dilly dallying around we are off....What now?" I ponder the question, I have no idea if I am in the pool for 2 hours, 3, maybe 4 or 5 hours, I prepare for the maximum possible, 5 hours,  I had emailed Ned earlier the Thursday time option as 5:45am onwards and that I was only open until 10:30am, I am teaching a boot camp at 11:00am, the 30 minutes will be just enough time to allow me to change and get set up to teach.
 So back to the question, what now?" I'll count 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8   OK that's 200 meters" I decide to count by 500's, "8 x 1500's that is feasible in the time we have", my brain is busy trying to figure it all out, "that's 12,000 meters, that's about 7.5 miles". There is a chance he is warming up and will stop,I think,  we reach 1500 meters, no stopping yet," how about all that feed on the edge of the pool, when do we get some of that", I ponder more thoughts, "I could use a drink of water, my throat is feeling dry", then after 1650 he stops, treads water, gulps from one of his bottles and is gone, I follow suit.
 Not knowing how long we are swimming this time I keep his massive feet in my sights but not too close to catch a draft. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8.....he stops after 200 Meters, while he is treading water he shouts " can you tread", a ha I reply unconvincingly, we are off again, we continue swimming lots of 200s, I am happy I love 200s I swim alot of them in my training, then he pulls up after 100, I stop too, we are off again, 100, 100, 100, 100, 100, lots of 100's...." How am I going to remember all this", I'm not..... I stop counting and surrender, the control queen  lets go and follows. I instantly relax, this feels great, any anxiety of how far, how long has gone I am only focusing on the here and now, one hand hit on the water after another. We stop after a slew of 100s swum on the 1:30 interval. Ned treads water so do I ," turn around "he says, I do, he then puts his 2 massive hands on my shoulders and pushes me under the water, the intention was for me to resist him but my treading skills were no match and I was on my way to the bottom of the pool like a runaway freight train. Then he says
" put your hands on my shoulders and try to push me under", I take all the might in my 5 ft 9 inch and 136 pound frame and try to shove " Big Ned" down, he respond by rising even higher out of the water, " you've got to learn the egg beater kick, get your chin up and lift your chest high when you feed, otherwise the swell and waves will get you", then he is gone and I follow.
 I followed, followed and followed, 400s, 800s, a 50 here, a 100 there, then we went SLOW, lots of 100's so slow I felt like I was in a trance, I was desperately trying not to swim into Ned and the last thing I wanted him to think was that I was all tuckered out and catching a draft. He pulled up at the wall, " find those relaxing?", "yes I did" I reply, he puts up his goggles and looks me in the eye, " Charlotte you have been going 8 hours in the channel, your pilot tells you if you can pick up the pace by 10% you can catch the current if not you will miss it and be swimming for another 5 hours instead of another 2, do you want to pick it up, you can say yes or turn it down....YES.
 Ned is off we swim 10 x 100's fast on the 1:30, we snap up the pace and it feels great, I am alive and feel the thrill of having the purpose and visualization of the channel scenario.

Ned's stops at the wall, he once more lifts his goggles, this time with a smile, then come the stories, he starts telling stories of the Channel, each one has a message, the stories are firing out like bullets from a machine gun, " I hope I can remember these" I think as I listen intently at the wall. One story is about " Don't look up", Ned tells the story of a Channel swimmer who looked up to see France only 100 meters away, the current swept him down the coast, the next time he looked up France was gone, he had 5 more hours to swim. He tells me multiple stories of those that have succumbed to "looking up" and how they have been mentally shattered to swim for hours and see France not getting any closer, I can't help myself, I have to ask " Ned, did you look up?" , " Why did I ask,?", I scold myself as I am waiting for his reply, then he replies...." Yes I did, I looked up and I saw the blue flags of France flapping in the wind, I no longer listened to my crew, I swam with all my might to those blue flags, my crew, my wife were screaming at me " No Ned No", but I didn't listen, I kept driving to the flags, I pulled myself onto the rocks, French rocks, I turned around and looked back out to sea and there I saw the blue flags zig zagging across the sea in front of me, a Kite boarder with blue sails was dashing back in forth  in front of me from one side of the coastline to the other."
 Goggles down and Ned was gone, I followed, it was like a dance, he would speed up so would I, he would slow down so would I, I have no idea for how long, then we stopped again.
" Charlotte, you are 250 meters from Cape Gris ( France), if you sprint you can beat the tide, the current is behind you, if the current catches you before you touch the wall you have another 2 hours to swim, I am swimming behind you and I am the current.....DON'T LET ME CATCH YOU.
 Instantly I am in my " game on "mode, my heart rate is elevated and my senses are on high alert, I drive off the wall,  I am off, I snap into my 200 race plan that I used just a few weeks ago at the White River Junction meet, first 75 high stroke rate, I know I can only hold that all out sprint for 75 meters, then my body needs to switch energy systems, if I remain anaerobic I will blow up by 100 meters and be gobbled up by " Big Ned" for sure, in fact " Big Ned" in my head is now more like a great white shark, 75 meter wall, time to pull back slightly, I don't want too, but I do, knowing it will help me hold my top possible speed without blowing up, 150, I am still in the clear, 200,  "hmmm I have been swimming this as a 200 but I have another 50 to go, now what ", I tell myself to swim in the here and now and push out the last 50, the wall is there and I make it.......," WELL DONE" says Ned, he takes off his cap, goggles and takes his ear plugs out, I am still have my cap and goggles firmly on, " We are done" he says and I relax.
 What a fun swim, Ned had given me 2 choices before he arrived, we could agree on a workout or I could have a surprise( like I will get on the day of the Channel) I choose the surprise and I am thrilled that I did.
 Out of the water, we had time to grab a coffee where I had the luxury of hearing more great Channel crossing stories and training advice. Then it was time to say goodbye, Ned asks has anyone given you your first Lanolin yet? No I answer, with that Ned tosses me a swim cap from Sandy Cove, Ireland and a container of Irish Lanolin, Channel Grease is a mixture of Lanoline and Vaseline that is melted together in a pot, many channel swimmers use it on their bodies to reduce chaffing, in addtion to the Lanolin and swim cap  I left with the following...

• Keep mentally fresh ( Plan events for the next 6-9 months)
• Keep Healthy and reduce the risk of injury ( avoid Invasive Non Freestyle stroke after March)
• Gulp n Go: Faster feeds, no more politely passing the empty bottle back to the crew " Chug and Throw"
• Treading

 How far did we swim? Over coffee Ned asked " were you counting?", I told him I was at the start,  but eventually let it go, "How far did we go?" I asked, seemed safe enough to ask now  we were all done, " between 11-12,000 meters " he replies, and I leave it at that.

How long were we in there? 3 Hours, 20 minutes
How far did we swim? We'll never know exactly and that's OK

What's up next? More cold water acclimatization,  it's back to the beach and back to the pool along with researching potential training swims/events for 2011.
And today's 11,000-12,000 meter swim tunes.......the song in my head during the super slow 100's Never Took The Time - Akon, during the beat the tide 250 meter sprint at the end of the workout, When Love Takes Over - David Guetta feat.Kelly Roland.
What will I be humming next swim, I'll keep you posted.

Lanolin- how do you get the stuff  off ? I have read of a number of ways we'll have to wait and see what works, until then I can give you a hint, one tip involves gasoline

Pucker Up it's 29 degrees Fahrenheit and " Big Ned's" coming

Tuesday October 19th, 2010
Temperature 46 degrees
Water Temperature 50-52 degrees ( 10-11 Degrees Celsius)

Today is my second to last Vermont Open Water training swim for 2010 and mother nature is going to make me earn it, she delivers an overnight temperature of 29 degrees to ensure the water temperature is cooler than it was on Sunday, I am up at 5:30am to knock out the first swim workout, on the schedule today are 3 swim workouts and a 30 minute kranking class.
 Workout one is  a set of 15 x 200 meters swum on the 3 minute interval plus 2 x 250s of pull, during  the first workout I am not as sharp as I usually am, my times are a little off and range from 2:58 - 2:45 per 200 meters, I feel sloppy, " must be an off day" I think, I complete the workout and am off to teach a kranking class and down a recovery drink. Back in the pool for a masters workout, I am not expecting much in the way of performance but my body takes me by surprise, we begin with 8 x 75s at 65-70% effort then onto sprints, combined with an ez aerobic set these short bursts of speed often lead the way to a high performance main set, that is the case today, we move onto a set of 5 x 200's on the 3 minute interval, I am swimming beside Paula one of my English Channel training crew team members, we are both on the same 3 minute interval, she swims a 150 and I swim a 200, it is great fun as we play cat and mouse to see who will reach the wall first, a guaranteed good performance and today for me it is a best performance for this set, the time for each 200 is:

• # 1 : 2:45
• # 2 : 2:40
• # 3 : 2:40
• # 4 : 2:35
• # 5 : 2:30

 I am surprised and thrilled with my times especially after a sluggish swim in workout one, I remind myself to have an open mind, a low in the water can be followed by a high and visa versa " be prepared for anything and never assume an outcome" I tell myself.

 Next up an afternoon Green River Reservoir swim, it is a beautiful day, but by midday the cloud cover has rolled in like a big gray blanket, I load up with warm gear, a thermos of hot tea and am off, I am meeting Paula, Deb and Picard, our plan is that if the temperature is below 50 degrees no training swim just a dunk. In goes Turtle, Picard keeps an eye on the  turtle thermometer to make sure it doesn't abort the mission, Turtle reads 52 degrees shoreline, definitely extra baby oil day, I want to be as warm as possible and  slip through the water like a seal.
 Today, as most days I have a cunning new plan, it goes like this.... NIKE SNOW BOOTS, they are white with fur at the top and white pom poms, quite ridiculous looking but I love them, "Yes I can pull these babies on after my swim, it will be like a dream". With that thought in mind I wade into the water to begin my swim ,I pause to  let my legs take in the temperature for a while, then I am off for the 1.34 mile lap around Blueberry Island, I bring out the spinning arms and  before I know it I am full steam ahead and comfortable, in fact it feels more " normal" to me than it did on Sunday, very good.
 Can that be Blueberry Island already? I start to feel the water warm up as it gets shallow around the island, YES, the island must be near, I savor every stroke around the island. How can 52 degree water feel like such a treat? I'll tell you how, it is when you know you are heading back out into the 50 degree main lake, Au revoir sweet 52 degree water. The main lake is choppy, I pull harder and it lowers my stroke rate to 72, I have a new song in my head today it has a pumping beat and helps me fight the choppy water and wind.
 Soon I once again feel the delicious warmer water, we are at the mouth of  the canoe launch inlet already. How did Deb do that? Deb was so smooth supporting me today, I didn't even notice her steer me back to shore. The swim is complete, 1.34 miles, 31 minutes and 33 seconds and a stroke rate of 76 strokes per minute to and around the island, a stroke rate of 72 back.
 Time to get out of the water, where is Paula?. She and Picard are our land support crew today, Picard has a dog buddy with him called Oliver and I suspect they  have gone down to the point to watch us swim in. Paula joins us just a few seconds after we return to shore, the dogs are whizzing around excitedly as I navigate getting dressed,suit off, clothes on, I forgot my possum hat  "agghhhh that is a crime", I scold myself, how could I leave home lidless? Fortunately I have a furry hood on my Burton jacket, OK hood up that works, now let's see how my new cunning plan works........ not so good, the snow boots are even harder to get on than the slip on shoes, my feet are wet and I have small stones stuck to the soles of my feet, " jam'em in " I command, I do and it feels horrid, especially with all the little stones in there, it hurts my feet as I shuffle up to the car. Paula escorts me up to the car with her newly found beaver stick, it is a stick that has been stripped of it's bark, you can see the beaver teeth marks all over it and where the beaver severed the stick from the tree.

 Into the car, time to defrost, it takes no time at all, I actually didn't feel that cold swimming today and feel myself recover quickly, within 10 minutes the shaking is almost gone, I am able to pour my tea and drink it without spilling it all over myself and the mini, now that's progress. My bottom is baking nicely on the heated seats and all fingers and toes are accounted for and functioning, excellent.
 Time to go, Paula rides with me for a bit, I enjoy the post swim company, soon it is time for us to part ways at the fork in the road, we say our goodbyes and agree it was a good outing.

 Next up the legendary " Big Ned ' meets me for a pool training swim , Ned is my Mentor, he lives in Ireland and runs the Cork Island long distance training camp, I say legendary because out of the long distance swimming training camps that aspiring channel swimmers sometimes attend the Cork camp is reported to be being the toughest camp out there and is by invitation only.
I call  Big Ned, " Big Ned " for a number of reasons which are:

•  He is my mentor, what he says goes
•  He has made the crossing, he swam the English Channel in 2005
•  He has provided me with training information and backed it up with personal experience &  statistics
•  He is 6" 6 and weighs 225 pounds
• I get the distinct feeling he is as tough as old boots
• He heads up the toughest Long Distance swimming training camp
•  And finally he said this to me" You find your own way....so take everything with a grain of salt and adjust to you"

How will I fare following Ned's lead in our scheduled 5:45am training swim on Thursday at the indoor lap pool? I don't know how far or how long we are swimming and I am not going to ask. What will it be like? Will I make the distance? I'll keep you posted.
 Today's swim song was ' Bad Romance" Lady Gaga.....I often have an eclectic blend playing in my head from swim to swim, I 'll let you know what I'm humming underwater next time.

"Snows a coming "batten down the hatches, wind and hail and we are going in!

Sunday October 17th, 2010
Air Temperature: 44 degrees, windy, hail
Water Temperature: 51-53 degrees

It snowed Friday night, I knew it was coming but that didn't make it any easier knowing I would be  swimming outdoors today with fresh snow on the mountains. Mount Mansfield was proudly sporting 12- 14 inches of fresh new white stuff, 20 inches fell but the high winds packed it down to a compact 12-14 inches. The first snow of the season creates an exciting buzz around the village, those eager to ride and ski have already hiked up the mountain first thing on Saturday morning to get those early season fresh tracks, for me on Saturday it was a toasty 8000m swim in the 82 degree indoor lap pool, today is a different scenario, I am scheduled to swim outside at the Green River Reservoir at 11:00am, Cara one of my training crew team members is scheduled to kayak with me, Cara sends a text at 7:30am , " I am not well, Sore throat & chills. I don't know if I can make it on the lake today. Call me when you get up. So sorry." I call Cara to tell her she should sit tight, plopping her out on a windy and wet lake is not going to help her feel any better, " you stay at home and keep warm I'll be good as gold" , we say our goodbyes and I hang up.
 Hmmm........ time to regroup, Cara can't come with me, there is snow on the mountains, the wind is blowing, it is cold out, Sunday is my rest day, I was called into work last night and didn't get to bed until midnight, I got a call early at 7:15am this morning, I didn't sleep well, I had a long pool swim yesterday......Wahhh Wahhh, the list went on and on, I thought of every excuse in the book not to follow through with today's training swim, it is amazing how many excuses you can come up with if you open the door and let them come tumbling out. I head downstairs to get a cup of tea, mashed banana on toast and to mull the whole thing over. Jeff my husband is in the kitchen, as I amble in he asks " you swimming outside today"?, "was going to but Cara's sick, she was going to come with me"I replied in a noncommittal kind of way, " I'll come out with you if you want?" ,  " are you sure, I haven't figured out if I'll swim or not, can I let you know"?, I give myself yet another out. We agree on a plan, Jeff is heading out for a workout, we will grab lunch when he gets back then figure out  a plan, PHEW bought myself a little more time tucked up indoors.
 Jeff heads off to the gym and I head down to the office to work on my swim log, I am entering all my swims recorded this year into a snappy little grid to give me a running total of how far I have swum in the pool and in the open water this year, it shows the water temperature, the location of the swim and my total YTD meterage, it also allows me to see if I am matching, exceeding or falling below the annual distance goal I have set for myself for 2010. As I am entering the swims for May, June, July and August I reflect on how far I have come since January 1st 2010 when I began training for an attempt on the English Channel....how can I blow off today's training swim after all I have been through already? I can't and I know it.

Mini with a Kayak Lid

 Jeff arrives back from the gym, we eat lunch and pack up the gear, we have to travel the kayak on the mini today and  that's entertaining in itself, the boat is longer than the car. Everything is packed in the mini, then it is suit on, extra baby oil on the arms, back and shoulders and lots of warm clothes ontop. I let Jeff know that there is a chance we may not swim today, I explain that if it is below 50 degrees we will turn around and come home, he says " OK".
 Then we are off, the forecast says sunshine today, it is not accurate, the skies are dark, it is damp and cold and we see small pellets of hail bouncing off the mini as we drive to the Reservoir, we arrive to find that the gate to the canoe launch is padlocked, "Rats we'll have to walk everything down,
 let's go throw the Turtle in before we lug all the stuff" I say to Jeff, inside me there is a glimmer of hope that the Turtle will say " too bad it's only 49 degrees, why don't you head home and have a hot chocolate, maybe even a nap".
 The Turtle does not say that, he answers quite confidently 53 degrees, " lady you are going swimming", all right then, I think, action stations, ear plugs in, cap on, pants off, I leave my big Burton jacket on as we lug the boat down to the canoe launch, it takes about 4-5 minutes, my right shoulder is aching from carrying the boat, Jeff gets in the Kayak and as I take off my heavy jacket I look out to the deserted lake, during the summer months it used to be so alive with people, canoes, kayaks, loons, people camping and fishing, no longer, it is desolate and remote feeling.
 I pay my attention to the task at hand, 1.34 miles, one lap around Blueberry Island in 51-53 degrees water..." do it, do it, do it", I mumble...and I am in, ohhhh boy that is chilly, my arms are spinning fast like a roulette wheel, I am swimming right alongside the boat and see that poor Jeff is getting soaked from the water splashing from my frantically spinning arms, I feel bad for him but can't slow down or adjust, it is just too cold, he doesn't miss a beat and takes the drenching.
 I can see nothing today, my goggles are completely fogged up and I can't tell if I am swimming away from Jeff or close to him, ' have to wing it" I decide, instead on relying on sight I swim on feel, I desperately want to know where I am but can't see anything, then I feel the water getting warmer, it must be getting shallow, that means I am close to Blueberry Island my halfway point and turn around, thank goodness, I am quietly relived, we round the Island and head for home, the water is choppy and the Kayak is being pushed around by the wind, I can see the sky, it looks angry and dark, it makes me shudder, I drive on harder through the waves, again I begin to wonder " am I there yet, am I there yet?", then I feel the water warm up to the shoreline 53 degree temperature, YES, I am close, I sneak a couple of peaks, Jeff sees me peaking and I throw my head back down and swim. My stroke rate is 74 strokes per minute for the entire 1.34 miles, we pull into the canoe launch, 30 minutes, we did it, I did not want to swim today, i fought it to the bitter end and finally overcame all the excuses and got the job done, when you write down the workout you do it, even better tell someone else you are doing it too!
 Post swim the plan was for me to scurry up to the car and Jeff to navigate the boat on his own, out of the water and I got my jacket on, shoes on and towel wrapped around my waist " I want to carry the boat up now with you now ", Jeff didn't want me too but I was adamant, I trotted up the hill behind him kayak in hand, by the time we reached the car I was spent and concentrated on getting off my wet suit and getting on the possum hat, fleece leggings, merino sweater and woolly slippers, as I was navigating all this two cars with Massachusetts plates pulled up in the parking lot,  four people got out and walked by, they looked gobsmacked, I made a point to make no eye contact, they asked Jeff  if " the water was cold", lucky I had my ear plugs in and didn't hear their question, who knows what my reply might have been and if it would have been appropriate to share with you, yes better left unheard, they disappeared down the road to the canoe launch, perhaps to check out the water temperature for themselves.
 Car packed up and we were off, hot shower, warm clothes and another cold water acclimatization swim checked off. Next up Tuesday October 19th, Green River Reservoir, the forecast is calling for cold nights 32-34 degrees for the next few nights, Tuesday may be the farewell to the reservoir for 2010, will it be, we will find out on Tuesday afternoon when Turtle is scheduled once again to take the first dip, Will he be the solo swimmer on Tuesday? It will depend on the temperature, I'll keep you posted.

Stormy skies, snow on the trials of Mount Mansfield, Stowe, Vermont

Time to break out the Down Jacket



Thursday October 14th, 2010
Location: The Lap Pond
Air Temperature: 35 degrees
Water Temperature: 51.5 degrees

Today is my last scheduled visit to " the lap pond" for 2010, I woke up both excited and nervous about what the water temperature will be, "if it is below 55 degrees I won't swim" I tell myself unconvincingly, I'll just hop back in the mini and buzz over to the indoor lap pool and knock out 6000m, it will be OK....."it won't be OK", I secretly think to myself, it will be predictable, a forgone conclusion and I will never know what that water felt like and how I felt swimming in it, I already know I'll take the dip, but who knows how long.
 I scoop up all my bags for work for the day, one for my food, one for my laptop and one for my clothes, I already have on my suit, my daughter Heidi slopped baby oil on my arms, back and shoulders for me before she left for school.



The "Down Jacket" with furry hood

 It was cold last night and the air temperature at my house reads 34 degrees," boy I am going to need some heavier duty clothing today". I dig out my big thick grey down jacket, it is the one I wear if it is below zero during the Vermont winter, it has a furry hood that is made of down too, perfect for today's conditions I think as I heave it onto my shoulders, it is no light weight and feels not only cozy but also heavy to wear. Now I'm ready,  armed with my possum fur hat, down jacket with furry hood, fleece pants and slip on shoes with a woolly liner, 7:30am and I'm into the mini and off to the pond.
 I am tempted to crank up the heated seats and blast the heat but this is a ritual I reserve for after my swim, " If I toast my butt up now I will need a shoe horn  to pry myself out of the car when I arrive at the pond,  I'd be better to avoid the temptation and leave the heated seats off for now".
 My hands are cold  gripping the steering wheel as I drive, when I arrive at the pond it looks frigid, " now or never" , I think as I turn off the car, earplugs in, cap on, possum hat on, furry hood up and I am off down to the pond by foot, the turtle goes in first and checks out the water temperature stats as I dash back up to the car to get my camera," I have to get a photo of the pond today", I take a picture then fish out the turtle and check out the temperature reading, 51.5 degrees, OK that is an all time low for me and below the 55 degree cut off mark, I had told myself less than one hour before that  I would not swim in the pond today below 55 degrees, but I am already here, my ear plugs are in and I am curious to know what 51.5 degrees will feel like. I tried to swim in 52 degrees this spring, on May 16th, 2010 the water was 52 degrees and the air temperature was 60 degrees, I put on a 5mm wetsuit and was only able to swim a mere 42 minutes, my notes from that swim include:

• when the water hit my face it hurt and took my breath away
• my chest felt like it was caving in
• my chest felt tight, my breaths were short and shallow
• my teeth ached
• my hands were like claws

I start to strip off my clothes, first the shoes, then fleece pants, off with the jacket and lastly the possum hat, " looks like I am going to swim" I say to myself, "just 5 laps, yes a 1000 yard swim would be a terrific accomplishment today, I know I can do it". I walk in the water and stand there for 30 seconds taking deep relaxing breaths, breathe, relax, warm blanket....who am I kidding warm blanket my ass it's 51.5 degrees! Then I am off and a strange thing happens, it is cold as you can imagine, I spin my arms fast and they work, I am pulling with strong strokes, but when my face hits the water it does not give me a fright or take my breath away as it did on the May 16th swim AND my torso feels warm, in fact it feels toasty! I swam the first 200 yard lap knowing I would comfortably be able to achieve the 5 laps this morning, my only concern was that one of the toy boats has floated into the middle of the pond since my last swim, it is the size of park bench and I am worried about swimming into it, "Oh well suck it up and take the hit", I laugh as I say it.
 Lap number 3, I have a thought, "it's only 5 laps, you are going to rock it", " you will get out after 5 and be happy that you swam your 5 laps, your 1000 yards in 51.5 degree water".....no I won't I think ,I will not be satisfied if I don't swim the full 10 laps that I've been doing every other Thursday, 30 minutes of swimming, I know I can swim 10 laps today and that's what I am going to do.
 10 laps, 2000 yards, I will be thrilled if I swim this.
 I continued on lap 5, lap 6, then I notice something else amazing..." I am enjoying this, I don't want it to whizz by too fast, I want to savor the experience", and I do, but by lap 9 my hands start to experience " Channel cramp", they feel like claws and are not pulling me through the water as strongly as they did earlier in the swim, none the less I finish lap 10 and pull up short of the shore, I stop swimming and let myself relax and sink under the surface, " OK brain take this in, you are in 51.5 degree water, you are able to function, to swim and hang out under water and look around without snuffing it, remember this for next time", then I resurface and paddle to the shore, time to get out, my brain knows what to do but my feet are not responding, they are like blocks of ice and it is hard to step onto the grass, I look down at my hands, WOW that is horrible, I have a Halloween look straight out of a Halloween catalog, my hands are red and swollen, they look puffy. Now the hard work really starts, when I am swimming my heart rate is up and keeping my midsection warm, now that I have stopped swimming it lowers, that combined with the 35 degree air temperature and I start to get cold fast, I know I have limited time to get my stuff together before things get really hard, wet suit down, warm under layer and down jacket on, hood up....that helps, I wrap a towel around my waist, I should get the wet suit off but decide not too, not a good call but now I just want to get to the car and home into a hot shower, less than 5 minutes drive away. I struggle with my right shoe, it is a size 10, usually easy to slip on but like my hands my feet appear to be swollen, I get the right foot in and look at the left that is next up....too hard, I scoop up the left shoe in my hand, " enough of that", one shoe on, one shoe off, I scamper up to the car, engine on, heater blasting and heated seats cranked on high, I can feel heat from none of them," if I can just sustain the drive home I will be OK", I tell myself repeatedly, the 5 minute drive takes forever, it feels like hours, like I am stuck in rush hour traffic in the Boston Tunnel. What if I am pulled over? I ask myself, there is no way I can sit in the car waiting for the traffic officer to check my licence, registration and insurance, besides he will probably think I'm drunk if I slur my words when I answer his questions, I make a plan of action if needed, I will keep driving to my house, he or she will have to follow me with their lights flashing and wait until I am out of the hot shower, I look at my speedometer, I am barely hitting 25 miles per hour, not much chance of a speeding violation here.
 I pull into the drive way and manage to grab all my swim gear and dash into the house, the front door is left wide open and I am dropping my bags, towel, down jacket and finally the possum hat in a big trail to the bathroom, shower on and I am in, Oh that's what I'm talking about, bring it on, now that is the ticket right there, I soak it up, wonderful, I glance at my watch 9:01, I stay in the shower for 20 minutes, the transition from the hot shower to getting dressed seems near impossible, I am fully recovered now, I can feel both hands, feet, no teeth chattering and no body shakes, now I am just being a big baby, " I don't want to get out of the shower, I'll get cold", what a skirt, I laugh to myself.
 Shower off and I make a break for it, wow I didn't even manage to pull the shower curtain properly, the bathroom floor looks like a little kids paddling pool.
 Into to bedroom and before you know it I am snuggled up in warm leggings, fleece pullover, sweater on top and matching hat, little black ballet shoes and I am ready to go, off to work.
 I am thrilled to pieces with today's swim, a fitting end to 2010's lap pond adventures, I am so pleased I choose the pond over the pool today. Three more Vermont Open Water Swims left in 2010, they are all in the Green River Reservoir, the next one is on Sunday, will I take the plunge on Sunday? What do you think? I'll keep you posted.





" The Lap Pond" 51.5 degrees quietly waiting for me to enter it's waters