We think the physicality and mental fortitude required to swim in the oceans is an activity that taxes humans like no other for various reasons: Solitary Adversity, Physical Exposure, Absence of Perception, Survival Dependence, and Intensity of Experience. Open water swimming, whether done by channel swimmers enduring the cold or triathletes in wetsuits,
Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach. The start horn goes off and hundreds of swimmers and triathletes enter the water. Like schools of fish, the humans swarm all over the course in close proximity to one another. The athletes are so close to one another that they frequently bump, hit, crawl, pull, bang into, bounce off of, slap, jam and smash into one
USC vs. UCLA. Cosmonauts vs. astronauts. Vegan vs. carnivores. Yankees vs. Red Sox. Football vs. fútbol. There are all kinds of various opposites and contrasts in the world. The same is true if you are a triathlete or an open water swimmer. You know you are a triathlete if... 1. A sprint takes you at least 2 hours 2. Lava is a magazine 3. Your
American coach Gerry Rodrigues of Tower 26 in Santa Monica, California penned a strong opinion piece that is gaining much traction in the triathlon community (see here). He made recommendations to the triathlon governing body, coaches and athletes about participating in triathlons and establishing temperature collars (minimum and maximum water
Pace clocks and stop watches that carefully measure time dominate training and competitions among pool swimmers around the world. Interval training, best times and qualification standards dictate the careers of pool swimmers. Waves, winds and water temperature are among the climatic elements that open water swimmers deal with in oceans, lakes and rivers.
We observe many open water swimmers and triathletes constantly have a water bottle on hand, frequently taking sips to stay hydrated at the office, in the car and while traveling. As more and more swimmers and triathletes travel from one place to another, this handy drinking cup holder that can attach to your luggage seems like a good bit of equipment to
Experienced open water swimmers and competitive triathletes know what to check out when warming up for an event for the first time. And turn buoys are a major part of their check list. These experienced athletes ask themselves the following questions: 1. Where are the turn buoys located? 2. Which direction do I swim around the turn buoys? That is, are
As an outstanding swimmer at The University of Tampa in Florida, Jimi Kiner was a 22-time All-American and national champion in the breaststroke. He culminated his pool swimming career at the 2000 United States Olympic Trials. But he continued to share his love for the water and passion for swimming as he shifted his competitive zeal to coaching and
Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California. A popular American book called Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by relationship counselor John Gray identified fundamental differences between the genders. Just as Gray figuratively describes that men and women are from different planets and that each gender is comfortable with its distinct society
The acclaimed Hydro Tracker from FINIS will start shipping directly to customers in Europe for its offices throughout Europe next month. The Hydro Tracker enables swimmers and triathletes to know exactly how far, how fast and where they train and swim in the open water world. Open water swimmers and triathletes can share and obtain more accurate and more
