I've got a race in three days.
It's been cold.
The lake in which the swim portion will be was about 57 degrees over the weekend, according to Fishing Notes.
Yet, Sunday was my last chance to hit the course beforehand, so I knew that if I wanted at least one lake swim, I had to toughen up and jump in.
I was going to chicken out and swim in a shallower (read: probably warmer) lake at the same state park, but there were already people swimming in the race lake, and I didn't want to hike all the way to the shallower lake. First, I walked down to the beach, kicked off my flip-flops and dipped my toes in.
It was like ice!
I knew I had to do it, though. So I struggled into my wetsuit, put two caps on and my earplugs in, and started wading in. I screeched out loud when I let water in at my neck. My face and hands went numb pretty fast.
But what was I to do? I waded out to the buoys and started to swim.
Except for the numb hands, feet and face, it actually wasn't THAT bad. Of course it was cold, but once I was moving I was OK. I did a few laps around the buoys and called it a day. My Garmin (under my cap) read 0.72 miles, and I was fine with that.
I finished out the day with a 36-mile bike ride, three loops of the park (the Olympic distance is two), and a 2-mile run. Not too shabby.
Until then, I'm hoping for a few 80-degree days to warm up that water just a bit. I now know I handle it... but that doesn't mean I want to.
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