@malloryrunsthis Yeah, I don't know how people got into the pool with snorkels on. I would imagine that's some sort of penalty. I didn't think the format of the swim was too bad. For someone who sucks at swimming, like myself, I enjoyed having a little more space in front and behind me at the beginning. I had to stop twice because the person in front of me stopped and there was someone passing us to our left. And sure, I was passed more times than I passed others, but I never felt crowded. Before the last 150 meters, there was a group of 4 swimmers that were right behind me and I was more than happy to let them all go ahead of me and swim close to each other while I caught my breath and waited for a nice gap. What was impressive to watch were the good swimmers who did flip turns into the next lane so that they never lost their rhythm. (Show offs...haha)