So I’ve got an open water swim tri coming up, scoped out the swim area and you need to get a significant distance from shore before you get into water deep enough to swim (i.e., around 150-200 meters of a 2000m swim!). It’s a water start, so no problem at the beginning, but then finishes on the beach. So, I’m looking for recommendations on how best to get through this section without killing myself before the bike. Dolphin kicks? Running? Other?
Thanks!
Chris
What I’ve always heard and used was to keep swimming until your hands are hitting sand and run from there.
Hope the bottom is sandy or that would be a muddy murcky mess.
Swim till your hands hit the bottom, stand up and run/jog/make your way to T1
Good luck
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Porpoise the whole time. Saves loooooottttttts of time over swimming, and energy as well.
My son is a lifeguard that’s what they train them to do.
Thats what I do as well (lifeguard). Practice it for a short bit, but it really is pretty easy.
What is porpoise?
Porpoising is basically when you repeatedly dive into the water from your feet. It works best in waist deep water, but as deep as stomach, but it loses its’ usefulness somewhere around there. What you do is perform a shallow dive from the ground completing the motion until you are back on your feet. If you happen to be in surf, it can help to grab the sand and use it to pull you through the onrushing water. Looking back, my explanation pretty much sucks, but it’s the best I can do with my limited intelligence.
Thanks, that makes perfect sense. I’d imagine that would signficantly speed things up going through a big surf zone.
Thanks, that makes perfect sense. I’d imagine that would signficantly speed things up going through a big surf zone.
From looking at your name, a fun workout might be heading to Ocean Beach and trying to porpoise through the shorebreak a couple times. It will make any entry you do feel like nothing after that experience.
Just be careful that you are in deep enough water before you porpoise. Down here we have two sandbars along the beach. You can be in waist deep water and go in or out five more feet and it is only shin deep. You don’t want to launch your head into the sand.
Spent enough time trying to get a surfboard through that white water at Ocean Beach. Get’s pretty crazy out there, to say the least. Swimming back in can be tough as well. Would be a great workout though, I’m sure. Maybe if I can recruit a couple buddies.
And arms always out front to protect your head/spine/neck when you do dolphin dives. They’ll absorb impact if it’s shallower than you expected, and keep you from a spinal injury.