The Ultimate Open Water Swimming Checklist: Your Guide to a Successful Swim
Open water swimming events offer a unique and exhilarating experience, vastly different from pool swimming. Whether you’re preparing for a race or a leisurely swim, having a comprehensive checklist can enhance safety and enjoyment. Here’s an essential guide covering everything from entries to wildlife encounters.
**1. Starts: Beach, In-Water, Dive**
The start of an open water swim can vary depending on the event and location:
**Beach Starts:** Common in many races, a beach start involves running or wading into the water from shallow depths. This method may require timing your entry with wave breaks and duck diving under breakers, and a lot of jostling with other swimmers. Practicing specific race entries for your event is crucial.
**In-Water Starts:** Used in deep water races, this method requires treading water while waiting for the signal. It can be more challenging due to the lack of a stable surface. Sculling and kicking in place can act as an engine idling method for a fast reaction time and start. Training sets from the middle of the pool can help with this.
**Dive Starts:** Less common but used in certain races, divers start from a platform or dock, diving into the water to begin their swim. This method requires precision to avoid injury and ensure a smooth entry. Practicing and refining your diving technique, and ensuring a safe entry on race day, are essential.
**2. Sighting: Heads-Up Swimming, Sighting**
Effective sighting is crucial for staying on course:
**Heads-Up Swimming:** This technique involves lifting your head periodically to check your direction. While it can disrupt your stroke, it's necessary for navigation. Sighting and breathing can be done on a three-stroke rhythm. Lift your head on the first non-breath stroke for a quick snapshot, extend one arm for balance, lower your head on the second stroke, and breathe on the third stroke. Repeat as needed to stay on course without slowing down your pace.
**Sighting:** Use landmarks, buoys, boats, or other swimmers to guide your course. Practice sighting during training to improve your navigation, and fitness for the technique without losing rhythm.
**3. Supported and Unsupported Swims: Kayaker, Crew**
Support levels can vary depending on your event:
**Supported:** A support crew, such as a kayaker or boat, provides safety, navigation, and fueling. For major channel swims, support boats are often experienced sailors who help with scheduling optimal swim dates, timing currents, and navigating busy shipping channels. They act as or transport your larger crew and observers, manage boat traffic, coast guard, and border officials in international crossings. Smaller support crafts, like kayakers, provide direct observation, communication, and feedings. Note that official races and ratified crossings have rules prohibiting support vessels from physically assisting or coming into contact with the swimmer.
**Unsupported:** In some races or solo swims, you may swim without support. In such cases, it’s vital to be well-prepared with safety gear like a bright-colored float and cap for visibility. Following event directions, or research the conditions and boating traffic for unsanctioned events. Understand the swim route and check if there are checkpoints for hydration or fueling. For swims longer than an hour, consider carrying hydration or fuel in your suit or buoy if support stations are unavailable.
**4. Feeding: Treading, Floating, Feeds**
Managing nutrition and hydration requires planning:
**Treading Water and Floating:** If you need to take a break, tread water or float on your back while consuming food or drink. Practice this technique to maintain buoyancy and keep your energy up. During pool sessions that exceed an hour, start incorporating feeds without holding onto the wall or putting your feet down to minimize rest time and refine your body’s tolerance for feeds.
**Moving Feeds:** For races with organized aid stations, practice reaching for and consuming food while swimming. Efficient handoffs and timing are crucial, so training for this process can help optimize performance.
**5. Buoys and Turns: **
Efficient turning is essential for maintaining speed and direction:
**Corkscrew Turn:** This technique involves a quick, controlled spin from freestyle to backstroke and back, either clockwise or counterclockwise, depending on the course route. It's especially useful in races with multiple laps or tight turns, where competitive swimmers aim for the sharpest line around turns.
**6. Goggles and Caps: Dark and Light, Anti-Fog, Latex versus Silicone**
Selecting the right goggles impacts visibility and comfort:
**Dark vs. Light Lenses:** Dark lenses are ideal for sunny conditions to reduce glare, while light or clear lenses are better for cloudy or overcast conditions. Have a backup pair in case one breaks or gets misplaced. Get 20% off your own custom goggles from the Magic5 with code DALY20
**Anti-Fog:** Invest in goggles with anti-fog coating to maintain clear vision. Avoid rubbing the inside of the goggles; instead, rinse and air-dry them after swims. If the anti-fog coating wears away, use a small dab of No Tears baby shampoo as an alternative. Apply it to the inside of clean dry lenses, and keep them dry throughout your swim.
**Caps:** Latex caps are cheaper, thinner, and tackier. They are less warm, making them ideal for warmer events. Their tackiness helps prevent them from slipping off your head or goggle straps, though they tend to have a larger, rippled fit and may not be suitable for those sensitive to latex. In contrast, silicone caps are slightly more expensive, thicker, and warmer, offering additional warmth in colder conditions. They provide a more tailored, streamlined fit but are less tacky and can be more prone to slipping, which may cause goggle straps to slide. Swimmers should decide whether to wear their goggle straps under or over their cap. Wearing them underneath may offer a more secure fit but less flexibility for mid-event adjustments. Some swimmers use a double cap strategy: a latex cap underneath for grip, followed by goggles, and a silicone cap on top for a streamlined fit.
**7. Suit and Chafe, Grease**
Proper suit and skin care are vital for comfort and performance:
**Suit:** Ensure your suit or wetsuit fits well to reduce chafing, water-logging, and drag. Test it in practice swims to ensure comfort and refine your feel for competition suits or wetsuits.
**Chafing:** Apply anti-chafe cream to areas prone to irritation, such straps, seams, neck, armpits, and inner thighs.
**Grease and Sunscreen:** Use combinations of lanolin, petroleum jelly, zinc oxide, and sunscreen, or specialized swim grease to prevent chafing and sunburn. These can also provide marginal warmth for cold water swims.
**8. Salt vs. Fresh Water**
Different types of water affect your swim differently:
**Salt Water:** Provides more buoyancy, which helps you stay afloat but can be more abrasive to your skin and irritating to your eyes, nose, and mouth.
**Fresh Water:** Generally less buoyant but also less irritating to the skin, eyes, nose, and mouth.
**9. Distance**
Be mindful of the distance you'll be swimming:
**Preparation:** Train specifically for the swim distance, incorporating both long and short sessions to build endurance and pace. Practice pacing to ensure you have enough energy for the entire distance.
**Pacing:** Open water swims can be unpredictable, so trust the fitness and pacing you've developed in the pool. Use perceived exertion and feel as your measures for effort and intensity, rather than relying solely on distance traveled or time in the water.
**10. Wildlife**
Encountering wildlife is part of open water swimming:
**Safety:** Be aware of local wildlife and understand how to react if you encounter them. Most wildlife will avoid swimmers, but knowing the precautions is beneficial.
**Education:** Learn about local species and any specific safety tips or protocols for the area.
**11. Weather: Water/Air Temp, Currents, Tides, Sun, Rain**
**Water/Air Temperature:** Check forecasts for both water and air temperatures and adjust your gear and training accordingly. Cold feeds and electrolytes may be more necessary in warmer conditions, while cooler swims might require warmer feeds and less hydration. The ratio of water to air temperature and whether the sun is out can greatly influence how you feel. Prepare in conditions as specific to your event as possible for optimal acclimatization.
**Currents and Tides:** Be aware of currents and tides as they affect navigation and speed. Plan your swim timing around these factors and heed information from race directions and support crews.
**Sun:** Use long-lasting, waterproof, high SPF sunscreens and consider reapplying as necessary.
**Water Quality:** Rain and high temperatures can affect water quality. Consult local data and consider updated vaccines and health precautions.
** Motion sickness** Seasickness is not just a risk for those on the boat, but can also happen to swimmers in the water, particularly on long choppy swims. Over the counter oral motion sickness medication like dramamine, or prescription patches like scolapalmine can be helpful, but its important to practice your tolerance for and the effectiveness or side affects of these medications prior to your event.
**12. Planning: Course route, safety meeting, packing**
Understanding the course is crucial for a smooth swim:
**Website Route:** Review the swim course on the event’s website. Familiarize yourself with the layout, buoys, and entry/exit points.
**Athlete Meeting:** Attend pre-race meetings to receive final instructions, understand last-minute changes, and clarify any concerns about the course or logistics
** Create a checklist and pack ahead** Create a list of essential items, and pack your swim bag ahead of time. Include back ups in the case that something breaks, you need extra, or it’s misplaced. Point to point races may include a bag check. Consider items you will need at the event finish, whether you check your bag with the event, or hand it off to friends and family.
By following this comprehensive checklist, you'll be well-prepared for a successful and enjoyable open water swimming experience. Practice and preparation are key to navigating the unique challenges of open water swimming with confidence. Need help planning and programming for your next open water swimming event? Schedule a complimentary call, or book your next coaching call now!