Greetings, I’m a first-timer to the 70.3 distance, preparing to do the Victoria, BC 70.3 in 2 weeks and concerned about the lake (or lake/air combo) temperature because it has been so much colder than usual. I inquired to the Ironman organizers and they say there will be an update about the swim in the next week, but I’m wondering if anyone has been down at Elk Lake recently and has any sense of the temp now. I swam there only 25 minutes about 2 weeks ago, on a cold (10 degree) windy day, and the water temp was definitely above 10 but I can’t guess how much warmer. (I didn’t think to bring a thermometer and I live several hours away so not likely to get there again before the race.)
I am a small female and I get hypothermic easily, even with a wetsuit and post-swim attention to nutrition, like warm drinks and food. Any tips on how to acclimate to this swim and not be cold on the bike especially if it continues to be rainy and cool? I was thinking of trying a series of brief ocean dips (without wetsuit) having read that even 5-6 immersions of 3 minutes can halve the shock response.
Other ideas/tips/experience with Elk Lake?
(P.S. was planning to practice swim at Westwood Lake in Nanaimo today but just as I got there, a triathlon running at that moment had cancelled the swim due to water temp being only 10, plus some other formula that incorporated the cold air temp as well. I looked at guidelines provided by Ironman and it looks like the full swim at Elk Lake or any 70.3 could be cancelled if water temp doesn’t reach 14 degrees.)
Hello! I’m also doing Victoria 70.3. Unfortunately, I can’t answer your question as I’m hailing from California.
I can say that the more you dip into chilly waters, the more you’ll acclimate to it. You probably don’t have time to become fully acclimated to 10-11 degree, but you can prepare yourself for the shock of it.
My swim waters in California are around currently around 10-11c so I completely understand the worry about the cold. I’m not thin, so I can’t relate to getting chilled to the bone. The ladies I swim with who are thin can usually do fine for around 30 minutes comfortably, 45 minutes and they start wanting to bail. At 60 minutes the thin ladies are quite chilled. Try to finish the swim quickly! Haha. Great advice, eh?
I’ll be there. Preparing for a cold one for sure but for me it’s better than the alternative which is a non-wetsuit swim. If you’re worried about the cold you can pick up a neoprene swim cap and booties or even a thermal wetsuit.
My rule of thumb is lakes tend to trend the average temperature for the nighttime eg 6pm to 6am.
A little to the north, Sproat Lake is currently at 51 DegF
A favorable guess in two weeks Elk would probably be closing in on 60 DegF
After a good warm up run 10-15 mins and some core work (planks) I find low water temp is more bearable.
Thank you for the Sprout Lake temp. 60 would be amazing but my guess is we won’t get there, given that was the race description lake temp estimate, on the Ironman registration page, written before this year’s abnormal weather. But anything above 57 (14C) will be worth celebrating. Thanks! Also: yes to pre-swim warmup!
Can’t comment on current lake temp, but I’ll be racing with you in a few weeks and have raced Victoria 70.3 before. Hands down the most enjoyable swim I have had in a 70.3/Full race. Calm, clean, and refreshing water. The temp leading into race week do seem a bit cooler than last time I raced there in '19 though.
The 6am rolling swim start will not help the cold temp situation either.
The long term weather forecast is still not warming up much (plus 70% chance of rain on race day). Fingers crossed that will improve. The race could be changed to a long course duathlon just like the Westwood lake Tri.
Monitoring this thread since I’m definitely not looking forward to cold waters, can’t really train OWS in Montreal (you have to go quite far from the city to find a suitable lake, the river is too risky on your own and probably too cold right now…). As usual with temperatures it’s a very personal thing, I know I’m a wimp when it comes to cold water, I get very cold feet easily on the bike (but I run year long in -15C degrees without any issues…), so I’m trying to be as prepared as possible, ordered a neoprene cap that I will 99% wear, and neoprene booties just in case. I’ll add ear plugs, and maybe heated pads just in case. It will be my first HIM, just trying to be prepared for the worse to enjoy as best as possible on the day!
As for the weather, I currently see a 30% chance of rain, not so bad, probably, maybe, hopefully https://www.meteomedia.com/ca/tendance-meteo-14-jours/colombie-britannique/victoria?from7day=1
The 6am rolling swim start will not help the cold temp situation either.
The long term weather forecast is still not warming up much (plus 70% chance of rain on race day). Fingers crossed that will improve. The race could be changed to a long course duathlon just like the Westwood lake Tri.
What are the chances the swim is cancelled? What are the chances the start is pushed back? Has this race done anything similar in the past? Highs in the 50s, lows in the 40s with overcast skies does not point to anything warming up. Ugh.
The 6am rolling swim start will not help the cold temp situation either.
The long term weather forecast is still not warming up much (plus 70% chance of rain on race day). Fingers crossed that will improve. The race could be changed to a long course duathlon just like the Westwood lake Tri.
What are the chances the swim is cancelled? What are the chances the start is pushed back? Has this race done anything similar in the past? Highs in the 50s, lows in the 40s with overcast skies does not point to anything warming up. Ugh.
Yes- I checked the 14 day forecast and unfortunately the temps are flat-lined at current levels. The only thing that will help water temps is the sun-heating factor due to longer daylight exposure. But that’s worth maybe a degree or two. If you get a 2-3 back-back days of solid sun and warm temps this can allow the top 12" to heat up.
The 6am rolling swim start will not help the cold temp situation either.
The long term weather forecast is still not warming up much (plus 70% chance of rain on race day). Fingers crossed that will improve. The race could be changed to a long course duathlon just like the Westwood lake Tri.
Why would the swim be canceled? No lightening, the lake couldn’t be any more calm and picturesque…
This is a triathlon, it is not supposed to be “easy”, to each their own, but any water temp over 58F is absolutely doable.
For the current water temperature. There was a group that swam in Elk lake this past weekend who measured it at 15 degrees.
There isn’t any warmer weather predicted over the next couple of weeks so I don’t think it will get much warmer than that!
My best advice from having raced in water that was around that temperature in the past is to make sure you get in for a good warm up if you can. Cold water can be a shock to the system and in particular when you immerse your head in it. It’s a good idea to already be adjusted to it prior to swim start if you can. If you can’t get in for a warmup swim, splash water on your face and neck.
Thank you for that specific about 15 degrees being measured (we hope!) at Elk Lake. That’s great news!
To one other who have commented, the issue isn’t individuals’ hardiness but to race rules. At certain temps, the swim will be shortened or cancelled. 14 degrees seems to be the magic number but cool air temps also get factored in, requiring a much warmer morning than we are likely to have. Ironman was kind enough to send me the 2018 rules. I can’t seem to paste the chart here, but in any case, they say they are updating us via Facebook at the end of the week, so I guess it’s best to await their next notice. For now, I am dunking in cold water up here, mid-island, and trying to do any short, cold swims that I can!
The 6am rolling swim start will not help the cold temp situation either.
The long term weather forecast is still not warming up much (plus 70% chance of rain on race day). Fingers crossed that will improve. The race could be changed to a long course duathlon just like the Westwood lake Tri.
Why would the swim be canceled? No lightening, the lake couldn’t be any more calm and picturesque…
This is a triathlon, it is not supposed to be “easy”, to each their own, but any water temp over 58F is absolutely doable.
Ease up, your toughness is too much for the rest of us. If the water temp and air temp are too low they will cancel the swim. Nobody is saying it’s not doable. I would like to start getting ready for perhaps traveling to a race to do a run-bike-run or a time trial bike start without the swim. It helps to anticipate how the weather will affect the race. At least I think it does, maybe not very tough.
I had a short swim in Elk Lake this morning. It’s cold, but doable (and I’m a delicate flower). The temperature in the top centimetre next to Hamsterly Beach was 14.1C.
I had a short swim in Elk Lake this morning. It’s cold, but doable (and I’m a delicate flower). The temperature in the top centimetre next to Hamsterly Beach was 14.1C.
Outstanding! I swam today in California and it was 13°C. I’ll take anything warmer than that!
So, when it says “rain” does that mean water falls from the sky during the day and it is miserable? Or does it just mean things got wet for a quick minute and it is fine?
I had a short swim in Elk Lake this morning. It’s cold, but doable (and I’m a delicate flower). The temperature in the top centimetre next to Hamsterly Beach was 14.1C.
Outstanding! I swam today in California and it was 13°C. I’ll take anything warmer than that!
So, when it says “rain” does that mean water falls from the sky during the day and it is miserable? Or does it just mean things got wet for a quick minute and it is fine?
Could be anything.
We have had one of the worst spring times ever. So cold and nothings but rain. This weekend was the first sunny one for weeks.
Local mountains got 40cm of snow last weekend.
So be prepared for a real downpour any anything in between.
