spring training and the trial swim

Getting gear on to swim in Lake Huron, April 8th.

Written by Jillian Best - April 12th, 2021

Well, its warm outside. Unusually warm for April.  So much so, that Zach and I have already spent a few days on the beach.  And like, hung out in our bathing suits.  I am so grateful that my husband is willing to come to the beach with me all day.  

This spring and summer I will be spending most of my time in the water, not on the beach. Zach will maybe watch me for a few strokes…then continue on reading or whatever he will do…trusting that I’ll be ok out there.  I am also very lucky to have some great swimming buddies who will join me at the lake on my training swims.  (Crissy, I’m looking at you!) 

One of the challenges, the biggest one right now, is that all city pools are closed.  So any long swims I do this month will be in someones backyard pool with a tether, or swimming into a strong jet that pushes me backwards (Endless pools).  Both methods are like treadmill swimming…not ideal but better than nothing.  

“The lake is always open”. Yes, I know.  It may be warm enough for a few, but it’s still freakin cold.  By next month (approximately) I’ll be able to just get in the lake and swim…and once that happens, I’ll do increasingly longer swims each weekend until the end of June, when I have my trial swim.  

The trial swim is on my mind a lot.  It’s the first “event” of the season for me.  This swim is mandatory  prior to swimming Lake Ontario, to ensure I can at least swim a third of the distance in a safe and reasonable amount of time.  I’d actually like to aim for 20-26km trial swim if possible.  I believe this will give me a better idea how I’ll feel at the halfway point of swimming Lake Ontario.

Right now we are aiming for a trial swim across Lake Erie, starting on the US shore of Lake Erie and back to Canada, somewhere near Crystal Beach.  

This swim will give the whole crew a chance to “practice” the 52km crossing.  I want the trial to simulate the swim in August as best we can.  The crew consists of a doctor, my swim master, pacers, dietician, my coach, Zach and of course the pilot (navigating the way across the lake).

There is so much to consider…diet (or “feedings” as they are called in marathon swimming), pacing strategy, how I handle challenging conditions that are out of my control, such as currents, waves, water temperature, weather etc…and in general, the flow of the 3 support boats that will carry the crew.

I know once I am back spending some cold hours swimming in the lake, I’ll be reminded of why I decided to train for this, and why I enjoy swimming so much in nature.  

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