jgalswims

I swam my 2.2k and was delighted with my results. I went a 29:05 and ended up finishing 24th, after my 16:40 handicap! I really went for it yesterday, and it felt good to race at a faster speed than the long distance swims. I am, after all, a native pool swimmer, so swimming around the harbour was akin to the pool at parts, with the very calm water. It is choppy around the top of the harbour, when you're exposed to the sea on your way to the lighthouse on the wall. But it's nothing that any sea swimmer can't handle...unless the Stenaline ferry is coming across!


a pic of the harbour race route.

I ended up with fastest time. Next year, if I do it after the channel, I hope to go under 29 minutes. We'll see though! (It's always good to set goals, no matter how silly!)

I have 2-3 races this week, as a lot of races have been canceled due to bad weather, so we'll see how I get on in those.

I'm off to the sea now. It's windy and overcast, so I'll stay at seapoint.

Until next time,

jgal

Well, I thought I was finished with the long swims for the year. And then Ned Dennison emailed out an offer to do a 12.5k in Cork this October...from Blackrock to Cobh. I did the swim last year, and it was up until Bofin the longest swim I had completed. So I'm signed up and ready for one more challenge before the season ends. It will be a good race for me, as I will be recovered from my tonsil surgery in early September and won't have to worry about my tonsils flaring up ever again! So I am definitely looking forward to that.

I've booked my SwimTrek for next March in Malta. It is a long-distance training trip and will be a really good booster for the heavy sea training I'm going to be doing next year. (and this year, but not as intense!) I've had a few people tell me that I shouldn't do the trip, that I don't need the training. While I can see their point of view, I am all about having fun whilst training, and what better a way to train than to go to MALTA and swim amongst like-minded channel aspirants! So I said thanks for the advice, but I'm going anyway. The camp offers an optional 6-hour swimming session, which is a prerequisite for crossing the channel, so it will be very interesting! I am mainly going because I know it will be safe. I may be a bit over-cautious, but with the unpredictable sea and Irish weather, I just feel safer knowing that there are ribs and kayakers watching out for me above the surface. So all in all, it's going to be a great time. My fellow channel-aspirant Lisa Cummins from Cork is possibly going with me, so yahoo! Can't wait!

I have the Dun Laoghaire Harbour race tomorrow...it's a 2.2k swim and is one of the 2 'big swims' in Dublin...that and the Liffey, which is on 6 September. I did a little dip in the 40-foot today to get myself ready for tomorrow, and everything feels right so it should be fun. What will not be fun is my piss-take handicap...16:40. So there is a 100% chance that I will not finish in the top-50. But that is fine, I can handle that. I'll be pulling out the old Fastskin for the race...it's shocking to think that my racing suits are now out-dated! I'm getting old, folks! :)

Until next time,

jgal

what a great swim. we didn't get to swim from ireland to the island, as there were force 8 winds...so instead we went to inishbofin island and mapped out a 2-mile course to complete 4 times. On lap 1 I thought I was going to die. I was so cold. I was swimming alongside Ned Dennison, an American who lives in Cork. I didn't know it, but I was swimming too slow. My stroke-rate was too low to keep myself warm. Ned told me to increase my stroke-rate. In turn, I sped up and was able to cope better. The first 2 laps were definitely harder than laps 3 and 4. By the end I was feeling powerful and strong. I think I could have gone another 4 miles without issue.

The feeds were great. I tried this energy mix from Powerbar (no electrolytes). It was verrrrry salty and sugary, but it worked. I was not ever sea sick or queasy. I also tried Jelly Belly's sport jelly beans. They were amazing! I would highly recommend them. It was good to do a long swim with feeds.

8 miles was the longest I have swam to-date, and I am very pleased with my results. It feels SO good to complete such a long swim. It also feels good to be proud of yourself. I am still ecstatic about it! I didn't know if I could do the swim, but to finish so strong and with so much energy to spare...amazing! I am glad that I was able to pull everything together to finish the swim.

Special thanks to my kayaker, Ronan. He was great. I also realised during the swim that I like to be watched...most every time I breathed Ronan was looking at me. It gave me confidence and comfort for some reason, so my English Channel crew better be ready to stare at me swimming for a few long hours :).

Additional thanks to Martin, who organised the swim. Martin was brilliant. He stood out in the rain and cold to make sure we were all looked after when we came in for feeds. I had it in my head that I was only doing 6 miles, but he kept saying 'you're doing 8!'...i'm glad I ended up doing the whole thing...big confidence booster.

It was a great weekend. We stayed out on the island that night and 'roughed it' in a surprisingly well-kept hostel. I slept very well after dinner. :) I made some more open water swimmer friends, which is always great.

I can't wait for next year when I do all my crazy 6-8 hour swims on the weekend. SOOOOOO ready!!!

I'll have pictures up soon.

Recovering,

jgal

Hello to all,

Well, it's been a good week of contemplation and I am happy to report that my training is back up to par. I had a great swim today, actually, as I am preparing for swimming an 8-miler in Cleggan, Co. Galway on Saturday. Basically, I think I was in a funk over the last few weeks because I had to finish my MA thesis...not to get too personal but it was taking a lot out of me stress-wise. Luckily, next summer I'll simply be researching for my PhD...so no deadlines...at least for now!

Anyway, my tonsils have been flaring up lately, which is the main reason why I did not swim the 17k. For those who do not know, I am getting them removed September 8th...be crossing your fingers that everything goes okay with recovery and such. I should only be out of the water for a week or so...and that doesn't really bother me at all because I need a break before I get into my long-distance training. I'm still uncertain about my 'training plan'...I have a lot of options for training, but don't know what I'll end up doing as of now. I'm fine with that. Next April I will be going on a SwimTrek to Malta, so that will definitely get me geared up for the summer season.

For now, I'm just focusing on finishing the season strong. I did a race last Monday (after taking almost a week off of training) and I actually won! It was a handicapped swim, with me going off 8:30 behind the Go-group...(the staggered start makes it fairer for the chance of winning, etc.) Anyway, I won the race last year as well. It is a 2k swim along the Dublin coast-line...absolutely GORGEOUS. People were complaining of the cold, but I didn't feel it at all. (thanks, irish sea training!) It's amazing how the body can adapt...last year I was soooooo cold after that race. This year I didn't even shiver.

Anyway, my swim this weekend will be hard, so long as the weather cooperates. As of now we are swimming from Cleggan to Inishbofin island, an 8-mile swim. According to veteran open sea swimmer Ned Denison, the hardest part is that when you are 3 miles off-shore, you cannot see land anywhere. Apparently that does a lot to one's emotions...I wouldn't know, as I have not ever swam a race like that. So I'm looking forward to it. I think I'll mostly have my face in the Atlantic, so hopefully I won't be distracted by the lack of land. :) I'll let you know how it goes.

For now,

jgal