Swimming, if you can call it that.

.
Before I get to the swimming I want to take a second and tell you about a Triathlete who has been helping me out lately. He has a blog and I do ask that you check him out. He doesn't allow comments (currently) but please check his blog and if he opens up comments wish him luck. Mike thank you for being there to answer my crazy questions about Tri's. Really you have been of great help to me and I do appreciate it. I know you have a "small" race coming up in Clearwater Fl. and training is going to be extremely hard so I promise I will back off a little on the questions. There will be more on Mike in future posts.

So, apparently in order to train for a Triathlon there is no way around getting in the pool and swimming. So as much as I have been putting it off I decided it was time to just do it. So I was between two places to swim. One being Rowan University and the other being G.C.I.T. Both from what I hear are great places to swim. Rowan is about 7 miles from my house and G.C.I.T is (I kid you not) 13.1 miles from my house. So not that much of a difference. With Rowan you either have to be a Student, Faculty, or Alumni. I am none of the above, but Kim got her Master's there so I can join as a spouse IF she joins. Problem is Kim has no desire to swim and we have a gym less than a mile form our house that has everything she need and better hours. So off to G.C.I.T I go. Turns out I made the right decision. OK Kim made it for me but I can't give her credit can I. OK tomorrow is her birthday so "Thanks to Kim I am at a great place to swim." I joined for 3 months at only $20.00 a month. I am sure I will extend it but just figured I will make sure I am going to use it.

So Tuesday night I pull up to the pool, as you can see from the picture below I was so excited I forgot to stop.

I filled out all the paperwork and was ready to go swim. I have zero experience in swimming other than your neighborhood pool. I like to think I am a good citizen but I really don't know the "proper pool etiquette" yet. I went to the lockers got ready and walked out to the pool area and immediately felt like all eyes were on me. And not because I look like this guy in a bathing suit.

The pool is huge and just about all lanes were taken by local swim teams. I did what the lady that signed me up told me, I asked the lifeguard where to swim. He gave me what appeared to be the only lane available. There was no one else in the lane, thank god because I don't know how to share a lane yet. So there I was in the pool with my knee length baggy bathing suit ready to swim. Goggles? Who needs Goggles? No, I had not had a chance to get goggles yet. Breathing, no I don't know the proper breathing techniques yet. Form, no I don't know swimming form yet. But I was there so I better start swimming. Off I went swimming. Got to one end and turned around and came back. Wow 50 yards and I was tired. I turned and did it again, and again, and again. Now I would stop for about 3 seconds every trip down and I would kick off but I did manage to do 700 yards this way. When I was done (I don't know how long it took) I was exhausted and felt like I was going to throw up. But I did it and I will do it again, tonight as a matter of fact.

.

"That which does not kill me, makes me stronger".. Friedrich Nietzsche. Check the life insurance Kim.

.

Another thing I should mention is that Kim does now view my blog so that is why you see more references to her.

.

And by the way Kim you can stop looking at the guy above now.

---