Swim Report – September 19, 2009 – Welcome to the Spin Cycle!

Saturday’s swim started a bit late. I got out there at 6:30am to check out the sunrise, but our magnificent personal star was hidden behind a wall of clouds on the horizon. So I waited until close to 7:00am until it made its grand appearance. During this time I chatted with Jonathan, a new swimmer out at L1 for the first time (and Lake Monster #32!).

The water temperature came in at a perfect 70F but the swim area was pretty chaotic. Gone were the halcyon conditions of perfect calm just a few days earlier. Instead, Jonathan and I had to navigate some pretty ferocious chops on the way to Oak Street Beach and back. And I had to turn on the burners to keep up with him since he’s a pretty fast swimmer!

But the sun was out in force that morning, and Ladder #1 once again proved to be a magnet for early morning fun and revelry. A surprise appearance by “Bogart” and “Johnson” gave me my puppy fix for the day. And Dave showed up a bit later with the inner tubes – which helped me finally earn my first Ladder #1 sunburn of the summer. Too bad I had to wait until last weekend to get it!

Final summer sunrise

The author with Bogart

It’s his town…we just live in it

5 Replies to “Swim Report – September 19, 2009 – Welcome to the Spin Cycle!

  1. You have to admit they are nice people to know if you ever find yourself in Hawaii.

    Our OHP Saturday group swim “naked” (no wetsuits) from May through October or November, once as late as the Saturday before Thanksgiving.

    We have swum in water as cold as 48 degrees.

    Some of the group are Channel swimmers (not me).

    Several of the swimmers completed the “Skyline Swim” last year, from Juneway Terrace beach to Calumet beach, a distance of 24 miles (again not me).

    Being an old fart at 68, I usually give up in the low 50’s.

  2. WHAT IN THE WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS IN GOING ON HER? 69 DEGREES IS TOO COLD ? PERHAPS THEY COULD WEAR A WINTER COAT,HAT,GLOVES AND BOOTS ! HELL, PAULA TOOK OFF FOR A 25 1/2 HOUR SWIM ACROSS LAKE MICHIGAN IN 56 DEGREE WATER WITH ONLY A SWIM SUIT AND CAP.
    YOU SHOULD RENAME YOUR GROUP.
    “THE USA HOT TUB SWIM TEAM”
    ” THE USA BUNCH OF CRY BABIES”
    IT SEEMS THAT THEY NEVER SWAM LAKE MICHIGAN THIS YEAR BECAUSE THIS IS LAST WEEK WAS SOME OF THE WARMEST WATER ALL SUMMER.
    SHOULD WE TAKE UP A COLLECTION TO BUY THEM DRY SUITS SO THEY NEVER HAVE TO TOUCH WATER THIS COLD… Ha Ha Ha… I GUESS WE WILL NOT SEE THEM JOINING US FOR THE LONG DISTANCE WINTER SWIMS.

  3. The USA Aquatics convention was this past weekend. This includes US Masters Swimming.

    The Long Distance Committee had an open water swim at Ohio Street beach on Saturday at 6:00 AM, which attracted 40 swimmers from throughout the USA, including several swimmers from Hawaii.

    They told us that, with 69 degree water temperature, they would call the race because of cold water!

    We swimmers in Chicago are blessed.

    We will have a group of OW swimmers at OSB each Saturday at 6:30 AM until the water gets too cold (whatever that means).

  4. I LIVE 25 MILES AWAY FROM LADDER #1 AND I CAN SEE THE PAINTED BARS FROM MY HOUSE.
    THE FIRE DEPT WAS REALLY HAPPY THEY WERE PAINTED AND 2 SWIMMERS NEEDED THEM TODAY TO GET OUT WHEN THE WAVES WORE THEM OUT.

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