Raise your hand if ocean swimming freaks you out!!
Ocean swims are actually my FAVORITE, so when my friend Mike recently sent one of his concerned athletes my way, I quickly jumped at the chance to put her fears to rest.
Fear #1 – Ocean Wildlife
I always feel like ocean swimming is MUCH cleaner than lake swimming. A bigger body of water means more room for the fish (and natural filtration). And like the drawing above suggests, those fish probably want to be around you even LESS than you want to be around them!
During a race, the only wildlife you’re likely to see are the human feet kicking in front of you! And yes, it’s perfectly ok to ZOOM right past them!
Fear #2 – Rip Currents
Rip currents run outward, perpendicular to the shore, pushing water out toward the ocean.
The best way to get out of a rip current is to swim parallel to the shore, and many open water swim courses actually run this direction.
Swim course map for this weekend’s Trybee Island Sprint
That means, if you cross a rip current during the race, all you really have to do is follow the course and you should be able to swim right through it! If the current is too strong to swim through, you should swim OUT toward the ocean, NOT try to fight the current and swim toward shore. Eventually you will get to a point where you can swim around the current and back to shore.
Honestly, I think the chances of coming across a rip current during a race are pretty slim. Most courses are in protected or safe swimming areas. I also imagine there will be plenty of lifeguards and people on paddleboards/kayaks on the water to help in case something does go wrong.
General Ocean Swimming Tips
I think the important thing with any kind of open water swimming is to NOT fight the water. If you find yourself swimming against a current, keep calm, sight for the buoys, and just keep swimming! Don’t worry about time because EVERYONE will be in the same situation. I always focus on checking for the buoys (probably more often than normal) and making sure I’m swimming in the most direct line possible! If you get lucky and are swimming with a current, just enjoy the ride! It’s like bodysurfing!
And remember, when you make the turn toward shore, keep swimming until your fingertips touch the sand. Swimming is faster and takes less energy than trying to run through knee-high or deeper water. Plus you’re less likely to step on any kind of wildlife!
