A long time ago...

...I almost drown in Canyon Lake. My how my swimming has changed. How I have changed.

Anyway, I think about this event at least twice a week since I still swim this same route around those two buoys up front to the one in the back, though now its simply a starting point. The beginning of "the next lap".

It took me three separate trips up to the lake to get the courage to swim to that buoy by myself. All those 70-100 yard swim dashes from one side of the cove to the other, just off the channel, while everyone else made it look so easy. They still do.

No I am doing at least 2,000 yards per workout there. Usually 3,000 yards, peaking at several 4,000 yard swims before an IM. I have done as many as 5,000 yards at one time. But I think about that first 400 all by myself that almost took my life.

Now with the club, people routinely come join us at the lake and right off the bat swim the 400 yards round trip to the buoy as their first OW experience. Each time it blows me away to see this. Was I that bad? That full of fear? The answer to both was probably yes.

I also think that personally its one the best post I have done. Maybe because the scare is still so visual for me. That the words written are a bit too close to the reality of it. I remember every one of those thoughts while I was out there.

Damn it I still say there is sharks in that lake!

I also looked at the commenter's back then. When you read them you will see very familiar names, another level of security in my life. We were all so disjointed then. Just starting our Triathlete Alliance. Maybe two dozen at that time. But we stuck together and we taught each other and we grew. Now my blog roll is over a hundred strong. The Alliance has become a community. And its better to swim in a community than alone.

Thanks.