I was feeling crummy with my low back and craved the relief that I get from the water today. I wanted a big swim, and I got one. I went out at tower 2 and around the pier and headed south. I hit the end of the pier at 14 minutes. There is a floating white pole sticking up off Wisconsin Street about 1/3 of a mile out, and I decided that I would swim there and back. There was a small chop at times, but mostly the water was flat with a small swell out there. No back pain in the water but the neck pain was with me as usual. I really felt good and smooth during the swim. I hit the buoy/pole at 54 minutes. On my return trip north, there was a small current that I was swimming into, so I had to commit to the swim. I thought a lot about my arm pulls and recited poems and the like over and over in my head to occupy myself. It was on the dark side out there because the sun was occluded by the clouds and I didn't finish my swim until about 7:15 PM. Total swim time was 1 hour and 46 minutes. I approximate 2 1/2 miles for me, knowing what I know about my swim times. I tried to finish strong coming in on the north side of the pier, and my arms got a good workout.
I feel like I broke through some barriers tonight and had a very good swim.
"The first time you quit is the last time you try."
Great report. Congrats on a good swim. I'm training for the Tiki Swim (2.4 mi) on Sept 30th and was wondering about ocean conditions. I know things change from day to day, but your report is very helpful.
ReplyDeletehttp://oceanswimoceansideca.blogspot.com/2011/09/tiki-swim-pier-to-harbor-swim-dry-run.html
ReplyDeleteLast year I did a pre-Tiki swim route by myself to see if I could do the distance in the allotted time. The swim became very difficult at the south rock jetty (south of it a hundred yards). I didn't do the swim because it was too expensive for me.
http://oceanswimoceansideca.blogspot.com/2011/09/link-to-north-county-times-tiki-swim.html
ReplyDeleteI did the long swim last night again. I was getting ready to post it now.
ReplyDeleteOcean conditions are much, much better this year at this season than last year. Warm water -if you like that. Mellow ocean-good for swimming. The area of concern for Tiki is that the water just south of the south jetty (the San Luis Rey River runoff area) has crazy currents and can be challenging. I have swum that piece of water from south of the south rock jetty to the north rock jetty many times and is has strong currents at times, and mild currents most of the time. The closer you get to the north rock jetty (the entrance to the harbor inlet) the less the currents. Also, you have to keep in mind the tide in the harbor inlet--is it going out, coming in, neutral? The inlet swim is long--you think you will end when you start the inlet, but it's probably another 1/3 mile or 1/2 mile. As I recall, I don't think that strong southward currents were a factor last year.