Dave called me just after noon yesterday and notified me that the water temperature had risen to 61F. The swim site had chops of up to two feet, but they seemed to be diminishing as the day progressed.
I arrived at Ladder #1 at around 4:30pm and managed to do a fairly quick out-and-back to Oak Street Beach. I decided to wear the wetsuit which helped a lot by providing more buoyancy in the chops. But I was right at the borderline as far as comfort level. I think if I had been in the water any longer than 35 minutes, I may have started to overheat a bit.
For those of you doing the Chicago Triathlon next week, it’s still touch-and-go regarding wetsuits. We’ve got some warmer weather forecasted for this week, but we’ve also got some storms in the works whose winds might lower the water temperatures. Be prepared for anything – it’s not unusual for the lake temperature to drop 10F or more overnight…