Training and plans for the year ahead are progressing well, I finally had a telephone conversation Andy Williams regarding our joint venture for the summer, that being the two way, 21 mile, Windermere swim..we have agreed on the broader issues and intend to rendezvous in the Lake District soon to iron out the finer details. Basically we will be swimming the lake both ways non stop together, utilising two safety/escort boats. Having spoken to Andy (who also a swimtrek guide) I am now really excited about this major challenge.
Training wise I continue to build both time and distance in the pool in preparation for the first obstacle of the year..the 24 hour 24 mile swim for life at Guildford Lido which is now only a matter of weeks away. Last week was consistent in the pool with no real side effects (other than usual chlorine issues) as previous I will avoid boring you with the break down of each session, you can however leave a comment if you want to be enlightened!
Monday 28 March..6500m @Total Fitness
Tuesday 29 March..3500m @David Lloyds
Wednesday 30 March.. 2500m @Total Fitness
Thursday..rest day
Friday 1 April..10,000m @Total Fitness ..a mind numbing set!
Saturday 2 April..1000m @Ellerton Lake
Sunday 3 April ..6900m @Total Fitness
Total 30,400m
A pleasing week for me, however if you think I am making the effort, check out Sally Goble who is also entered in the swim for life, she recently swam 12 one mile repetitions in the lido! quite frankly putting me to shame, you can read her write up here. Awesome swimming Sal, see you soon.
Saturday finally saw KGB and I venture back to Ellerton Lake for the first time this year where we met the ever jovial Sarah Tunnicliffe and several OSS swimmers, arriving at the car park slightly behind schedule around 11am we received lots of hugs and greetings before briefing the swimmers/making suggestions as to what route to take, then the moment came to enter the frigid water.
This was to prove a major shock to the system, normally my initial dip of the year is just jumping around in the sea getting my skin accustomed to the chill, today however was a straight forward jump in and get on with it type approach. My breathing took some controlling after entry, however I eventually managed to get into my front crawl and the accompanying brain freeze! One lap for starters at 50f 10c, before exiting the water, coloured up like a lobster, ready for what Sarah describes as the calorie free window, much cake and hot chocolate later I managed to persuade several swimmers to take a second dip. Even talking some into shedding the rubber..This was by far easier on the system, with little if any breathing issues, still had the ice cream headache but that's normal for me at this stage. Double dipping is definetely the way forward.
Overall a great start to the outdoor season thanks to the organisational skills of our friend Sarah.
Almost forgot..thanks to Clare Woodhead for taking the photos
Almost forgot..thanks to Clare Woodhead for taking the photos
1 comment:
Hi Mark
Well done for getting outside to swim. I haven't done that yet this year (apart from Hampton Pool, and that's heated so doesn't really count) - and I definitely will be wearing a wetsuit the first time I go in.
Simon
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