Skip to content

Swim the Suck 2022

sarahcassidysarahcassidy Las Vegas, NVMember
edited August 2022 in Beginner Questions

In searching previous posts, I saw Swim the Suck threads for previous years, but didn't see one for 2022 so thought I'd start one.

I'm registered and this will be my first time. Who else is going?

I'll stay at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chattanooga Downtown, but haven't booked flights yet. I need to see whether it's cheaper (and less painful) to book a one-stop flight into Chattanooga and NOT rent a car, or book a nonstop flight into Atlanta and rent a car.

Is it possible to get to/from the hotel to the race site without a car? I assumed I could use Uber/Lyft/taxis to get around.

Comments

  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member

    I used Uber on one of my StS's. Worked great. And when the race was over, as I was walking up to the road to find a good spot for the Uber, another swimmer drove by and offered me a ride to my AirBNB. w00t!

    Have fun. StS is still my most favorite race, bar none. Will be back in a couple years.

    sarahcassidy

    We're all just carbon, water, starlight, oxygen and dreams

  • sarahcassidysarahcassidy Las Vegas, NVMember

    Thank you! Another question:

    Are there usually a lot of people at the meeting/finish area of the StS?

    My oldest child, who will be 10 in December, asked about coming to TN with me. I took him with me to the Castle Mountain 10K yesterday because it was a loop swim around the lake with the start and finish at the same place, plus no buses, so I felt comfortable leaving him on shore while I swam the 10K. Many swimmers brought their kids and even dogs, so my kid played with other kids while I swam.

    Do StS swimmers ever bring their kids and leave them at the finish area? Or is it pretty quiet and empty after the buses leave? If so, I would not want to leave my kid there. I would only be comfortable leaving him if there were plenty of people around there the whole time I swam.

    IronMike
  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member

    @bresar said:
    Thank you! Another question:

    Are there usually a lot of people at the meeting/finish area of the StS?

    My oldest child, who will be 10 in December, asked about coming to TN with me. I took him with me to the Castle Mountain 10K yesterday because it was a loop swim around the lake with the start and finish at the same place, plus no buses, so I felt comfortable leaving him on shore while I swam the 10K. Many swimmers brought their kids and even dogs, so my kid played with other kids while I swam.

    Do StS swimmers ever bring their kids and leave them at the finish area? Or is it pretty quiet and empty after the buses leave? If so, I would not want to leave my kid there. I would only be comfortable leaving him if there were plenty of people around there the whole time I swam.

    Oooh, yeah, not too sure. Hopefully some others who have supported StS will advise you.

    We're all just carbon, water, starlight, oxygen and dreams

  • sarahcassidysarahcassidy Las Vegas, NVMember

    Thank you! I haven't decided yet whether to take him but thought it might be cool to fly into Atlanta, rent a car, and do a road trip with him after STS.

  • Sara_WolfSara_Wolf Member

    There is plenty of space at the finish, but you'll want to have an adult with your child for supervision. Once people start finishing, it turns in to a bit of a "beachy" party feel. Also, keep in mind that there will be considerable time (easily 3+ hrs for the first to finish from the time of departure, more of course for the back of the packers) from when the busses depart with the paddlers and swimmers to when the first finishers are there. You'll also want to consider how your child will be amused waiting for the finishers. There are port-o-potties there, so that won't be an issue during the wait. Depending on the weather, a tent and some camp chairs will likely come in handy. It was REALLY muddy the year I did it, so lots of the area wasn't able to be accessed. So, there's that, too. Check with Kara, to be sure that it will be ok to have someone there between bus departure and arrival of the food people and all that. The space is private property, so there might be restrictions. All other things being equal, though, I'd say that if your child is old enough to be able to be self-entertained and you have supervision, and permission isn't an issue....yeah, it'd be ok to have them there while you swim.

    IronMikesarahcassidy
  • sarahcassidysarahcassidy Las Vegas, NVMember

    Thanks Sara! Sounds like I'd be better off leaving my oldest kid at home. I've asked another StS swimmer I know if she's bringing anyone else with her, otherwise I'll travel with him another time. He is independent, mature, and easily entertains himself, but I need to be able to focus on swimming without worrying about him.

  • SuePSueP Oregon, USAMember

    I'm signed up but have not booked flights yet, and am considering withdrawing. My training is just not where it should be, and I keep going back and forth between thinking that I ought to be able to gut it out (it is downstream, after all), and thinking it's nuts since I've not been able to fit in a swim longer than 2.5 hours yet this year. For those of you who know it, how significant is the current? Anyone able to compare it to the Portland Bridge Swim?

  • bahsan22bahsan22 United StatesNew Member

    Hi Sue, I'm also going to Swim the Suck...first timer. They have a link on the StS website to the TVA website so you can track flow rates of the river. Not sure if that would help you make your decision. https://www.tva.com/environment/lake-levels/chickamauga

  • ryansryans northern VirginiaMember

    I completed STS last weekend, awesome time and my first 10 mile open water swim! Well organized, I posted a race report to my blog here, https://www.flowerstonefinancial.com/family/sts-race-report/

    IronMike
Sign In or Register to comment.