This morning, on this
fourth day of February,
Annmarie Kearney-Wood, Carole Wickham and I waded into the icy water at West Neck Beach and, as soon as we could catch our breath, started swimming. It took several stops and starts -- long moments of floating with our faces out of the water before we could bear to put them back into the frigid water again. But as with our previous winter swims, we found that eventually the cold water no longer felt so cold, and we were able to relax and settle into the familiar and welcome rhythm of the open water. With the water temperature somewhere between 38 and 40 degrees (measured at the shoreline with a laser thermometer), we were only able to stay in for 15 minutes, but it was an exciting and memorable and totally worthwhile 15 minutes! Of course this first February swim is partly about bragging rights, just so that we can say we did it
("We did it!"), but the Polar Pod's incipient quest to expand the open-water season from six months to twelve is turning out to be far more than that, as each time we push the boundaries of "possible" a little further and in the process change and empower ourselves....The quest resumes tomorrow, when
Annmarie, Gae Polisner and Joye Brown venture into the February Salt at 1:30...
See you in the Salt!
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| "Last one in is a rotten egg...!" |
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How other people (Carole's sister and brother-in-law Loretta and Henry Hinz) dress for the beach in February!
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| "Come on in, the water's f-f-f-f-ine!" |
This morning, on this fourth day of February, Annmarie Kearney-Wood, Carole Wickham and I waded into the icy water at West Neck Beach and, as soon as we could catch our breath, started swimming. It took several stops and starts -- long moments of floating with our faces out of the water before we could bear to put them back into the frigid water again. But as with our previous winter swims, we found that eventually the cold water no longer felt so cold, and we were able to relax and settle into the familiar and welcome rhythm of the open water. With the water temperature somewhere between 38 and 40 degrees (measured at the shoreline with a laser thermometer), we were only able to stay in for 15 minutes, but it was an exciting and memorable and totally worthwhile 15 minutes! Of course this first February swim is partly about bragging rights, just so that we can say we did it ("We did it!"), but the Polar Pod's incipient quest to expand the open-water season from six months to twelve is turning out to be far more than that, as each time we push the boundaries of "possible" a little further and in the process change and empower ourselves....The quest resumes tomorrow, when Annmarie, Gae Polisner and Joye Brown venture into the February Salt at 1:30...See you in the Salt!
The sun is just asserting itself outside my window as I type this. Sun = doability (and a reclaiming of my bragging rights -- phew?! ;) so hope that it stays put. See you at 1:30.
ReplyDeleteFortunately, 2012 is a Leap Year, so there are 29 days this year to attempt a February swim! So even if the sun doesn't oblige today, you'll have other chances! But I'm optimistic -- and I'll see you at West Neck Beach at 1:30!
DeleteDid it happen? did you swim on Feb 5 (you crazies!)
ReplyDeletexo
Of course it happened, you Doubting Thomas, you! Gae and "Old Faithful" Annmarie swam for 25 minutes, while I played lifeguard (unnecessarily, as it turned out!) and compiled photographic and videographic evidence from the Beach. Maybe we'll go again tomorrow -- in the snow! (or maybe not...!)
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