July 11, 2011

First OWS of the season!

I know, I know...you're probably thinking, "It's mid July and you're just now getting in some OWS?"  Well, the places to go here in CO don't really open till late May/early June and even then, the water can be FREEZING if the weather isn't great.  On top of that, moving out of/into places has really been eating up a lot of my weekend time.  BUT, now that we're finally into our new home I was able to go yesterday morning!  Woohoo!

I got all prepared by:
1.  Soaking my wetsuit the day before.  I don't know if any of you ever tried this, but trying to squeeze into a new wetsuit that hasn't been worn for a LONG time is asking for trouble.  Believe me...I know!

2.  Cutting my fingernails.  I don't want any accidental rips in my wetsuit b/c of my stupid nails!  I don't paint them anyways, so it's not a big deal for me to keep them short during my tri training.

3.  Grabbing my lube.  Wetsuit lube that is! :)  Trislide is awesome.  You just spray it on and you're good to go!

The place I swim at, Grant Ranch, is awesome!  It is a lake that belongs to a housing community so it is always clean, well maintained, and warmer than the other places around Denver.  Also, I have access to the locker rooms and showers, which is great for when I'm done swimming.  There are buoys set up for a 1/2M triangle and a 1M triangle, which is great for training.

Some swimmers getting ready to head out into the lake
So, I headed out and got to the lake at 7A when it opened.  There were a lot of other swimmers there, which is always nice when you're swimming in the open water.  I got my wetsuit on and headed to the lake.  I was expecting the water to be cold, but it was the perfect temperature!  Yay!!!

Originally, I had it set in my mind that I was only going to do the 1/2M loop because it was my first time doing an OWS AND the first time in my new wetsuit.  For the last 2 years, the first time I did an OWS I almost always panicked in some way.  But, on this day, I felt the calmest I have ever felt.  I WAS READY!

I started swimming and immediately found my groove.  I never panicked, not once!!!  I got to the middle triangle of the 1/2M loop and decided I was going to swim the whole 1M loop instead!  I know this sounds lame, but I was sooo excited for myself!  I was so happy and was literally swimming with a smile! :)

I made it back to shore feeling awesome!  And, although I only swam 1M, knowing that I didn't panic and didn't have to stop to compose myself, gave me a little flicker of hope that I WILL BE O-KAY for the 2.4M swim at IMAZ!  I cannot wait till I can get out there and swim again!!  

23 comments:

Christi said...

Congratulations on your open water swim! I am glad that you did not panic. I do almost every time I OWS.

Maggs said...

Congrats on the swim. I still panic at times in open water races.

ShutUpandRun said...

Thx for the wetsuit tips: would not have known about soaking and I have to get some of the spray stuff. I just ordered that VERY wetsuit today so I hope you like it. I hope to do my first OWS on Wed. Fingers crossed for good weather at 5:45.

justme said...

nice job. i think i should try that trislide stuff...

Running and living said...

I went from water phobia to preferring to swim without a wetsuit in 1.5 years. It is all about practice. You will have a comfortable swim at IMAZ:)

A Prelude To... said...

You are in NO way lame. Never have been, never will be.

I totally get your happiness about this swim!!! Hooray for feeling awesome and you WILL be O-KAY for the 2.4 swim at IMAZ! FOR SURE!

Jon said...

This is a great start to OWS for the season. You are an all grown up Triathlete! haha!

2.4 miles is totally more mental than physical. Well, it physically hurts when your goggles start to chafe by the end, but thats a different story. ;)

Julie said...

Great job Aimee! I swam for the first time at Grant Ranch this year and loved it! I can't wait to go back again.

You will rock IMAZ!

Tiffany @ The Chi-Athlete said...

Yeah, girl! And totally with you on all of the prep-work for the OWS. I have never tried that lube, though! OMG! It's just been me and the BodyGlide stick. It's awkward in public. :|

Great job and gorgeous views! Swimming with a smile is my favorite!

Unknown said...

Woot!! That looks like an amazing place to swim!! Congrats on not panicking!!

Austin said...

that swim spot looks soooo awesome. congrats on getting back in the open...if you get sick of the beautiful crystal colorado water, we're always game for company swimming down here in lake pontchartrain!

Regina said...

Go you! I wish we had some nice lakes around here to swim in. As it is, I have to take a 1 hour subway ride out to the beach. So jealous!

Alisa said...

yay great work! I wish I had somewhere that was marked like that so neat. Also, I've never heard of soaking a wetsuit before, maybe that's why my wetsuit was tough to put on this year, I thought maybe I'd just gained a few lbs =).

Patrick Mahoney said...

The wetsuit soak - great tip...

Mark said...

Is it just me or do those swimmers look like a cover to a German minimalist rock group album?

Big Daddy Diesel said...

Nice, OWS is fun, I still panic in the open water

I go the soaking, you can very easily rip your suit if it hasnt been warn in a long time

Caratunk Girl said...

Dude, you are going to be freaking awesome at IMAZ!! I love open water, it is so much nicer than chorine hell.

Good work on the soak!

Jason said...

IMAZ is going to have nothing on you but then after you are done and recovered and I have registered I need every tip and trick for myself.

Love trislide....best product ever.

Congrats on not freaking out and getting that 1M in from a 1/2M.

Kristin Bradfield said...

I had NO idea about soaking the wetsuit! When I put mine on last month for the first time I feared I had gained even more weight than I thought! It took 10 minutes to squeeze into that sucker. I'm very jealous of this swimming place, I'd kill for that!

Dawn said...

So awesome!
As I have just started doing my OWS in the past month...I hear you on everything. Except....I DO panic. At least once during every go at it.

You have a wonderful place to swim there...I'm tempted to pack up and move for your swimming venue alone;))

Jill said...

Great job with the wetsuit! And ows! I've never heard of Grant Ranch. I know that Chatfield also has OWS, it is pretty popular!

You have a very pretty ring, btw! :)

Unknown said...

I'm super jealous that you had buoys set for swimming! I swim at our local lake/beach and I'm all over the place and don't know how long it is. Super frustrating. Yay for getting it done!

Kathleen said...

Aimee,
I have to do three early morning swims at Grant Ranch this week. If you want to join me, let me know.Do you have a pass for the season?