Heat wave!
We’ve had a string of warmer days now that have broken up the ice, so the lakefront looks pretty clear. I can’t wait to get back in again!
The Snowy Owl
A snowy owl made a rare appearance at Montrose Beach during the swim on Sunday (the one I missed out on, of course). Fortunately, local photographer Tom Rossiter was there to capture it on film. Check out some of his amazing shots!
The many moods of Lake Michigan
Nick was out at the lakefront Thursday and Friday and captured some neat images and videos. Per Nick:
I took a picture of a rainbow hitting the water crib on Thursday night right after the rain. I also shot a short video of Oak St beach yesterday morning around 6:45 and even I thought that it was not swimable as the waves were crashing everywhere.
Check these out!
Rainbow over the crib
No swimming here!
[flowplayer src=http://openwaterchicago.com/wp-content/uploads/videos/P9300066.MP4]
The Beach Boys
Whenever you make a jaunt out to L1 during the warmer months, chances are quite good that you’ll see one or more of these loyal lakegoers within the vicinity. They maintain an unofficial vigilance over our beloved swimming site, and they’re always ready to offer friendly greetings or a pleasant conversation.
In short, they’re great fellows who have fascinating stories to tell. And I always enjoy seeing them out at L1 because they personify everything that’s great about summer in Chicago!
So in this spirit, I’d like to hand out some honorary Lake Monster numbers to the real “beach boys” of L1. Dave had some shots of the group taken last week, so I’ll post a few below with some details:
Left to right:
Diver Dave - #21 (Ice Monster #1!)
Dr. Pete – #146
2-Liter Pete – #147
Paul (The Chairman) – #148
Dave (Paul’s son) – #149
Freddy - #150
Danny - #27
Jules (seated) – #151
Another shot of the L1 crew!
Ladder in the mist
SF Bay’s got nothing on us! Here’s a shot of an ethereal Ladder 1 that Dave took earlier today:
And the official lake temperature – 57F!
Happy Birthday to Diver Dave!
Our long time L1 stalwart has a special day today. So be sure to send him your birthday wishes in the comments!
How People Drown
Drowning is easy. In fact, it’s so easy that over 3,000 people annually in the U.S. succumb to it.
The process of drowning is very straightforward:
- Water enters the lungs of a person triggering automatic spasms to the larynx
- These spasms temporarily seal the air pipe in order to prevent additional liquid from entering the lungs (a natural defense mechanism)
- This “choking” sensation triggers a panic response which accelerates the person’s heart rate
- An accelerated heart rate coupled with a sealed air pipe causes generalized hypoxia, an inadequate supply of oxygen to the body as a whole
- Deprived of oxygen, the person’s cells shift to anaerobic metabolism and flood the muscles with lactic acid, causing rapid fatigue which quickly leads to exhaustion
- Unable to remain afloat, the person inhales additional water which accelerates the above cycle
- The continuing oxygen deprivation leads to cerebral hypoxia causing unconsciousness
- As the person loses consciousness, the larynx relaxes allowing the lungs to fill with water
- Unless rescued at this point, the person dies from either advanced cerebral hypoxia or myocardial infarction (heart attack)
Not drowning is also just as easy.
The key is to interrupt this lethal cascade of events as early as possible – and one of the best ways to do this is to become comfortable with the technique known as drownproofing.
One of my biggest beefs with the endurance sports community is that they never seem to teach this as part of their open water swim training (as least I’ve never seen it being taught anywhere). Instead, they teach you how to tread water, swim faster, sight in open water, and navigate the chaotic scrum of the swim start.
But never how not to drown in the first place.
Whenever I work one-on-one with a swimmer for an open water lesson, the first thing we go over is drownproofing. I make sure they’re comfortable handling any situation that might potentially trigger the drowning process.
And drownproofing is really easy to learn – even a small child can do it:
So the next time you’re out in the open water with your swimming or triathlon training group, be sure to ask everyone whether or not they know how to drownproof.
And if the coaches don’t teach it – or if they don’t know what you’re talking about – you have my permission to nail them on it…
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