Memorial Day Weekend 2016

Our official season opener on Saturday morning saw a dozen swimmers hit the still-chilly but deliciously invigorating waters of Cold Spring Harbor, in a somewhat aimless swim southward, the yellow racing buoys we’ve affectionately dubbed the "South Buoy" and "North Buoy" being still conspicuously absent (as detailed in my blogpost from that date at http://thewater-blog.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-2016-ows-season-begins.html)....




Margot Edlin

By Sunday morning, though, the buoys were miraculously restored, and an even larger cadre of swimmers happily plied their way from buoy to buoy in water that to my bare arms may even have been a teensy bit warmer than the day before. Back in the Salt on Sunday for the first time this season were, among others, Margot Edlin, whose Facebook pictures I’ve purloined to post here, having forgotten my otherwise ubiquitous camera – an omission probably habituated by my more recent Polar Pod excursions where cold-numbed, gloved fingers were useless for operating the camera’s tiny buttons.

Joanna Grossman

Also back – for what it turns out may be one of her last swims with the West Neck Pod – was Joanna Grossman, who announced that she and her husband and fellow law professor Grant will shortly be relocating with their family to Dallas, where fabulous new teaching jobs await them, but Salt water will be in short supply. I’m so sad to see Joanna leave – and not only because she’s been an integral and longstanding member of "Team West Neck Pod" for our annual cancer-fighting "Sound-to-Cove" Swim Across America! We’ll miss you, Joanna, and wish you and your family much happiness in the Big D.

Joanna may be leaving, but back in the Salt for the start of her fourth season with the West Neck Pod, and now signed up for her second stint as a member of Swim Across America’s "Team West Neck Pod," was Merry Lewin – who started her training on Sunday for her first 5K swim with the Team!

Welcome back, too, to Polar Podders Annmarie Kearney-Wood (who will soon have her daughter Missy married off and can then return to compulsive open-water swimming if we can overcome her recent Cross-Fit obsession) and Tony Alizzi (whose chiseled Roman good looks seem only to have been enhanced by his recent faceplant on a Manhattan street), as well as to Rob Todd, Marc Leahy, Joan Addabbo, Gary Baker, Denise Tirino and everyone else who was there whose name or face I can’t quite conjure up now. (Oh, and a hearty Pod-welcome to Denise’s gutsy friend "Josee," an open-water newbie whose caring and concern for Denise – who was temporarily hung up and struggling to make headway "out there" against the outgoing tide -- managed to overshadow her own fear and anxiety...That’s what makes us a Pod...Just sayin’...).


Julia, Connor and Gabby

Though I’d optimistically planned to fete the Memorial Day swimmers with bagels and coffee, the weather forecast for Monday turned out to be accurate, and the rain that fell periodically throughout the night was still soaking Huntington by the time I posted on Facebook that the day’s swim was cancelled. Even though I'd officially cancelled the swim because of the then-pelting rain, I couldn't resist heading down to the beach anyway, because even though I wasn't planning to swim, I still like to look and see what I’m missing....I wasn't expecting to find any swimmers there, so I decided to bring bagels and coffee for the lifeguards instead, who have been so patient with us swimmers and so tolerant of our annoying habit of thronging the beach- house and overhang and taking over every inch of bench space every weekend morning...The lifeguards were there (Julia, Connor and Gabby), and, to my great surprise, so were Marc Leahy, Stephen Leung and Pete Ventura, already suited up and ready to get into the water (with Pete’s wife Vicki watching from the bench)! The rain, of course, had stopped completely by then, so Daisy-Mae and I walked the beach as Pete, Marc and Stephen swam first to the North Buoy and then made their way towards the South Buoy. Midway through their swim the sun started to peek through the clouds, and I felt a twinge of regret – I wonder if this is what it’s like to be a meteorologist! Daisy and I left before they returned, but I hope the lifeguards shared some coffee and bagels with them!

Daisy Mae

This week of spiking summer-like temperatures holds the promise of much warmer water this coming weekend, when I hope that I’ll see the rest of you back in the Salt for the first group swims of June!

Scheduled weekday morning group swims will begin next week, most likely on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at 6:30 and Friday mornings at 8:00 – but please feel free to share your swim plans with your fellow swimmers by email or on Facebook:   (https://www.facebook.com/WestNeckPod/?fref=nf).

Summer’s coming! See you in the Salt!

Swimming to "The Other Shore"

Conditions could not have been more perfect for today's long-awaited and long-imagined "Cross-County Swim" from our home beach in Suffolk County directly across the harbor to Cove Neck in Nassau County!  The morning was overcast, but the sun kept bursting through great, gorgeous cloud formations that were as dramatic as the occasion. The air temperature was comfortably in the high 50s and rising, there was virtually no wind, and the 67-degree water looked as inviting as that opposite shore....Nearly 30 swimmers turned out for the adventure, along with a fleet of paddleboarders and one kayaker who'd volunteered to escort us across and protect us (we hoped) from the boats that regularly criss-cross the harbor.  Though we'd hoped that the late September date would mean there'd be less boat traffic to worry about, I watched with growing uneasiness as one boat after another sped northward past the distant yellow buoys marking the path where we would be swimming.  I counted ten boats by the time we were suited up and ready to go -- an unheard of number for an early Saturday morning in late September -- even in this busy harbor.  But the distant shore was beckoning, and no one was backing out despite the obvious risks, so off we went toward "The Other Shore"!


Boat #9?



We swam in three tightly packed groups spaced widely apart and kept a vary eye out for approaching boats, as did our escorts. Though the round-trip distance -- a little less than two miles -- was not much more than a typical "Sailboat" swim, which most of us do regularly, the fact that we were so far from shore and swimming across an active boat channel made it seem much, much farther....So when we suddenly saw the flashing lights of the Oyster Bay Constable's boat approaching, and watched it take up a watchful position alongside the phalanx of swimmers, we were greatly relieved -- at least once we realized he was not there to arrest us!  We all relaxed a little bit and were able to really enjoy the fabulous swimming conditions and the extraordinary view of our home beach from far out in the harbor. When we had all arrived safely at the beach at Cove Neck, without having seen another boat crossing the channel or bearing down on us, we were elated -- and then we remembered that we still had to swim back!  After a brief rest (too brief -- I forgot to look for my flip-flops which had drifted away a few weeks before on an easterly wind -- I know they're here someplace!), we started back across the harbor, in the same three-group formation, but a little more practiced at keeping ourselves together and swimming at the same pace.  The Bay Constable's boat followed us all the way back to West Neck Beach and, despite the early traffic, we didn't encounter any other boats and all arrived safely "home."  There, swimmers, paddleboarders and friends enjoyed an end-of-Summer feast of bagels, donuts, muffins, crumb-cake, watermelon and hot coffee and tea -- and the exhilaration of having completed what for many of us has been a long-term dream! Many, many thanks to our group leaders Rob Ripp and Carole Wickham for keeping us organized and in formation, and to our kayaker and fellow-Podder Nancy Reycraft and paddleboarders Sal, Nick, Edgar, Linda, Jamie, Jackie, Katie (and one other whose name I didn't get) for keeping us safe and on course! For those who missed out on today's adventure, you can count on us doing it again next year....See you in the Salt!

 

View from Nick's paddleboard

Arriving at "The Other Shore"
 

Home again....

Paddleboarder Linda with fellow paddleboarder Jamie's mom Amy



Swimming/paddling across the harbor makes you hungry!

 

The harbor two hours later...

"Coney Island" Comes to West Neck Beach

The white-capped waves were plainly visible from the roadway as I turned into the parking lot at West Neck Beach this chilly September morning, and as the rest of the morning swimmers continued to arrive, they joined the growing throng on the beach incredulously watching the rolling waves as they raced past us from north to south.  The wind driving the waves was from the northwest and though the still-high tide was already going out, the wind was clearly winning the battle, and howling its victory.  The madly pitching boats in the mooring field gave some clue to the bum's rush we swimmers could expect were we to venture out there. Of course we regulars were game, but two returning "newbies" from last week's introductory workshop, and a clutch of brand-newbies, stood wide-eyed and open-mouthed on the beach as they contemplated entering the turbulent scene in front of them. Incredibly, every one of them did, joining the rest of the Pod as we pitched and yawed and clawed our way over the tops of the biggest waves only to plummet to the bottom of the wave troughs -- like riding the roller coaster, the Ferris wheel and the drop tower all at the same time!  But the water was clear and clean and still summer-warm, and we'll be back tomorrow at 8:00 to see what the open water has in store for us...!  See you in the Salt!

 



 



 



Reconnoitering at the Yellow Sign



Stephanie's first OWS with the West Neck Pod

Sophia at the Sailboat





Helen at the Sailboat

"Newbie," or not "Newbie"...That is the question...

Dana Termini

As with every open-water season, 2013 has brought a fresh crop of "newbies" to the West Neck Pod. This year’s group – the largest yet – is a diverse lot, with, as always, different levels of swimming skill and experience as well as different reasons for seeking the open water and the company of the Pod. 2013 "newbies" Dana Termini and Will Spencer have become Pod regulars, helping to fill the gaping hole left when Karen Ruth moved back to Cleveland. Dana, a surfer from the South Shore, is an accomplished open-water swimmer who exhibits the same calm equanimity whether she’s pushing the envelope with the rest of the "Big Dogs" or hanging back with the "Pokey-Pod." Will, who had only recently taught himself to swim by watching YouTube videos (!), was already registered for his first Iron-Man Triathlon in Louisville on August 25^th -- but his swimming was slow and laborious and he was afraid he wouldn’t make the swim cut come race day. He found the West Neck Pod through an internet search – and after several months of dogged training with the Pod – and being mentored by our multi-time Iron Man veterans Karen Ruth and Nancy Lipira, among others – Will made the swim cut in plenty of time...and now he’s ready to mentor the next crop of Iron-Man-wannabees. 


Will "Iron Man" Spencer

Merry Lewin

Merry Lewin – whose personality matches her name – is a newly minted sprint triathlete, but with limited open-water experience, Merry was apprehensive about taking on other challenges...Her swims with the Pod have been about exploring and expanding her comfort levels, and increasing both her distance and her sense of confidence. Merry still has "The Sailboat" in her sights – and in due time, with the support and encouragement of the Pod, Merry will add that notch to her swimming belt...just like Ian Todd did last weekend! Ian is the 12-year-old son of long-time Podder/Polar Podder Rob Todd, who decided to introduce his "poolie" progeny to the open water this season. Ian has taken to the open water like, well, his Dad, and I definitely see some "big swims" in his future!


Rob Todd and Ian Todd
 

Rebecca, center, with Joan, Dana, Joye, Larry & Bonnie

Rebecca Cooney – a Newsday colleague of long-time Podder Joye Brown, had been wistfully following the Pod through Facebook and The Water-Blog for eons...but it was a cancer diagnosis that finally brought her to West Neck Beach in mid-July for her first swim with the Pod before undergoing surgery and then chemotherapy/radiation....Wishing Rebecca a speedy return to the healing Salt and her newfound Pod!

Jimmy Kwong is another self-taught swimmer – whose first challenging venture in the open water two weeks ago – safely sandwiched between me and Joye Brown -- brought him as far as the "recently-repainted-building-formerly-known-as-the-‘Blue-House’-but-now-known-as-the-‘White House.’" His second outing last weekend proudly took him as far as the yellow sign – twice! – and Joye informs me that Jimmy made his first South Buoy swim this Labor Day weekend!


Other newbies to the West Neck Pod this season include Bill Byers, Marco Papaleo and Pam Algier, Eliana Themistocleous-Feldstein and "Sidestroke" Matt, Frank Caponi, Kathy Coletti (and her neighbor Gina Foglia, who still hasn’t ventured outside the lines, but promises to soon!), Joe Maccaro, Gavin Poole, Carrie Alexandrowicz, Tony Alizzi, Denise Defazio Cooke, Henry Ivarsson, Brandon Garrett, Greg Nieratka, Peter Dennin, and others whose names have escaped me at the moment...! Many of these have also become Pod "regulars," and even as the official summer season is drawing to a close, "newbies" keep showing up to swim with the West Neck Pod, Long Island’s largest open-water-swimming group!


Bill Byers

Eliana and "Sidestroke" Matt (you'll have to ask him!)

Kathy Coletti and Gina Foglia

Gavin Poole

Tri-Buddies Lorraine, and ?? (Dan?)

Tony Alizzi

Eliana and Denise DeFazio Cooke

Henry Ivarsson



Peter Dennin



Brandon Garrett



Anthony

Greg Nieratka

But for all the "newbies" who came out to join the Pod this season, there are others out there who are still holding back...waiting, for...what, a special invitation?? WELL, HERE IT IS! The West Neck Pod is extending a Special Invitation to those West-Neck-Pod-wannabees who’ve been hovering on the fringes, but who’ve not yet gotten up the nerve to come out and swim with us (you know who you are!). Take the plunge and join us on Saturday, September 7th at 7:30 a.m. (before the regularly scheduled 8:00 group swim) for a one-on-one introduction to the open water! No pressure, no expectations, and no goals other than to help you get unstuck if the open water is what you’ve been yearning for. If you’re a strong, competent swimmer who wants to expand your horizons and, well, start swimming towards the horizon, email the Pod at westneckpod@verizon.net and let us know you’re coming on the 7^th! Wetsuits are recommended – if you don’t own one you can rent one from Runners Edge in Farmingdale or other local runners/cycle shops. We’re also looking for seasoned Pod members to volunteer to mentor our latest crop of "newbies." Sign up on Facebook (https:www.Facbeook.com/WestNeckPod/events or email westneckpod@verizon.net.

See the rest of you in the Salt – finally!

Farewell to "The Pod-Father"

Rob Martell, appropriately costumed for our harrowing Halloween 2010 OWS

It's hard to say when, exactly, the "West Neck Pod" came into being, but that it did at all is principally the doing of Rob Martell, who was unquestionably the fledgling Pod's founding father....Though people have been open-water swimming at West Neck Beach for eons, it was Rob who in 2004 or thereabouts began organizing the "lone wolves" into a loose pack whose "every man for himself" ethos was gradually replaced with an awareness and then eventually a concern for the other swimmers "out there." Scheduled swims, communicated to a small but growing group by email, made these open-water swims accessible to a wider audience -- an audience that I became a part of in 2005 or 2006 thanks to the support and encouragement of Rob and others, who helped me overcome my terror of the open water. Though Rob was a fast and strong swimmer who was always at the front of the pack, he would often double back to check on the rest of us as we struggled against a strong current or a rough chop that he sliced through with seeming ease. Eventually, his concern for his swimming brethren became the norm for all of the West Neck open-water swimmers, and when I began writing the email exchanges known as "The Water-Log," it was inevitable that this now cohesive collection of swimmers would bear the eponymic appellation of a "pod" -- a family of marine mammals.

In acknowledgment of his country of origin, The "Pod-Father" Rob Martell was also known as "The Crazy Canadian." Seemingly impervious to cold, he continued to swim in the open water long after the rest of us had retreated to indoor pools. His December solo swims -- memorialized in the Huntington Masters Swimmers' blog (http://hums.blogspot.com/2006/12/robs-2nd-annual-december-ows.html) -- laid the groundwork for what later became the "West Neck Polar Pod."  

Rob Martell finishing his December 2, 2006 OWS -- photo by Mike Engel from the HUMS blog

But Rob was also infamous for his late-night solo swims, his long-distance exploratory swims around the point and beyond, his swim-to-run junkets with his sneakers tucked into his suit (sorry, no pictures are available of that!), and especially for his long-rumored (and now confirmed!) open-water swim while Hurricane Irene was raging....While most Pod members did not push the swimming envelope as far as Rob did, it was Rob's exploits that encouraged and motivated the Pod to test their own boundaries, following the paths that Rob had paved.  Under Rob's planning and guidance, half a dozen Pod members swam their longest distances ever, completing their first 5K or 5-mile swims last August -- and the Pod will be forever grateful for his invention and deployment of the first "Floating Pod Sandal Station" and his provision of electric heaters to warm the space under the overhang for post-season swims.


Rob Martell (with Rob Ripp) looking like raw meat after the jellyfish infested 2008 "5K in the Bay"

But now, Rob is leaving us -- he's moving to Denver to pursue a new life and new opportunities, and is bidding farewell to the West Neck Pod and the open water....We will miss him terribly, and the inspiration he provided, but we wish him well in his new inland life -- and look forward to his visits home to his Pod-family and friends....



Rob Martell: "Gotta go!"

 

See you in the Salt, Pod-Father!

Summer Swelter....Fall Pall...

Just a few scant weeks ago, in mid-July, Long Island was engulfed in a sweltering heat wave, with temperatures soaring well into the 90s one scorching day after another. Even the open water offered little relief, as it felt barely cooler than the still, stifling air -- even in the early morning. By week's-end many of us had shed our customary wetsuits in favor of bathing suits, the "ick" factor succumbing to the heat index....I found that my Speedo was definitely cooler than my sleeveless wetsuit, but its relatively loose fit was a veritable open door to a myriad of tiny sea creatures whose numbers had fulminated in the warm water, and their incessant nibbling was distracting and disconcerting. Not only that, but the gravitational pull of "the girls" was slowing me down even more than the lack of buoyancy, so by Saturday I'd switched over to my "technical suit" which, although far from flattering, wadded everything down so that I felt sleek as a seal.  The heavy rains that were forecast for the weekend never materialized and the relentless heat continued through the weekend, but a light westerly wind on Saturday, followed by an easterly wind on Sunday, drew off some of the surface heat so the water felt almost refreshing, but the weekend was still absurdly hot and the open water was the only sane place to be....

When the heat wave finally broke early in the following week, we rejoiced in what we mistakenly thought was a return to "normality," until Mother Nature --as she had with Hurricane Sandy -- abruptly reminded us that there is no "normal" anymore....We awakened mid-week to find, a'la Rip Van Winkle, that although we had gone to sleep in July, we had awakened in September...The air temperature had suddenly plummeted deep into the 60s, and "August" was but a ghost....

Even today, when the calendar said it was August 6th, the 56-degree air temperature said otherwise...and though it is technically only mid-summer, we swam as if we might not get another chance...

 

 

 

See you in the Salt -- unless it snows!