First 6 hr swim

So, tomorrow is my first ever 6 hr swim.
It won't be "channel qualifying" in terms of temps (hard to do down here in the southern USA), but will be chilly for around here standards. Also, I'll be wearing a watch for the GPS track and distance measuring.

I'll have two kayakers, in 3 hr shifts. Turns out it's a big ask to ask a single individual to sit for 6 hrs straight in a kayak with few (if any) pullout locations for potty stops. So, 3 hr shifts it is. We'll do some sort of circle or out/back with my friend's house as home base. Then, while the paddlers swap, I can swim laps of the cove until we're ready to set out again.

Yay!

This is my replacement event since all of my scheduled events got cancelled due to "the COVID" as my mom describes it.

My personal goal is to get to 10 miles....and, yes, if I get to 6 hrs, and I'm super close to 10, I'm darn well gonna keep swimming even if I have to swim in a blasted circle in front of my friend's lake-beach to get there!

This will be a good test for fueling, chaffing prevention, sun protection, and all that. Air slated to be pleasant for the kayaker, and sunny so they'll be comfortable. Last year at this time, the air was 47 degrees.... we'll have 10 degree warmer at the start and rising to the low 70s. Water will likely be mid-60s.

So, if ya call/text me before 2:00 central time tomorrow............... I'll be swimmin' and call ya back later!

swimfreeordiethelittlemerwookieIronMikej9swimKate_AlexanderOpenh2omiklcctMLambySolojendutdpm50flystorms

Comments

  • Have a great swim @Sara_Wolf ! As they say, you always remember your first six hour swim.

    miklcct
  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member

    Have fun! Sounds like a good plan.

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

  • Openh2oOpenh2o Member
    edited November 2020

    Good luck
    6h wish u have a lot joy and fun!

  • What a fabulous day today was!
    Perfect weather
    Perfect skies
    Perfect wind (little except for one little bit)
    Perfect temps (air was 47-70ish and water was 66-68)

    Total distance: 9.38 miles in 6:02 and change.

    The paddler switch went flawlessly.

    Have some great photos, particularly at the beginning with fog still on the water and the sun just peeking above the trees. Also got video of the start and finish, as well as pics and vids throughout swim.

    Fueled with Infinit custom blend and one longer feed with some cliff bars for variety.

    I’ve done 4 running marathons..... and none of them went this well. Today was easily 10x easier than I thought it would be. No road marathon was like that. Turns out......shocker...... I’m NOT a runner!

    My shoulders and back are tired, and the shoulders will likely be sore tomorrow. But, if I’d had to, I could have swum at least another full feed. Today was my first time using Desitin for sunscreen, too. It worked like a charm..... I had a bit of an application failure on my face and the backs of my hands, but nothing horrendous.

    I’m now looking for pizza.... in spite of the fact that I finished eating my post swim lunch only 3.5 hrs ago.

    Next goal for me will be a solid 10mi swim....perhaps next spring.

    Next year. Will be another year of developing an additional layer of OWS skills..... more formal record keeping by my paddlers.... increased mileage per week.... and hopefully, returning to my events that were cancelled. I’d love to work on getting my pace down a bit, too. Maybe be able to get those 10 in under 6 hrs.


    swimfreeordieJSwimcurlyBogdanZmiklcctrlmJustSwimthelittlemerwookieMLambySolodpm50
  • IronMikeIronMike Northern VirginiaCharter Member

    Awesome! Congrats. Do you have a blog where you'll post the pictures?

    JSwimmiklcct

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

  • curlycurly Issaquah, WASenior Member

    How fun! It looks like a wonderful day.

  • miklcctmiklcct London, United KingdomMem​ber

    Congratulations 🎉🎉🎉!

    I'm also planning for a 16 km swim next month to get myself back in serious long distance mode, which I expect 6 and a half hours (my previous longest swim in distance was 14 km, while in time was 5:43 - they were different swims).

    My original plan of doing a 21.5 km race in summer cannot be executed so I've done nothing since this January, and I'll need a step to get me to the "rehearsal swim" for channel swimming afterwards.

    Sadly I haven't done a running marathon yet - the race I signed up this year was cancelled as well.

  • @IronMike said:
    Awesome! Congrats. Do you have a blog where you'll post the pictures?

    I don't.......
    Maybe I should.
    Right now, I just have FB for friends and family.....

    The two best are the ones I posted here.
    I've got videos as well...... the weather was so perfect, though, there's not a ton of difference between them, except the first and last.

    IronMike
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