Open Water Swim Season

I declared to my wife that I had officially opened it today in Los Angeles, but the truth is it never really ended in Southern California and I also have no leg to stand on since this was my first time back in the ocean, probably since the La Jolla Roughwater last September.

That said, pool closures this morning prompted me to do what I had been talking about doing all month long: get an early start on the open water season and see how acclimated I could get to the cold.

Note 1: The water does get cold here in in the winter in Southern California. I have the utmost respect for the La Jolla swimmers who do it all year round. Then there is the crew in Santa Cruz and those in San Francisco who I think are simply super human.

Note 2: Thanksgiving weekend, 2006, I tried a swim in La Jolla and got seriously cold - two hours to warm up cold. The water temp that day (it's posted at the lifeguard tower for those generally familiar) was around 56 degrees.

Note 3: I hadn't worn a cap that day. I do recall swimming with my mom as a kid in cold water in northern latitudes, and figured I had a natural ability to stay warm. Maybe not so much. Regardless, I like cold water (and I generally don't think we really need wet suits down here - not really).

At any rate, anyone will tell you that the main thing to do in cold water is to keep your head warm. See note 3 above. To that end, today's swim was something of a vindication with the water temperature coming in at a steamy 57 degrees. Today's plan was (a) to get in a good swim early in spite of pool closures, and (b) test my new head warmer, that's right - a bubble cap under my swim cap.

I know I could have been a little more high tech and gotten a "barracuda", but I think the chin strap looks silly and the name is silly regardless. Barracuda, an ugly oily fish, you can keep it. Who thought that name has anything to do with cold water swimming? Sheer corporate branding pablum - leave me out of it. And the price of a bubble cap is right at $8.99. SO what if its a woman's cap, it's time tested by the best.

Note 4: apparently the barracuda "hot head" can't be used on the English Channel swim. Nuff said.

At any rate, today was a beautiful morning to start the swim season. I got to MB late, around 8:30, and the tower North of the pier was surrounded by swim bags, I think, from the LA Tri Club. The tower south of the pier, where (again) I think the UCLA Masters put their gear, was empty. So I got the singular pleasure of setting my bag down amongst the tri guys and headed down the beach, sans wetsuit.

The water is definitely cold. I could feel a stress in my chest and a familiar chill along my sides as I got in. But, as others have noted, it's a matter of acclimating, which happens surprisingly fast. I'd say after a couple of short minutes in the water, I was planty warm. The bubble cap works. Hooray for the crepe bubble cap (I love a good simple deal - and Speedo, if you are listening, make a men's style as cold water/open water swimming needs more alternatives).

I'd started an easy distance as I was not sure what I could do. At first I walked about 15 minutes south and swam back up around the MB pier in about 15 more minutes. So I got out, walked past the lingering tri-swimmers (& sensing their shame) and wended my way back down the beach about 1/3 of the way to the HB pier and swam back again. And I caught a good wave into the beach to boot.

Yes, summer and open water swim season is here.