Tom-
Here are basic things a newcomer to open water swimming needs to do:

• If you become serious about this sport hire a coach.
• Become efficient by swimming in a pool during the off season, primarily working on drills, and stroke form.
• Practice breathing techniques, such as exhaling all air while head is in the water.
• Find a group that does open water swimming in your area.
• Attend open water swim clinics.
• Once you start swimming regularly, with a group, practice sighting by counting strokes, don’t sight too often, 5 to 10 strokes per sight will work.
• During the race season, swim at least two times a week in open water.
• Purchase a triathlon wetsuit, one of the best investments you can make when getting into triathlons.

Tom Manzi is a certified USA Triathlon, Level II Coach, and is presently the Director of Coaching for Joe Friel’s Ultrafit Associates. His coaching emphasis in the last ten years has focused on multisport endurance athletes ranging from novice triathletes and duathletes to elite amateur and professional athletes. Tom’s mission is to inspire and energize his athletes to meet their personal goals and have fun while doing it. Goals for his clients range from improving overall fitness to the attainment of the top five places in both professional and elite categories of national and world championships. Contact Tom via email at tmanzi@trainingbible.com or call 732-892-3501.

These types of open water swims have been a great experience builder. Swimming in such a large group had many of the characteristics of being in a race. While my workout partners are awesome you still might get a foot in your face or get a body crossing your path. I with every swim I am getting better and continue to learn.

Swimming in the ocean presents challenges I did not experience in the river. Getting out past the waves while not a challenge will add to the excitement at the start. The rolling of the ocean made it more difficult to sight but I did feel like it was slightly easier to get into a natural rhythm because of the oceans rolls. It actually was calming experience for me. Fighting the strong current was a whole separate challenge.

Today I also got a little chaffing across my back in the shoulder blade. This will be a easy fix for my short swim in my first race next week but I would certainly rather that happen now then on race day.

All in all it made for a great morning and a great start to the holiday weekend. I only wish I could have joined them for the bike! Next time!

Happy 4th of July!

The day started off in the Manasquan River with about 20 other swimmers to do a morning open water swim. I swam a tough stretch against the current and really did better than I thought. While I know I still have a lot of work to do I am becoming more confidant in the water. The swim back with the current was extremely speedy and it almost felt like cheating. Focus on swimming form and sighting techniques. Total distance approx. 3/4 mile.

Part two of the day was a forty mile bike ride. This was the longest distance I had attempted to date. I was concerned that I would not be able to keep the pace with more experienced riders. For the most part I was the caboose but hung in there for the whole ride. I really had a great sense of accomplishment when completed.

The company was great and I connected with a few new people. I truly have become enamored with the sport and the community and am anxious to complete my first event.

As I learned in my first open water swim direction is a challenge. Staying on course can save you time and energy needed to complete the race. In the pool it is easy to get used to clearly defined lanes and lines to follow at the bottom of clear water. These luxuries do not exist in the open water so sighting becomes very important. We drilled on how to count out a buoy sighting while swimming. This was a great tip and really helped me stay on course because it is easy to become disoriented which I am sure will be exaggerated in a race environment.

The second drill we did was a race start and exit. Tom explained several types of race starts on how to position yourself for a good start and set some expectations. While we were only 15 people when we crowded together and ran into the water you can get a good feel for the potential problems. In the first drill I ran into the water and dived but my goggles were not tight enough so I had an annoying amount of water inside them which was disruptive. The tight swimming and mass of people in the water can be intimidating but now I feel I am more prepared.

This was really helpful and I learned so much. I am more enthused now than ever before. Thank you Tom!

This was the first time in my swimming training that I was out of the pool. As would be expected the experience swimming in the open water is totally different than swimming in a pool. The pool is clear with well marked lanes and a painted line on the pool floor to follow.

The river was dark and cold with no clear markers. There was also a slight tide to contend with. As I started out on my swim I found it extremely difficult to stay on course. I was consistently wider to the left or right of my markers.

All in all this was a great learning experience. I know my swimming has improved greatly over the last few months. I have been putting my extra training day to my swimming and it has been paying off. I will have the opportunity to do a few more open water swimming clinic before my first race and I am going to take advantage of them. Focus on open water navigation.