Post Event Report: 1.6 mile Freedom Swim

I did it... unaided! I'm a Freedom Swimmer!

I woke up yesterday morning feeling fresh, hydrated and ready to go. Completely at ease and excited about the day because I knew that no matter what, Scott would be kayaking right beside me.


My support team- enjoying his ride across the river
We launched Scott into the Peace River about 0.3 of a mile from the start. We were running a little bit late and I was feeling antsy about that. Instructions were being given before the swim regarding the current and I didn't want to miss that information. As soon as Scott was launched, my Uncle drove me as close as we could get to the start . I had to walk the rest of the way along US41 in just my Speedo (um, a bit awkward with all of the traffic passing by). I made it to the water's edge just in time as I saw a crowd of hundreds gathering around a single man (the event coordinator, I suppose). I also caught a glimpse of Scott and the kayak out of the corner of my eye and made note of where he was in the water. The amount of people there was simply amazing! Tons of kayaks, floaters, swimmers, boaters... it was incredible! Pictures just don't do it justice!

The coordinator told us that this year's swim would be more difficult than previous years because we would be getting no help from the current and would actually be swimming against an incoming tide. I was already prepared for this fact, so no shock there. He gave us some tips on how to best make it across the 1.6 mile (although I heard a few people said that it's more like 1.75 miles) span of water and then wished all of us well.

I pulled on my cap, adjusted my goggles and made my way over to Scott. Once I reached him, I pulled off my aquasocks (SO glad that I wore these for the start... I was stepping on God knows what) and handed them to Scott in the kayak and then I was off. The beginning of the stretch was crowded. Lots of people, rafts, kayaks, and boats everywhere... I had to do quite a bit of dodging around anchor lines that first 1/4 mile or so. Eventually things opened up quite a bit and it was just me, Scott in the kayak, an occasional boat, and an occasional open water swimmer.

And we're off! Damn the other side looks so freakin' far away!!
I had some major goggle malfunctions for the first 1/2 of the swim and had to grab on to the kayak about 5 times to drain them and reseal. They were leaking like a sieve! I instructed Scott not to paddle while I was attached to the kayak... I wanted to swim as much of the river as I could on my own. Eventually I pulled them SO tight that I thought my eyes would pop out! The leaking was finally minimized. I will not be wearing the Aquasphere Vistas in my tri next week. They obviously don't fit my face properly. Despite the issues with my goggles, I felt GREAT! Not once did I ever feel out of breath, fatigued, etc... I was just making my way along.

Mid swim- I can't believe I was keeping my arse end up so well!
During the last 1/4 of the swim my stomach started feeling a bit weird. Like I needed to make a really big (and loud) burp! I'm pretty sure it was caused by a combination of the salt water, the boat fumes, and the swells... and also the fact that when you swim freestyle for that length of time, it's nearly impossible not to get some air into the stomach. So I grabbed on to the kayak and just floated for a minute. Scott asked me if I was okay and I told him that I felt fine physically other than the fact that my stomach felt very bloated. After about a minute of just hanging out on the side of the yak, I finally belched! It was loud! It felt wonderful! Instantaneous relief!!! I started swimming again and made my way towards the pier.


That's me between the two kayaks- about 150 to 200 yards from the pier
I reached the pier filled with a crowd of hundreds in a swim time of 1 hour and 2 minutes (1:02- according to my watch). As I climbed up the ladder onto the dock, someone handed me a bottle of water and I made my way over to the rinse off area. I then looked out over river and began to reflect. A few things hit me:

1. Holy crap! I just swam 1.6 miles, unaided (as far as forward propulsion goes) in open water and against a current!

2. Holy crap! Did I really just swim 1.6 miles and not feel like I was going to die... even once?!?

3. Oh my God! I really did this!!!!

For the conditions and the distance, I have no idea whether or not my finish time was a good time or not... all I know is that I'm capable of completing a swim of that distance, getting out of the water, and still feeling like I could go on. A sign of a budding triathlete perhaps?? I've done all of my training thus far on my own. Coming up with training plans that I 'think' will serve their purpose and being able to complete this sort of a swim yesterday made me realize that not only will I be ready for MiamiMan in November, but that swim-wise... I'm already there! Such a fantastic feeling to know that hard work really does pay off.

Words really cannot convey how stoked I am!!!