I may have to rely entirely on this thread. My internet connection seems to be pretty slow tonight...

I am.
have you noticed the one without one leg?

Fred.

I'm here hoping to pick up some swim tips from the best 10K open water swimmers in the world.

About four minutes into the swim now and, as we've seen so far in Beijing, some very warm water temperatures and a beautiful venue for the 10K open water swim.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

AS an age group triathlete the first take-away I have is simply how fast the women are moving... I mean, Herbert, to me this looks like a brisk walking pace...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

[the first take-away I have is simply how fast the women are moving]
I agree with you.
& some of those closeups are absolutely fabulous!

Fred.

Larisa Ilchenko is our favorite I am told, as she has not lost a 10K open water swim in 4 years.

Ilchenkpo currents leads, a bold tactic this early in the swim. Being the marked swimmer, one would suppose a more conservative opening from her.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

NBC's on line commentary mentioning that the whistles we hear are actually those of referees who signal "unsportsmanlike conduct". I presume that to mean too much contact between swimmers.

That's an interesting contrast from what we're used to here on ST as, for us triathlon types, it's basically a free-for-all out there.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Any overlap in competitors at all with any other swimming event?

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Don't hold back

We're getting a fine perspective on speed when we see the follow/officials boat there in the background.

The strokes: Very longeline and drawn out- you notice the elegant glide, so different from the seemingly mad flailing we see in the water cube from Phelps, et al.

And look at the kick there... very little movement, almost just a stabilizing affect.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

So, how long will this event take?

They sure have great video!!

Dave

---

Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

The water is actually clear enough that you get a good look at their catch and pull from the boom cam.

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Larry Lahodny
Owner, Gizmo Socks
Henderson, NV

That's a good question hh2ofun. I'm actually not sure. 10 kilometers in the water is indeed a marathon- it is a long, long way...

Two drafting lines forming there and we get the feeling we're watching the leaders at the Ford Ironman Triathlon World Championships.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

 

A much more symmetrical stroke as well...

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Don't hold back

Indeed. We stand to pick up a few pointers here....


This venue- as with all of them in Beijing- is just stunning. Can you imagine an open water swim workout here?

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

About 2:02 for the women, about 10 minutes less for the men.

Notice that most of the 25 starters wear swim skins.

Jesus there are people in the background riding bikes with them!

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Don't hold back

I wonder if there is a big difference in how warm the swimmers feel, Herbert, in the swim skins than in a traditional swimsuit....

Frankly, with all the hoopla surrounding the LZR suits and Blue Seventy suits, I am surprized they aren't all wearing them...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

The lead swimmer from GBR was swimming the 200m and 400m but did not make the finals.

Fun stuff. Drafting in swimming helps save 20% of your energy? I don't buy it ...

20% of your energy... Perhaps at these speeds, but I know at my own swimming speed, which is about like a jellyfish, it is almost nothing.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

A couple have been mentioned in the commentary so far (Keri-Anne Payne of the UK who did 200 and 400 IM, Cassandra Patten of the UK who did the 800 free).

First feed station coming up... that should be interesting to see.

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Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV

The feeding station pass should be interesting!

Yes, this is a fun race. I beleive I'll forgo my evening run and grab some fig bars and Perrier and just sit here and play commentator... It's good practice for race announcing.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

It's been fun to watch the elaborate technology the networks are using to cover the Games. We just got a glimpse of a gimble-mounted Westcam on the back of a truck there.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Here's something we don't deal with as triathltes- the swimmers are headed toward what amounts to an aquatic "aid station" where they will be handed-up drinks.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

How many started (I missed the begining)? I see one person trailing the pack and am wondering if there are more behind or if there's a chase pack.

Wow you're right Tom. They aren't kicking at all. Ziltch.

Edit: It almost looks like some of them kick just a little bit here and there, yet some of them have no kick at all.

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Don't hold back

we've got 25 swimmers now.

Lymperia of Greece in there, and you have to wonder, does she train between those idyllic Greek isles we see i the travel brochures...? A Greek mermaid perhaps.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I think I read a note that only one person was off the back so far, so I think that is it.

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Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV

Perhaps the most sensational swimmer is Du Toit, the amputee, who is more than holding her own about ten swimmers back.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That's it. I'm sighting like crazy in the 1 mile lake swim race on Sunday.

Are you getting a commentary from the TV? All I hear is splash, splash, splash online. ;)

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Don't hold back

The Russian, Ilchenko, NBC reports ourr favorite...

Intersting how the Russian women often dominate the ultra-distance disciplines, even in running the women's 50 mile and 100K record holder has been a Russian.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That's a good question hh2ofun. I'm actually not sure. 10 kilometers in the water is indeed a marathon- it is a long, long way...

I'm guessing about 2 hours, or 3.1 miles per hour swim rate!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

The close ups are amazing. I know this is the Olympics and NBC.... but I hope the WTC is watching.

Good overhead of Natalie Du Toit... One would not notice she is missing her left leg. Hmmmm. Still a tightly packed bunch. Now, I have seen finishes in a 10K swim befoe on television and they were a bit of a mad dash. I wonder if we'll see that sort of drama here...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That feedzone thing was incredible.

Now I know the followers are benefitting form the draft... but another thing we ned to think of here is the necessity to sight. The followers do not have to site the bouys and leave that work to the leaders.

Interesting to see them hit the aid stations where some swimmers flip onto their backs for a quick backstroke while they take in fluids.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Oh my, that aid station was epic. Grabbing a bottle on a bike is nothing compared to that.

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Don't hold back

How far are they into the race? I've got the minimalist online coverage.

Seems as though our leader has decided to apply some pressure to whittle the pack down a bit.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I was thinking this morning, what technology they are using, since it is FIRST class.

Dave

---

Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Turn #5 of 16: 32 minutes


TIP: I just noticed this. If you are watching online mouse over the video to see the navigation bar and click the "commentary" button! You can see more details.

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Don't hold back

I'm getting tired just watching!

This would be a great thing to watch while using a Vasa/Halo dry land training setup. Kinda like watching the TdF while on the trainer.

Given that no one seems to have much of a kick going anyway, I'm assuming Du Toit doesn't really have a handicap in the water.

32 minutes about 2.6 km

That's a good question alibabwa, and I am not sure how far into the race they actually are. I am seeing clock time of about 34:00. Herbert mentions something over an hour here... so perhaps we are nearing the half way mark..

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Man, I was way past my bedtime last night. Not tonight. Have fun watching.

Dave

---

Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

Boom Nutrition code 19F4Y3 $5 off 24 pack box | Bionic Runner | PowerCranks | Velotron | Spruzzamist

Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

A very disticnt seperation there... about five swimmers seem to pulling clear.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

About 2 hours

Nope. It is all back together again... If there was a move there somewhere, it was shorted lived and for naught.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

They just need a wiper for the camera lens (windshield-type wiper like some of the weather cams have)!

Very cool to have the camera angle from the surface of the water.

 6.2 miles in an hour? :-)

About 2:02 total for 10k / 6.2 miles

NBC has nothing to do with the coverage. It's BOB - Beijing Olympic Broadcasting which feeds all the TV stations worldwide. See here for more info - http://en.beijing2008.cn/...olumn211716653.shtml

Indeed though, the coverage is absolutely amazing!

In the bottom right corner of that online screen there is a commentary button. It is written commentary, but sometimes better than nothing.

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Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV

They just said Larisa swims 120,000 meters per week during her peak training periods!!!

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Don't hold back

I just noticed... I'm counting here.. the lead swimmer is sighting about every five to seven strokes.

The water seems so clear, I wonder if the athletes can see the bottm and use that for navigation at the shallower end of the course. This would not be unlike riding the cable at Lake Placid.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Eh gad, that is 74 miles per week of swimming!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I read a commentary about how the referees in the boats blow a whistle if there is too much unsportsman-like conduct. Does anyone know if there are any penalties or anything as a result of those, or if it is just a "we're watching you" kind of thing?

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Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV

These camera views are really amazing and make this very interesting... I agree with earlier post that other race coverage folks should take note!

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------------------------------------------------
#cancersucks - In memory of my brother, helping his kids

That's what BOB stands for! Thank you, I was wondering about that.

Gels in their suits.

Have they gone through a feed zone yet?

Commentators on NBC telling us that the Russian, Ilchenko, is using energy gels stored in her swim ensemble.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

They have indeed.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

One feed zone so far.

The coaches have poles with drink bottles on them. They carry the gels in case they miss the feed zones.

Still.... that remarkable speed. And, that lack of kicking. This is so different from the pool.

The swimmers... going along there at a very casual cycling pace as we can see by the Chinamen on their bikes by the side of the reservoir.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I feel for the poor woman swimming off the back, reminds me of many of my races. Except for the small fact that she's likely swimming 3x's as fast as I'll ever go!

Does that mean that the 2 Brits are what Andy Potts is to an Ironman.

Shorter course athletes crashing the party?

Great view fro above there.. I wonder how they got that camera angle? A crane of some sort?

WE see how wonderfully clear these Chinese waters are. The swimmers can most certainly see the bottom for navigational purposes.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Those cyclists are some of the coaches of the athletes. They ride there and can keep tabs on the athletes and get splits and things for them - at least that's what they were doing in the rowing events.

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Miles of Life --- Powered by MarkyV

Did you see that overhead? It looks like there is a drop off they are swimming right next to... They certainly must be sighting on it.

(oh they just said it on the commentary)

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Don't hold back

The beautiful body rotation.... fro the hips. I am reminded of Doug Stern here, and I would imagine he would so love to see this...

We would do an open water swim in Curacao with Doug over 2 miles in the wild sea. It was quite a spectacle. This reminds of that swi in Curacao and of Doug...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

They were just focusing on one of the swimmers who seemed to have an awful lot of head movement out of the water and side to side. Wonder what that was about?...

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------------------------------------------------
#cancersucks - In memory of my brother, helping his kids

I have actually never seen a world class open water race but from what I have read, they often end in a field sprint like a bike race. The pace goes way up over the last 1000 meters and the margin of victory is in the 10ths of a second.

The proximity of the swimmers... You notice the second swimmer there closest to us... She is literally reaching betwee the ankles of thw swimmer in front of her.

And around another one of those beautiful swim bouys there.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I wonder how the strategy plays out. Must be like other distance events, in which case are the strongest racers a few places back? Or is it more like the Tour where everyone is expected to take their turn in the lead?

NBC.com reporting 23 countries represented in the swim with only 2 countires, Brazil and the U.K., having two swimmers in the water at Beijing.

Brazil and U.K., those seem like naturals for open water swimming... The U.K. with its adventurous tradition of channel swimmers and of Brazil, with its passionate love of the ocean.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Well, Alibabwa, NBC's commentators are prognosticating about a sprint finish here and wondering if the Russian, Ilchenko, who apparently is nursing a sore shoulder, will be able to fair well should it come down to a sprint.

We're at 51:00.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Two draft lines once again and the whole thing seems very orderly...

One has to imagine they simply will not swim to the line this way. There has got to be a scrum of some kind near the end...

Now, I beleive, the swimmers must swim to a platform and touch for the finish, not unlike a pool event.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

And into what may be the final aid station here....

The leaders simply going straight on through....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Sounds a lot like a bike race then - stay with the pack, conserve as much energy as you can then go like stink at the end.

thanks for the commentary, CBC online doesn't have that option so the insight helps.

So we're just over an hour into the race and based on a 2hr finish, they've already swam about 5K. Amazing. At this point, I'd be at maybe 2.5K. Hahaha. I suck.

A little better job of body marking than we are used to in triathlons... you can actually read the numbers on the athlete's bodies.

The two brits, Paine and Patton, up there in the lead with Ilchenko bidding her time.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I think there are touch pads suspended just over the water they have to hit.

I don't understand the two Brits up front pulling all the way. I'd want to rotate out and make some of the others do some work.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I seem to recall that STP.

The water looks so nice... I wish I could go for a swim now!

These games have been so inspiring... Especially the aquatic sports first with Phelps, then with the beautiful setting for the Women's and Men's triathlon at the Ming Tomb Reservoir, and now with this unique event, the 10K oepn water swim.

Such a treat!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I just thought the same parkito.... They seem to be doing the Russian quite a service.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

The Russian, Ilchenko, tipped as favorite, sits 2nd row, right hand side... Generous draft from the Bristish lasses.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

The finish should be very tight with maybe a little separation between a few but 5 or more spots could be within seconds of each other.

I that second row there, one swimmer lodged in the middle... and another aid station.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

My hunch is they are not going all that hard right now so the benefit of not having someones feet in your face beats out the benefit of drafting. I find it a bit tiring to have to constantly be making adjustments to miss someones legs. They still have an hour to go so there is plenty of time for someone else to pull.

I think this part of the race is like the middle of a stage where you see the riders up on the hoods laughing and chatting . . .

I don't get it either. That's why I don't buy the 20% energy saving, according to the commentary. More like a couple digits.

There is a benefit to swimming in clear water... without feet in your face I suppose, especially for these powerful swimmers.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

If the pace increases they will certainly finish under 2 hours.

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Don't hold back

Well, we always hear the commnetators in cycling say it is a 30% advantage on a bike, I've always thought more like 15%....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Here is a screen shot of the feed zone.

That is very cool. I've also been looking at these little boats... skiffs, or platform boats. Those would be ideal for marshalling a triathlon swim.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I thnk that it is easier mentally to follow the lead of other fast swimmers. Let them create the pace. # 8 looks like she is struggling to me.

I definitely buy into the 7% value I've seen posted.

At IMLP last month, I got behind a guy for most of the second lap and I cruised a 31 min split. At one point iwas in the slot position of a diamond formation. On the toes of the big guy in front of me, a guy at my right whose waist was even with my hand entry and a guy to my left in the same position. It was a bit claustrophobic, but I felt like I was hardly moving any water at all.

This here's the Rubber Duck. 10-4 y'all.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

The crowd chanting the adoration in Chinese.... What we've learned is the equivalent of "Go... GO!"

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Payne and Patton for Great Britain... the new British Fleet!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

But Ilchenko there... like the Russian submarine in a Tom Clancy novel... lurking....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Actually I think it is Go Faster - Add oil, get hotter = Go faster!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

But Ilchenko there... like the Russian submarine in a Tom Clancy novel... lurking....

Yeaah, but the reactor blew in the end!

:-)

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

The Brazilians there... about eight or nine swimmers back. Such a legacy for the Brazilian beach-athletes. Here in Michigan we have our own Brazilian, the dashing Adriano Rosa, he has done more triathlons than anyone in the state at over 300!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Sub from a Clancy Novel = good one.

Getting faster - more splash/spray.

David K

Good point by the commentator. The distance from the front of the pack to the back is 25m. That is about 12 -15 seconds of swimming time. That may be like being 50 riders back in a peleton.

While it may be advantagous to draft if you are willing to come out of the water 12 seconds behind someone, if you want to win, that is an almost impossible distance to make up. So, while you want to draft, you can not be very far off the front to have a shot to win. That is probably why the brits are willing to lead.

As we get into about 1:11 or 1:12 into the race this is where most of us would be finishing our Ironman length swims...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Good point. If the back markers have design on a medal they will really have to move up solidly in the closing minutes...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Except that we'd have swum 3.8km while these women are at what, 6 km?

Things have drawn out.... The British women are just so commanding here. I wonder if there is a psychologial affect here... That the leaders are stamping their authority on the race.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Exactly.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That distance / time is a good point to think about in triathlons as well. 50 meters (and 50+ people behind) in water is a huge distance, but very little on dry land ... Another reason for any of us to swim as near to the front as we can.

I have to say that the Brazilians are an emotional favorite here. You picture them in Brazil... on the beach and in training. They tend toward the briefest of swim costumes and exude a brand of elan' we don't normally see in endurance sports.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That move was incredible, Larisa just cut across the other swimmer. I wonder what gives you a DQ.

I've heard the whistle blow a few times so far but not there. I'd like to see some examples of what they blow the whistle for...

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Don't hold back

In watching these games I wonder what the take-aways will be for our sport going forward... at our level. This coverage in-and-of itself has to raise the bar for Ironmanlive.com...

The details like the aid stations in the triathlons... with the white gloved volunteers... and these nice swim bouys. Hopefully the entire Olympic experience will inspire both participants and organizers to a higher level... a bit of an "Olympic dividend".

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

There's a glosssary on the NBC web site. It contains a definition of unsportsmanlike conduct with some examples:

http://www.nbcolympics.com/...er+swimming+glossary

It appears that a swimmer can be red-carded and DQed, much like in soccer.

I was just thinking how far 10,000 meters is when I realized my daughter swim that far today and she's upstairs right now wrestling with her sisters and showing no interst in going to bed even though she has practice tomorrow at 8.

Swimmers are sick.

Now conversly for our leaders.... having your feet tickled incessantly by the swimmer behind you. We all know that can be maddening. The British have had a non-stop pedicure for the entire swim...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

The bar has been raised on body marking, too

That was a great shot of proper one arm backstroke feeding technique.

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Don't hold back

I'm going to put my water bottles on the side of the pool now and practice that as I swim. ;)

-Jot

So, why doesn't the one Brit draft off the other, forming a single line and
1) cause havic behind
2) let the one in front sneak off the front and force others to come around?

Watch the ropes!

That's a good question. There is a lot about this sport I don't know...

Being a new Olympic sport we are all learning something here tonight.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

commentary is really funny..."last 2.5k SPRINT for olympic gold"

Lots of shouting in the aid station there...

At the one and ahalf hour mark... What would you say.... Perhaps 40 more minutes of hard swimming? Remarkable.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Great overhead shot of the melee going around the bouy. A few people were swimming on top of each other!

Personally... I think our commentary on ST is better... but that's just me.... ;)

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Top 3 are breaking away? The pack better not let them! The pack is not as orderly as it was.

Group of 3, with maybe a 4th on the back of it, everyone else looks too far back.

-Jot

Probably remarkable, but let'st be honest, it the boring category the 10K OW swim is a serious contender for a medal...

Fred.

Hmmm. We need a good overhead angle here to see the situation....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Yes, no question... group of four off the front having broken the draft....

Now, one thing is for sure... water is 220 times denser than air... that means that draft dissipates much quicker. You lose the feet i front of you... you;ve lost the draft.

This could be an interesting few moments here.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I think the numbers are stick ons

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

The first stroke has been turned in anger.

That doesn't seem to bother the Brits. It would be amazing if they pull it off.

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Don't hold back

Thre does seem to be a selection underway... but more than four swimmers.

We've got one of the Brazilians up there... the lime green and yellow....

Of course, our British Admiralty leading the floatilla.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

That was classic...

They are on the rivet, turning themselves inside out....

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ADW

Time pick your finishers. I'm going with the chick in the silver cap. She looks like she has something in the tank

The Brazilian, Okimoto, I suspect there may be some pearl diving heritage in her background somewhere. She may have a hell of an anerobic sprint! ;-)

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

There's a bit of a battle going on with the three swimmers behind the Brits, someone on the outside fighting to get on the toes.

Our Brits, good chums during the entire affair....

A group of three sandwiching the Brazilian with the Japanese name... Okimoto, and the whistle from the boat for rough swimming.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Lots of whistle blowing and yellow flag waiving going on.

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Don't hold back

I think the Brazilian is taking a pounding. If she can benefit from the draft and ignore the hits she may be in the cat-bird seat.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

why do you get a yellow flag?

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Jorge Martinez
Head Coach - Sports Science
E3 Training Solutions, LLC
@CoachJorgeM

It will be interesting to see when (if) they start kicking. Maybe it is like speed skating and the use of both arms. Who knows.

I wonder if they save their legs only for the final sprint and kick like mad.

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Don't hold back

Okimoto is in the sweet spot.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Would it be too much to ask to be able to figure out how long is left?

Oh, look, there is a big 500 on the side. Meters?

-Jot

"Unsportsmanlike conduct: inappropriate or unprofessional acts committed by swimmers during an open water race that can lead to a warning or disqualification by the referee or that are not in the spirit of the competition. These acts can include obstruction, interference or making intentional contact with another swimmer that can lead to a warning or disqualification by the lead referee, whether made by the swimmer or the swimmer's escort boat or crew." - http://www.nbcolympics.com/...er+swimming+glossary

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Don't hold back

Looks like the game is on and it is about to get interesting

I'm guessing about 18 minutes. About 10 minutes and it will be balls to the wall time.

One of the Brits qualified in some "reasonably" short course events. I think she would have a pretty good kick at the end.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

cool, thanks!

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Jorge Martinez
Head Coach - Sports Science
E3 Training Solutions, LLC
@CoachJorgeM

I don't know enough about this sport - why are my compatriots playing rabbit?

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

We haven't figured that out either.

My best guess is they have handicapped the race and figure they can just power through to the finish.

Or, if they don't lead and hold pace, it might become a lollygag until the sprinters take over in the end.

We're all neophytes here. No one really knows who has what strengths.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

About 15 minutes to go.

Imagine what your arms would be feeling right now.

Ooh, I might not be able to type anymoer!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Break away of six. Will they get very far?

1000 Meters to go at 1:49

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Don't hold back

What, say 11-12 minutes top?

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

It appears almost like the finish in the men's tri yesterday. 5 left for 3 medals

cool - I'm actually enjoying watching an olympic sport that I con't understand and isn't being explained to me. These ladies are amazing - I can't remeber the last time I swam 10k in a week!

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

Seems like some of the swimmers in the back latched back on. People up front throwing out surges, testing the water so to speak?

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Looking at some of the battles going on behind the leaders I'm thinking the strategy of swimming in front might be a good idea as it saves you from getting a pounding.

Definitely a lot more splashing on the hand entry. The second row use to be really quiet. Not no more.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

The brazilian is going...gets blocked!!!

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

The Brazilians are becoming a bit more assertive... two of them now... one on the outside spending some energy as we hit another aid zone.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

NOW it gets interesting! Swimmers trying to make a break from the pack. should be a great finish.

Venezuela. That's my pick!

Looks like the pack is splitting, a second front is opening

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Do the Brits know where they are going? They seem much further left

I wonder how the draft advantage compares to breaking clean water (i.e., no bumping/turbulance etc) in terms of energy savings.

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Don't hold back

I count seven swimmers up front with the British fleet having just broken the draft for moment...

It looks like it is coming together a bit now...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

The Brits maintain their lead and string things out a bit.

This is a movve - is it down to 3?

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

Bad move! They lose ground. The Brits must be really hauling!

GO BRITS!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Probably like any distance race - the lead people took off thinking they can drop everyone.

But I wonder how well the trailing swimmers can figure out who's in front? I think that is one thing that would make this different from distance running and cycling (and obviously the last legs of a tri) - it must be really tough to figure out who's breaking away. I'd guess you'd almost have to follow any break because you may not know if it's someone you can reel in or not.

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_________________________________

Go that way really fast. If something gets in your way, turn.

The Brits are looking strong. GO GO GO!!!

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Don't hold back

Less than 5 minutes!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

It looks like it'll be a four swimmer sprint to the end.

Yep! GO BRITS!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I hope they are timing this to .001!

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Don't hold back

Four swimmers.... Three medals....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Russian!. David K

And the Russian takes it!

Red Storm Rising! The Russian touches first!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

THat was just heartbreaking for the Brits.

Wow that was exciting!

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Don't hold back

Oh, The Russian is as fetching out of the water as she is fast in it!

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I'd love an expert to chime in and tell us what happened there - the Brits got 2 medals so no question the tactics were good but it seemed like they got outsprinted by someone who'd benefitted from their draft from the whole race. Fascinating stuff

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

I think it's totally unfair that she can look that good straight out of the water!

I agree. Now, perhaps, the Russian is so commanding the British knew it was a matter of scraps left for the Empire.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Oh, The Russian is as fetching out of the water as she is fast in it!

Roger that!

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I bet that no one was going to out sprint Larisa. Going to the lead was probably the best way to get a silver and/or a bronze - let alone both!

David K

The Russian girl swam the smartest and therefore won. Really canny & she never screwed up too much & went for it at the right time.

The heartbreak is for the Brazilians.... Fifth and seventh....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

THat was just heartbreaking for the Brits.\\

I hate to say this, they were very strong swimmers and all, but that was the dumbest tatical open water race I've ever seen. They did not deserve to win, any more than someone that pulled an entire road race, and expected to win the final sprint..Side by side the entire race, and on the same team???Wow is all I can say, maybe shoot the coach I guess..

Exciting race however, the Russian deserved the win, for being smart, and fast....

I certainly hope they show us the medal ceremony....

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

I dunno, if the Brits had gone single file and dropped Larissa into third, she would have had to overcome two body lengths. Brits would haven gotten 1st and 3rd. Worth it?

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Yeah, I'd really like to know what the pre-race stradegy was for them.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Am I the only one who noticed the girl from RSA??????????????????

Fred.

Young Chloe Sutton learned a lot today I bet. Tough race for her.

Oh I agree - great race by her and from the commentary it seems she's the acknowledged favorite. Maybe as Tom said the Brits were just shooting for 2,3 and didn't want to play games with the rest of the field and prejudice their chances at silver and bronze

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

It is a really brutal sport that way and you can be sure then men will not be a "polite" tomorrow as the women were today.Usually the finish is a full contact affair with the leaders changing direction all over the place to block the others a bit.There are all kinds of wierd rules as well with some really surprising DQ's from time to time.

Du toit there, the amputee, re-united with here leg... She has quite a commanding prescence.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Some good re-caps going on now.

I do so want to see the Medals presented...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Was that 1:12 per for 100, 100s? Did I calculate that right?

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Don't hold back

I agree,as I mentioned,the men would not have been so "polite" and let the Russian through.


.

The heartbreak is for the Brazilians.... Fifth and seventh....

I don't think they were ever in it. When they swung out on their own they got dropped immediately. They rejoined the pack but a row or two down. Lucky that they managed to hold that to the finish.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I was going to attempt that calculation too... but I'll leave that to you jtaylor1024

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

British silver medal winner barely kicked as she sprinted. I bet she was wiped out. Great sprint from Russian Larisa. David K

Any particular reason why they need to touch the yellow sign @ the end?

Fred.

Still some swimmers coming in for a valiant finish....

They each make history... The first ever Olympic 10K Marathon Swim.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

They have a wrist strap that records their time when they hit it.

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Don't hold back

Believe she's the only athlete to qualify for the olympics and paralympics in the same sport - inspirational

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"Are you sure we're going fast enough?" - Emil Zatopek

1:11.67 per 100m according to my back of the envelope calcs.

;-)

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

It is apparently not sufficient to just swim under it to record the finish. You have to touch the pad.

1:11.4 per 100m

or 1:02.4 per 100 yds

Of course, my best all out 100 yards in a pool w/ flip turns is 1:15.

I suck.

;-p

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I don't mind if Brasil lost to Argentina today on soccer ... but seeing these two brazilian ladies almost getting the first medal for a woman in swiming ( in Brasil ) was really sad ...

I wish the other 240 athletes that we sent could show the same courage...

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Luiz Eng

I'm guessing they probably closed with 1:03s to 1:05s.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I guess that's just how fast you can get when you swim 120,000 meter weeks like Larisa.

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Don't hold back

If they don't touch the finish "sign" then they have not finished.We have had some brutal finishes in Oz where guys have been all over each other in the last couple of meters trying to get to that finish board.

.

Ah, good to know that there is a solution to my woes!

lol

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I'm not sure if there is going to be a medal ceremony here, but in any event, it is always a pleasure watching with you fellows and thanks to Herbert for hosting our get-together.

A pleasant evening to each of you...

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

So, I figure it would be a 45:18 IM swim at 1:11.7 per 100m.

It would seem that some of the top swimmers in IM are pretty good. E.g. guys that go 46-48 minutes. Not many, I know.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Adios, Tomas.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

Good night guys. I has been a pleasure.

So, I figure it would be a 45:18 IM swim at 1:11.7 per 100m.\\

You have to make two assumptions when comparing OW times here. First that it really was a 10k, and 2nd, the Ironman you are talking about is really accurate. I have a feeling that this 10k race is a little on the short side, and who knows what any Ironman swim really is exactly..It's more like a road race, it's all about placing, not time....I would think it was closer to accurate if there were a lot of lead changes, and a sharing of the pace, but since two swimmers swam the entire way out front, no pack advantage there in total time....It was basically an individual TT time for the race....

Some newlywed you are staying up this late.

I guess the honeymoon is over, or is the missus a big swim fan as well?

Goodnight Johnboy.

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

I'd buy that. Although, given this swim venue, you could survey the course pretty accurately, so whatever the distance is, somebody should know it precisely.

Crossing t's and dotting i's, I'd also say that IM is about coming out of the water comfortable, not blown like these gals, so, I would still say for anyone coming out of the water in under 48 minutes in an IM is pretty good. Of course, this ridiculous statement will only hold up until tomorrow, when the guys come out in under 1 hr 50 minutes. ;-)

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Behold the turtle! He makes progess only when he sticks his neck out. (James Bryant Conant)
GET OFF THE F*%KING WALL!!!!!!! (Doug Stern)
Brevity is the soul of wit. (William Shakespeare)

So much nicer to watch the finish after a good nights sleep. Maybe I will go for a 1. 5 hour swim this morning around the lake and pretend
I can swim a 1:02 hundreds. In my dreams

Dave

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Dave Campbell | Facebook | @DaveECampbell | h2ofun@h2ofun.net

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Lions don't lose sleep worrying about the sheep

Well Fina has updated their website and now the handbook is no longer there (BRILLIANT!) but the 2005 handbook which is in force today states that slipstreaming behind another swimmer is not allowed. Here's how it was explained by thew folks who put on the USA Swimming open water races in Fort Myers.

Why all the drafting?

The way it is called is that drafting behind another swimmer is not allowed but pack swimming *is* allowed.

What separates pack swimming from slipstreaming? Whatever the judges decide the difference is on that day.
Yes, it is ridiculous.

But in this case the result is that two ladies swimming side by side at the front of the race can't go single file, that would be slipstreaming. But the lady behind is free to sit behind them all day as she is considered to be swimming in a three person pack.

I suppose if you are the Brits thinking tactically the thing to do is to split apart by several meters, then the Russian lady won't be able to sit behind either on as she would then be slipstreaming.