New Year's Eve Pier Swim Oceanside, CA

The water was freezing today.  Surfline has it as 56-58 but I'd bet $$ on the 56-57.  Face hurt, body froze, hard to get through the surf zone cold.  I was pretty frozen by the time I was done in 32 minutes.  The ocean was extremely choppy: about a two-foot chop all around.  No kidding.  I swallowed some water a few times.  Getting out it was difficult to get past the surf before I was pulled into the pier.  I had my doubts whether I could make it.  There were about a dozen surfers on the south side but crummy shape to the waves.  As I was coming through the surf, one surfer asked me, " Are you frozen?"  I said, " Yeah, I am today; I really am."  He said there was an upwelling of cold water.  The ocean was dirty; I guess with the recent light rains running off into the beaches. 
So, what about my New Year's Day Pier Swim?  I suppose I'll do it alone.  It will be my second annual.  I hope I come in first place.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Overdid It Last Swim

Boy, My back has been a twisted mess of nerves and discs since my two-miler December 23rd.  I went too far.  When I'm back functioning, I'll go with one mile.  I've been trying to kick better but the low back has its limit it seems, nowadays.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Sunday Two Miler Swim Goal Oceanside CA

The last two days I did one-mile swims and had energy and warmth to spare.  So, what's next for this silly guy.  I uttered the words "two mile swim" to my son this morning; then the gauntlet was laid down.  So I went out with the intention of doing a two-miler.  I started at Wisconsin St. and swam out to that float that can be seen in some of the photos above.  Surprisingly, that pole is far; it took me eleven minutes to get to it.  But I learned something important getting into the water there; there are a couple of logs sticking up out of the bottom.  I hit one hard, but there is a positive side to that; the pain took my mind off of getting into the oh-so-chilly water.
I turned north to the pier at the float and hit the pier at 47 minutes.  It was a smooth swim--a very mild southerly current.  I had two scares.  Scare #1:  I swam smack into a ten-foot patch of kelp that was startling.  Scare #2:  fifteen minutes or so later I breathed to the left and was very close to what looked like the head of a harbor seal.  A second and third glance revealed it to be a float for a lobster trap that happened to resemble a seal's noggin'.
So at 47 minutes I'm cold, but I have a plan to swim to a little south of the harbor south jetty and turn around and do a round trip.  I figured that might be 2 miles easy.
At Surfrider Way, I am colder and looking at my watch.  I had decided to change my plan to turn around at 60 minutes.  This I do at 60 minutes and head back toward the pier.  I am very cold at 60 minutes.  This surprised me.
The water gets a little choppy and I start to wonder if I am swimming into a current--making mental excuses.  It's human nature.
I am pulling hard to get to the pier again--this time from the north side.  My fingers are freezing; I can't keep my fingers together to make an efficient 'pull' of the water with each stroke. 
Oh, exciting episode #3:  I am west of the pier 75 yards, look up, and close on my right is a family boat--about 60 feet long.  We wave 'Hi' to each other.  I should have been paying more attention.  The effects of the cold.
At about 75 minutes, just past the pier, I revise my plan due to cold and head in toward the beach.
What went first: the will or the effects of the cold?  The will, I say.  Cold will reduce Arnold Schwarzenneger (the movie version) to a little girl in an hour.

On my swim in to the sand I had a difficult time keeping my swimming stroke going decently.  I imagine the Lifeguards in the Tower looking at me wondering (or taking bets) on whether they'll have to get the jet-ski out to drag my sorry butt out of the water.  This helps to motivate me.  I hit sand at 1 hour and 34 minutes.  Cold, but feeling better.  I jog about a half-mile south to my starting point, Wisconsin St.
OK. This is where I have my final bit of excitement.  I had left a t-shirt and a coke on some rocks at Wisconsin and some character stole them.  Agghhhhh. 
I did my two-mile swim plus some, I think.  I didn't achieve my goal, but I did break some barriers.  Good swim.





"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Gorgeous Beach Day For Surfers & This Swimmer

I felt better today (from my chill treatment yesterday) and did the same swim as yesterday.  These pictures show the swim.  You start at the bottom of the stairs, head way out, and pass beyond the pier end by about 80 to 100 yards.  Then you continue the arc in, but a smaller arc because I'm tired and concentrating on form and performance, and hit the beach.  I did it in 33 minutes today.  I would say that's a mile for me.  Yesterday there was a strong south current and it took me 6 minutes more, I think.
While standing on the sidewalk above, I got a very cool view of a 4-5 foot dolphin swimming parallel along a breaking wave. Just one.  I didn't get any other dolphin sightings out there.
Something happened twice today that doesn't happen to me, except very rarely.  Two different surfers passed on to me their respect for my swimming in the raw like I do (swimsuit only, cap, goggles). One man 45'ish must have seen me before; because he told me, "I gotta' give you your respect for swimming in that; that's something.  Then I told him a was a  little off, and he says, "Who isn't?"
The other young fellow passed along, "Good work.  What did you do, 2 miles."   He was out waiting for waves and he saw me way out there.  He gave me a "fist bump."  Now that is cool.  I told him about 1 mile because my time was 33 minutes.  Now I'm wondering why I didn't do 2 miles?  I could have.  Maybe tomorrow...
You can see from these photos that the swimming conditions were great.  I feel good.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

15 Days Without Beach

I couldn't get in the water for 15 days and it took a toll on me.  I was in a bad state yesterday and today and forced myself to swim today.  Thank goodness!  The water was very cold.  Surfline says 59 degrees but it was colder than that.  I swam a good mile at 42 minutes, I think. The water was smooth and flat, but not glassy.   Very nice for surfing with long intervals and long waves.
Nice to be back.  I'll be less grouchy and less antisocial.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."