The icy salt water syndrome: The open water experience

No matter how many times you swim in the ocean, how many times you do a triathlon/Ironman, there is always something new to learn with regards to sea swimming. Such is the might of the ocean. The waves can intimidate and humble you with its capricious moods, currents and tides. This is the reason why I try and attend every open water session/clinics. 

Cowell Beach at Santa Cruz holds a special place in my heart. I tried my first open water swim here in August 2017. It was quite an eventful day, considering how I was traumatized by the freezing temperature. My anxiety levels had increased double fold. I was in panic and almost on the verge of giving up my triathlon dream, thinking that I wasn’t quite cut out for an open water swim. I did manage to enter the waters again thanks to encouragement given by the race director Penni Bengston and Coach Rajeev Char from Team Asha. 

Even then I couldn’t bear to put my head inside water. The thought of not being able to see anything petrified me. Also, the cold water on my face left made me lose breath easily. For a long time, I swam with my head up despite knowing that it wasn’t the correct technique. It slowed me down considerably. It was only during my Ironman 70.3 Santa Cruz in September 2018, when I did manage to put my head down and swim the entire 1.2 miles within the cut off time. After that putting my head inside water was never an issue. 

Life does come around the circle. This year I attended the Swim session as a part of Team Asha. Going in a group was always comforting as you realize that there are several others who are in the same boat. 

It was quite a cloudy day and the ocean looked cold and uninviting. Typical of Santa Cruz waters. Very rarely you see the friendly blue waves basking in the sunlight. If you did, the ocean was probably in a good mood. 45 of us gathered on the beach and circled around Penni. She began by assuring us that there were no sharks in the water, addressing the universal fear of the crowd with regards to the ocean. She explained the requirements for an open water swim that included 

1.     A wetsuit

2.     Towel

3.     Bodyglide/Triglide 

4.     Ear plugs

5.     Swim cap/Skull cap

6.     Goggles

Getting into the wetsuit is the hardest part of a triathlon. This is why a triglide/bodyglide comes in handy. Available in most sports stores, they come in small tubes. Applying them on my hands, legs and neck, makes it easier to slip in and slip out of the wetsuit. I did a short jog around to beach as an initial warm up. I slipped on my cap and placed my goggles over the head. 

Penni went on to explain the concept of mammalian reflex to cold water which causes changes in our body-slowing down of the heart rate and reduced blood flow to the limbs. This is the reason why warm ups become crucial before any swim. 

Warm up: A warm up is always essential before a swim/triathlon event in order to avoid sudden shocks due to temperature difference. We slowly entered the water until a point where it reached our shoulders. It was freezing!!! For a moment, it felt like having stepped inside a pool of melted glacier. The water was 13 degrees Celsius. We sure were a crazy bunch huddled in the middle of the cold ocean on a Saturday morning. Such is the life of a triathlete-to get out of your comfort zone. 

We let water inside our sleeves to allow the body to get used to the cold while the waves bobbed around us. We then put our head down and swam a few strokes. It was still cold but were gradually getting used to the temperature. After 5-10 minutes, we came out of the waters. 

Drafting and Sighting:The challenge in open water lies in sighting. Since you are unable to see anything below, it becomes easier when you draft. The best place to draft is directly behind the feet of another swimmer which helps the drafting swimmer to keep track of the leader by following the trail of bubbles. As long as you are not obstructing the leader by touching or tapping their feet, drafting is allowed in a swim. It is wise to choose a leader whose pace is similar to yours. 

Sighting in open water becomes a challenge due to the waves. Every time a swimmer lifts their head to sight a marked buoy, it can slow down their pace. Another reason why drafting is useful. 

We practiced drafting and sighting by swimming up to a point and back. Yes, we did collide with one another and felt someone’s leg on our faces. As Penni said, this was a sport tougher than American Football. And as Coach Char says there are no apologies in water. :) 

My experience swimming from buoy to buoy: We were divided into 3 groups. Those who weren’t still comfortable could swim near the shore. The rest could swim up to one buoy and another buoy. I chose to swim around the 2 buoys. 

Since my strength has always been endurance more than speed, I set off rhythmically, while the others burst ahead. Seeing others fly in water was a point of stress for me. It stiffened my muscles and those bouts of self-doubt made me slow down as the anxiety levels surged. Before the swim, I had addressed this point with Coach Char who clearly emphasized that this was an individual sport and it was to each his own. “It’s your race. You don’t have to get bogged down by others. Go at your own pace, relax and enjoy.” 

Those golden words rung clear and loud as I relaxed and enjoyed my swim. Rhythmically I continued my free style stroke and did the occasional sighting. I tried drafting but gave up seeing that person drift a little off course. The technique to go faster is to swing your arm fast in the air when you lift it and pull when it goes back into water. The pull set drills practiced in the pool certainly makes a difference. 

I soon reached the second buoy and swam back to the shore. Swimming back to the sands was a thrill as the waves sort of aid you by giving a gentle push. “Hurry up,” they seemed to say, eager to get me out of their abode as fast as they could.  I swam till I could feel the sand with my hands before I got up. 

Exit: Whenever you exit, its important to always look behind and watch out for any big wave that could knock you down. A golden rule was to never face your back to the ocean. 

When I exited the swim, I went back to the sands to join the group. After a while we all decided to spend some more time in the water and to click photos. When we finally decided to leave for breakfast, we turned our backs inadvertently to pose for a photo. Just that we felt a wave hit us with a force toppling one person over. Such was the might of the ocean.

No matter how easy your swim is, it’s always good to have that nervous bouts with regards to open water. It’s called respect!