DISCLAIMER: Open-water swimming is inherently dangerous. Open-water swimmers risk drowning, hypothermia, hyperthermia, heart attacks, panic attacks, cramping, jelly fish stings, fish bites, boat or jet-ski collisions, collisions with floating or submerged objects (including other swimmers), and other calamities that can be injurious, disabling or fatal! The "West Neck Pod" is an informal association of open-water swimmers who swim "outside the lines" with no lifeguard protection, it has no formal membership, organizational structure or legal identity, and its participants, including the author of this blog, make no representations and assume no liability with respect to its group open-water swims. All swimmers who participate in West Neck Pod group open-water swims do so at their own risk. Be careful out there!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

The 2011 Open-Water Swimming Season Is...OPEN!!


Rob Martell in his 2010 Halloween swim garb
  True to his Canadian roots, Pod member Rob Martell(a/k/a "The Crazy Canadian"), whose last swim of the 2010 open-water season was on December 19th, continues to expand the outer boundaries of the open-water swimming season, taking to the Salt again for the first open-water swim of the 2011 season on Sunday, May 15th!! Rob's two-and-a-half-minute swim in 53-degree water, under grey, cloudy skies, without a wetsuit, marks the earliest documented open-water swim in the recorded history of the West Neck Pod, and throws down the gauntlet for his still-pool-bound swimming fellows in his adopted country to the South.  Rob's exploit was captured on video and posted by fellow Pod member Rob Todd on the West Neck Pod's Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Neck-Pod/128827940504281), where you can almost hear the sound of Rob's teeth chattering above the sprightly music of the soundtrack! (also check out the first of Rob Todd's series of instructional swim videos designed to help the Pod improve its technical proficiency...)

While Rob Martell may now hold the Pod record for the longest open water season (May 29-December 19, 2010), and has evidently entered his bid for 2011, the competition for highest number of open-water swims in a season is still open, and begins when the next Pod member hits the open water!  For me, that will be the Memorial Day weekend (as my broken ribs continue to heal)...See you all in the Salt then!

3 comments:

  1. And the winner of the most swims is Carol. Hands down. Maybe i will beat the Dec 19th date;)

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  2. Really? I assumed you've been out there doing your "stealth swims" and were exponentially ahead of my swim-count! I have no doubt, though, that you'll take the longest season prize, even if I do squeeze a few more swims out of 2011! We've got a small crop going on Saturday November 5th -- hope you'll join us!

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