Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Progress
He's away!
He got all greased up with white petroleum which was amusing for all and taken over to the start on the irb. Things are looking good out here so wish him your best! Ill try get some of the photos we've taken onto Facebook but coverage is patchy. /text
Monday, May 9, 2011
Swim is on!
Swim is on tomorrow. Departing mana cruising club on boat at 6. Swim starting around 8. Follow along on here for updates during the day from my supporters. Photos can hopefully be found throughout the day on my Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1733623575
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Lost at sea
When I met Richard Rice at Takapuna this morning our first reaction was to head up to Mint for a coffee.
The fog had rolled in overnight and visibility was 50m tops. As the buoys at Taka are at least 200m out and 200m apart this posed a bit of a problem.
The sensible action was coffee. We of course decided on a little swim to see if we could find buoy one.
Richard has an inherent tendency to swim left, (in this case Rangitoto and beyond) and with this in mind I made a concerted effort to swim right. The technique worked perfectly, with buoy one happily looming out of the fog a couple of minutes after losing sight of the shore.
This success spurred us to continue on and see if we could find buoy two. This was a bit more of a mission as we were relying heavily on guesswork to chose our start direction. The vague glow of the sun in the east told us which way not to go so we headed off. Once again the left swim/right swim technique worked except that when I finally spotted buoy two at the limits of my vision way off to the right Richard was at the limits of my vision in the opposite direction heading like a man with a mission to Rangitoto. Just as I was tossing up weather to chase him or head to shore and call the Coastguard he stopped to abuse a passing fisherman and realised the error of his ways.
Buoy three is a relatively short distance and emboldened by our success we headed off. Sure enough a couple of minutes later the buoy loomed from the fog in front of us. We returned the same route taking a bit more notice of our direction relative to the sun and with slightly better visibility.
At this stage with about 35 minutes swum Richard decided he had had enough and headed home. I still wanted to do the 6 hours and as the fog had rolled back in and I was swimming solo I took the sensible approach and spent the next 2 and a half hours swimming along the beach in sight of land. The water conditions were glassy and swimming conditions perfect.
At 10 o clock Helen Adams joined me and we spent the next 2 hours using the now well established navigation techniques to do circuits of buoys 1, 2 and 3.
At 12 Hamish joined me for hour 6 and in the still marginal conditions we headed for buoy 3. At buoy 3 the fog started to lift and we had a clear run out to cable buoy and back. By the time we got out of the changing rooms afterwards the fog had rolled in again and viz was back to 50m .
Strait water temperatures are rising and will probably be swimmable next week but I am not as confident with the Wellington weather.
Watch this space
The fog had rolled in overnight and visibility was 50m tops. As the buoys at Taka are at least 200m out and 200m apart this posed a bit of a problem.
The sensible action was coffee. We of course decided on a little swim to see if we could find buoy one.
Richard has an inherent tendency to swim left, (in this case Rangitoto and beyond) and with this in mind I made a concerted effort to swim right. The technique worked perfectly, with buoy one happily looming out of the fog a couple of minutes after losing sight of the shore.
This success spurred us to continue on and see if we could find buoy two. This was a bit more of a mission as we were relying heavily on guesswork to chose our start direction. The vague glow of the sun in the east told us which way not to go so we headed off. Once again the left swim/right swim technique worked except that when I finally spotted buoy two at the limits of my vision way off to the right Richard was at the limits of my vision in the opposite direction heading like a man with a mission to Rangitoto. Just as I was tossing up weather to chase him or head to shore and call the Coastguard he stopped to abuse a passing fisherman and realised the error of his ways.
Buoy three is a relatively short distance and emboldened by our success we headed off. Sure enough a couple of minutes later the buoy loomed from the fog in front of us. We returned the same route taking a bit more notice of our direction relative to the sun and with slightly better visibility.
At this stage with about 35 minutes swum Richard decided he had had enough and headed home. I still wanted to do the 6 hours and as the fog had rolled back in and I was swimming solo I took the sensible approach and spent the next 2 and a half hours swimming along the beach in sight of land. The water conditions were glassy and swimming conditions perfect.
At 10 o clock Helen Adams joined me and we spent the next 2 hours using the now well established navigation techniques to do circuits of buoys 1, 2 and 3.
At 12 Hamish joined me for hour 6 and in the still marginal conditions we headed for buoy 3. At buoy 3 the fog started to lift and we had a clear run out to cable buoy and back. By the time we got out of the changing rooms afterwards the fog had rolled in again and viz was back to 50m .
Strait water temperatures are rising and will probably be swimmable next week but I am not as confident with the Wellington weather.
Watch this space
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Last chance (for this season at least)
Friday 29th I spoke to Philip Rush. He was on the Strait ferry returning to Wellington and confirmed first hand that conditions were unswimmable and there was nothing in the forecast to suggest that Saturday would be any better. Water temperatures were down to 14C with the recent long series of southerlies.
As I discovered swimming at Takapuna through last winter low water temperatures on their own are surmountable. The problem now is that air temperature is starting to fall below water temperature. Combined with wind chill there can be significant heat loss through the back. The days are getting shorter and at my speed I will almost certainly be finishing in the dark and air temperatures drop rapidly when the sun disappears.
On the bright side the long term forecast is predominantly northerlies between now and the next tides on about the 9th May and there are signs that the temperature is bouncing back.
With that in mind I am still training and will be doing a "Final" 6 hour swim at Takapuna on Thursday morning. To those swimmers who are interested I will be swimming to cable buoy on the hour from 7am and would welcome company. To those clients who might be following this blog I will respond to messages/emails late afternoon.
As with the last 7 sets of tides I am back at the mercy of the Wellington weather.
Wish me luck
As I discovered swimming at Takapuna through last winter low water temperatures on their own are surmountable. The problem now is that air temperature is starting to fall below water temperature. Combined with wind chill there can be significant heat loss through the back. The days are getting shorter and at my speed I will almost certainly be finishing in the dark and air temperatures drop rapidly when the sun disappears.
On the bright side the long term forecast is predominantly northerlies between now and the next tides on about the 9th May and there are signs that the temperature is bouncing back.
With that in mind I am still training and will be doing a "Final" 6 hour swim at Takapuna on Thursday morning. To those swimmers who are interested I will be swimming to cable buoy on the hour from 7am and would welcome company. To those clients who might be following this blog I will respond to messages/emails late afternoon.
As with the last 7 sets of tides I am back at the mercy of the Wellington weather.
Wish me luck
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Tuesday 26th April
Well, its 2 weeks on and we're into the next set of tides. I spoke to Philip Rush yesterday and Strait temperatures are still generally up around 16C with some cooler patches so it's still swimmable.
The Wellington weather is still being uncooperative and I need a major improvement by the end of the week if I'm to get away this set.
I managed 45km the week after the last set but have had a bit of a rest over Easter. Had a great 4km swim with Helen Adams and the team on Good Friday morning. Halls beach to Birkenhead wharf then down and around the harbour bridge pylon. The crew of harbourmasters RIB kept a suspicious eye on us for a while but obviously decided we knew what we were doing.
Auckland water is nearly down to 17 deg and there arent too many of us left in budgie smugglers.
There may be one more set of tides before the water in the Strait gets too cold starting about 10th May.
At this stage I'm sytill hoping for a chance late this week so check the blog on Friday.
The Wellington weather is still being uncooperative and I need a major improvement by the end of the week if I'm to get away this set.
I managed 45km the week after the last set but have had a bit of a rest over Easter. Had a great 4km swim with Helen Adams and the team on Good Friday morning. Halls beach to Birkenhead wharf then down and around the harbour bridge pylon. The crew of harbourmasters RIB kept a suspicious eye on us for a while but obviously decided we knew what we were doing.
Auckland water is nearly down to 17 deg and there arent too many of us left in budgie smugglers.
There may be one more set of tides before the water in the Strait gets too cold starting about 10th May.
At this stage I'm sytill hoping for a chance late this week so check the blog on Friday.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Bugger
We got as far as Hamilton before we got the news that its forecasted 30 knot Northerlies in the Strait tomorrow afternoon. We're now back in Auckland.
Why Hamilton? Cheapest flight ex AKL - $386. Cheapest ex Hamilton $96. 4 people do the math.
The lady swimming today got across in 9.5 hrs. Temperature range in the Strait was 17 to 14 degrees.
I'm now first in the queue and there is the possibility of a swim on Thursday so watch this space.
Why Hamilton? Cheapest flight ex AKL - $386. Cheapest ex Hamilton $96. 4 people do the math.
The lady swimming today got across in 9.5 hrs. Temperature range in the Strait was 17 to 14 degrees.
I'm now first in the queue and there is the possibility of a swim on Thursday so watch this space.
Monday, April 11, 2011
11th April 2011
Well, Here I am again and another 3 weeks down the track.
The Spanish swimmer got across successfully last set of tides in 8.5 hrs but I am told conditions were not pleasant. Conditions went downhill after that swim and now here we are at another set of tides.
I managed 43km in the week after the last tides and have been easing off over the last week. On Sunday I reluctantly sat out the Auckland Central Masters Rangi swim which was run in perfect conditions.
Missing Rangi was the right call in hindsight as I had a call from Philip Rush tonight and he's taking a swimmer across tomorrow and I'm packing my bag for Wednesday and hoping the weather holds.
We are dealing with Wellington weather here so there is still a strong element of chance involved.
I should know one way or another late afternoon tomorrow so my next blog will hopefully be from Wellington tomorrow night.
Watch this space
The Spanish swimmer got across successfully last set of tides in 8.5 hrs but I am told conditions were not pleasant. Conditions went downhill after that swim and now here we are at another set of tides.
I managed 43km in the week after the last tides and have been easing off over the last week. On Sunday I reluctantly sat out the Auckland Central Masters Rangi swim which was run in perfect conditions.
Missing Rangi was the right call in hindsight as I had a call from Philip Rush tonight and he's taking a swimmer across tomorrow and I'm packing my bag for Wednesday and hoping the weather holds.
We are dealing with Wellington weather here so there is still a strong element of chance involved.
I should know one way or another late afternoon tomorrow so my next blog will hopefully be from Wellington tomorrow night.
Watch this space
Friday, March 25, 2011
Friday 25th March
No, I'm not dead. Just a bit laid back about blogging when there's nothing to report.
The last set of tides (11th to 15th March) came and went with the wind in the Strait seldom dropping below 15 knots. I am now one of three in the queue.
Next set of tides is 26th to 31st March and I'm told a Spanish woman is first up. Looking at the 7 day forecast there's nothing likely to happen until the last 3 days.
My training now consists of a hard week (40+km including a 6 hr swim) in the week after a missed set of tides then a taper to the next set. Last week I did the beach series Tuesday, 3km Wednesday, 6hrs on Thursday, 3hrs Saturday and a 4km race with Hibiscus Tri club on Sunday (won it).
This weekend Saturday I will do the Mount Maunganui Ocean swim (unfortunately to be run in Pilot Bay because of the weather) and then a series of 1 hr swims through the week while I psyche myself up for a possible Strait swim later in the week .
You will see from the chart 2 days ago that temperatures in the strait are a bit chilly at present but they have been fluctuating between 14 and 19 since my original set of tides in January and they should be up again next week with a bit of Northerly weather.
There are probably 2 more sets of tides before the Strait gets too cold.
Watch this space mid next week
The last set of tides (11th to 15th March) came and went with the wind in the Strait seldom dropping below 15 knots. I am now one of three in the queue.
Next set of tides is 26th to 31st March and I'm told a Spanish woman is first up. Looking at the 7 day forecast there's nothing likely to happen until the last 3 days.
My training now consists of a hard week (40+km including a 6 hr swim) in the week after a missed set of tides then a taper to the next set. Last week I did the beach series Tuesday, 3km Wednesday, 6hrs on Thursday, 3hrs Saturday and a 4km race with Hibiscus Tri club on Sunday (won it).
This weekend Saturday I will do the Mount Maunganui Ocean swim (unfortunately to be run in Pilot Bay because of the weather) and then a series of 1 hr swims through the week while I psyche myself up for a possible Strait swim later in the week .
There are probably 2 more sets of tides before the Strait gets too cold.
Watch this space mid next week
Friday, March 4, 2011
Friday 4th March
Well, as you will have gathered from the silence Wellington weather put paid to any crossing attempts during the set of tides last weekend.
Philip Rush told me he got one swimmer across a couple of days before the last set of tides but she was very quick (7hrs 8 minutes) and had the speed to overcome deteriorating weather towards the end of the swim.
The next set runs from approx 11th to15th March and I've got my fingers crossed.
In the absence of a Strait swim last weekend I did the State ChristChurch fundraiser swim at Milford on Saturday plus a return trip from Takapuna - 7.5km.
On Sunday I did 2 trips to cable buoy plus Takapuna to Castor Bay - approx 11km.
Tuesday was with the usual suspects at the Beach series and yesterday I did 6 trips to the Takapuna Cable Buoy. It was great to have company - Richard Rice for the first leg, Helen Adams for legs 2, 3 and 4 and Hamish for the last leg. Average speed by my estimate 3.2 kph.
Today is a rest day as is tomorrow (going fishing). Sunday I will do the ACM Bays Swim and probably a return trip to the start.
Next week I'll be winding down to the next set of tides.
Next posting will be mid next week
Cheers
Geoff
Philip Rush told me he got one swimmer across a couple of days before the last set of tides but she was very quick (7hrs 8 minutes) and had the speed to overcome deteriorating weather towards the end of the swim.
The next set runs from approx 11th to15th March and I've got my fingers crossed.
In the absence of a Strait swim last weekend I did the State ChristChurch fundraiser swim at Milford on Saturday plus a return trip from Takapuna - 7.5km.
On Sunday I did 2 trips to cable buoy plus Takapuna to Castor Bay - approx 11km.
Tuesday was with the usual suspects at the Beach series and yesterday I did 6 trips to the Takapuna Cable Buoy. It was great to have company - Richard Rice for the first leg, Helen Adams for legs 2, 3 and 4 and Hamish for the last leg. Average speed by my estimate 3.2 kph.
Today is a rest day as is tomorrow (going fishing). Sunday I will do the ACM Bays Swim and probably a return trip to the start.
Next week I'll be winding down to the next set of tides.
Next posting will be mid next week
Cheers
Geoff
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Sunday 20th Feb
My apologies that the posts have been a bit sparse of late (in fact none).
The last set of tides (15thy to 18th Feb) came and went with the Wellington wind consistently over 15 knots. Maximum for a strait swim to start is a forecast of 10 knots variable or better.
I am now second in queue for the set of tides from 25th Feb to 1st Mar.
I will not be travelling to Wellington to wait and see if I get a swim but will wait and see when the allocated swimmer goes and then be prepared to travel down on the late flight that day if conditions are still good on the following day. I am unlikely to know for certain until about 7pm the night before the swim.
The consistent easterlies we have had in Auckland lately have been hard work but good training and I have been trying to keep swimming 40km + /week. this is usually made up of 10k Saturday, 10k Sunday and 20k 1 day midweek as well as the beach series sprints at Takapuna and Kohimarama on Tuesday and Thursday. These usually end up about 4km each including a bit of a warmup.
Last Saturday was the Bean Rock swim (3.1km) in very rough conditions and I was quite pleased with 7th place overall.
To set the record straight the Helen who has been pacing me on many of my longer swims is Helen Adams and not my wife Helen. My wife Helen thanks all those who have commented so favourably on her new found swimming prowess.
It's The Corsair Classic at Christchurch on Saturday 25th and (Wife) Helen and I will be flying down on the Friday. If all goes well we will be returning via Wellington.
The last set of tides (15thy to 18th Feb) came and went with the Wellington wind consistently over 15 knots. Maximum for a strait swim to start is a forecast of 10 knots variable or better.
I am now second in queue for the set of tides from 25th Feb to 1st Mar.
I will not be travelling to Wellington to wait and see if I get a swim but will wait and see when the allocated swimmer goes and then be prepared to travel down on the late flight that day if conditions are still good on the following day. I am unlikely to know for certain until about 7pm the night before the swim.
The consistent easterlies we have had in Auckland lately have been hard work but good training and I have been trying to keep swimming 40km + /week. this is usually made up of 10k Saturday, 10k Sunday and 20k 1 day midweek as well as the beach series sprints at Takapuna and Kohimarama on Tuesday and Thursday. These usually end up about 4km each including a bit of a warmup.
Last Saturday was the Bean Rock swim (3.1km) in very rough conditions and I was quite pleased with 7th place overall.
To set the record straight the Helen who has been pacing me on many of my longer swims is Helen Adams and not my wife Helen. My wife Helen thanks all those who have commented so favourably on her new found swimming prowess.
It's The Corsair Classic at Christchurch on Saturday 25th and (Wife) Helen and I will be flying down on the Friday. If all goes well we will be returning via Wellington.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Monday 7th
It has been a bit quiet on the blog front over the last week but I have not been resting.
I got in 4km Tuesday, 3km wednesday 20km Thurday 6km Saturday and 10km Sunday. Thanks to all of you who paced me on these swims, specially Helen who went well beyond the call of duty doing 3 laps on Thursday
It was frustrating not getting away on my set of tides but looking on the bright side as you will see from the temperature chart the surface temperatures in the Strait have risen 2 to 3 degrees over the last week.
Watch this space
I got in 4km Tuesday, 3km wednesday 20km Thurday 6km Saturday and 10km Sunday. Thanks to all of you who paced me on these swims, specially Helen who went well beyond the call of duty doing 3 laps on Thursday
It was frustrating not getting away on my set of tides but looking on the bright side as you will see from the temperature chart the surface temperatures in the Strait have risen 2 to 3 degrees over the last week.
I am second in line for the next set of tides which start Thursday or Friday this week. I will not know until 7 pm the night before and will be hopping on the late flight to Wellington for a (probably) early morning start.
It is now in the hands of the Wellington weather.
I plan to do the beach races on Tuesday and Thursday and a longer swim on wednesday evening. If the swim doesnt happen in the weekend I will probably do the Bean Rock swim.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
SUNDAY
My apologies for the lack of a post yesterday. As usual there was some uncertainty over the forecast and I got tied up with the Capital Classic (a 2.8k swim in Wellington Harbour). The wind dropped for long enough to make it a very pleasant swim
Friday was interesting with a swim at Lyall Bay and an interview with TVNZ The cameraman took his work very seriously and joined me in the surf to get live action footage. Lyall Bay was a bit of a shock to the system. It is a bit closer to Cook Strait than the inner harbour and by my estimate is a good 2 degrees colder.
I took the opportunity to drop in at the Worser Bay Surf Club after the swim. The Club held their centenary celebration this weekend and I was fortunate to meet the two pace men who swam with Barry Davenport on the historic first crossing of the Strait in 1962.
I got confirmation this evening that the weather tomorrow is not swimmable so this set of tides is officially over. I now take my place as second up swimmer in the next set of tides in approximately 2 weeks and of course subject to Wellington weather.
I had a short swim at Oriental Bay this morning with Jo, Megan and Helen who had been rash enough after a few wines last night to offer to join me for a non wetsuit swim. They said they enjoyed it but I think they were lying.
In the meantime I will be back at Takapuna on a regular basis and will hopfully catch up with many of you there.
Posts may be intermittent over the next few weeks. The next tide set is approx 11th to 14th Feb
Friday was interesting with a swim at Lyall Bay and an interview with TVNZ The cameraman took his work very seriously and joined me in the surf to get live action footage. Lyall Bay was a bit of a shock to the system. It is a bit closer to Cook Strait than the inner harbour and by my estimate is a good 2 degrees colder.
I took the opportunity to drop in at the Worser Bay Surf Club after the swim. The Club held their centenary celebration this weekend and I was fortunate to meet the two pace men who swam with Barry Davenport on the historic first crossing of the Strait in 1962.
I got confirmation this evening that the weather tomorrow is not swimmable so this set of tides is officially over. I now take my place as second up swimmer in the next set of tides in approximately 2 weeks and of course subject to Wellington weather.
I had a short swim at Oriental Bay this morning with Jo, Megan and Helen who had been rash enough after a few wines last night to offer to join me for a non wetsuit swim. They said they enjoyed it but I think they were lying.
In the meantime I will be back at Takapuna on a regular basis and will hopfully catch up with many of you there.
Posts may be intermittent over the next few weeks. The next tide set is approx 11th to 14th Feb
Friday, January 28, 2011
Friday
Yesterday I did 3 circuits of the capital Classic course in training.
Despite a short period of calm weather forecasted this morning the decision was made not to go. 20 knot northerlies are expected later in the morning and at my speed I would be still swimming when they arrived.
I am now heading down to the cooler waters of Lyall Bay for a training swim.
The forecast isnt good for the remainder of the tidal window so I will probably be seeing many of you at the Capital Classic tomorrow
Despite a short period of calm weather forecasted this morning the decision was made not to go. 20 knot northerlies are expected later in the morning and at my speed I would be still swimming when they arrived.
I am now heading down to the cooler waters of Lyall Bay for a training swim.
The forecast isnt good for the remainder of the tidal window so I will probably be seeing many of you at the Capital Classic tomorrow
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Wednesday
You will see from the GPS map that i am now resident in Wellington.
Tomorrow is the first day of my tidal window and the only place on the Met Service marine map with a gale warning in force is Cook Strait.
I had a quick swim in the harbour this afternoon (wind 30 knots onshore) to checkout the temperature. It felt good after the spa like temperatures we have had at Takapuna lately.
The long term outlook is not good at this stage but conditions can change quickly down here and we will just wait and see.
Tomorrow is the first day of my tidal window and the only place on the Met Service marine map with a gale warning in force is Cook Strait.
I had a quick swim in the harbour this afternoon (wind 30 knots onshore) to checkout the temperature. It felt good after the spa like temperatures we have had at Takapuna lately.
The long term outlook is not good at this stage but conditions can change quickly down here and we will just wait and see.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Tuesday
GPS tracking powered by InstaMapper.com
This map will follow my phone during the swim.
Swam the Takapuna Beach series this evening - 2 k warmup and 1.5k race.
Off to Wellington tomorrow afternoon and into the water as soon as possible to get used to the cold again.
Confirmation of the swim Time will be approx 7pm the night before and I will post details as soon as available
This map will follow my phone during the swim.
Swam the Takapuna Beach series this evening - 2 k warmup and 1.5k race.
Off to Wellington tomorrow afternoon and into the water as soon as possible to get used to the cold again.
Confirmation of the swim Time will be approx 7pm the night before and I will post details as soon as available
Monday, January 24, 2011
Monday
There was no post Sunday as it was all a bit of a non event. The Red Beach race was cancelled due to gale force on shore winds and when I turned up at the Parnell Pools in the afternoon they were closed due to flooding. Nice to have a rest day. I Spoke to Philip Rush who counselled strongly against looking at weather forecasts and trying to second guess Wellington weather. Said it would "do my head in". Could this phenomena account for some of the decisions that seem to come out of Wellington?
Cook Strait temperatures have fallen with the recent bad weather - mental note - more rum required.
Parnell pool still out of commission today due to flooding so ended up swimming in the seaweed soup at Takapuna. Closest I'm ever likely to get to walking on water.
Cook Strait temperatures have fallen with the recent bad weather - mental note - more rum required.
Parnell pool still out of commission today due to flooding so ended up swimming in the seaweed soup at Takapuna. Closest I'm ever likely to get to walking on water.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Saturday
Takapuna 7am and its like grand central station - nearly run (swum)down by a herd (school) of triathletes en route to cable buoy.
Second trip at 8 and I am joined by a huge group of toilet blockers. I hasten to add, the toilet blockers are a very charming group who are so named because they start their swims at the Takapuna beach toilet block and no other reason.
Forecast for tomorrow is not good - rain and strong nor easterlies. It sounds like a sleep in then a toss up between the Red Beach race and a pool session later in the day.
Second trip at 8 and I am joined by a huge group of toilet blockers. I hasten to add, the toilet blockers are a very charming group who are so named because they start their swims at the Takapuna beach toilet block and no other reason.
Forecast for tomorrow is not good - rain and strong nor easterlies. It sounds like a sleep in then a toss up between the Red Beach race and a pool session later in the day.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Friday
I Got a swim in at Parnell Pool this afternoon - 7km in just under 2 hrs. I'm still trying to get the chlorinated salt taste out of my mouth.
I will try and get a swim in at Taka early tomorrow but by the look of the forecast I will be back to Parnell pool on Sunday.
There are probaby many of you who dont know where I will be swimming to cross the Strait. The chart to the right shows the SST (sea surface temperatures) in Cook Strait a couple of days ago and the black line is approximately the route I will be taking. This line is a very optimistic depiction of my route and the real path will probably have a bit of a curve to it. The path is more East/West than North/South
The direction of the swim is yet to be decided and will depend on conditions on the day. On the chart the temperatures appear to range from about 14 to 17 degrees along the route but due to the proximity of cold deep water either side of the Strait colder patches are likely. Brrrrr
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Thursday
Great conditions at Takapuna this morning at 6. Did 2 trips to cable buoy (56 and 58mins) it was a bit choppier on the second trip.
I planned to swim the 2k race at Kohimarama tonight but misjudged the Auckland traffic and missed the start. Forecast through to Monday is southeasterlies so I plan to concentrate on some speed work at the Parnell pool
I planned to swim the 2k race at Kohimarama tonight but misjudged the Auckland traffic and missed the start. Forecast through to Monday is southeasterlies so I plan to concentrate on some speed work at the Parnell pool
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Rest Day
I Had a rest day (from swimming) today and concentrated on clearing the desk for next week. My tidal window is Thursday the 27th until sunday 31st Jan. Those are the days when the tidal flow through the Strait is at a minimum and a crossing is feasible. The other condition I am looking for is a Wellington wind forecast of less than 10 knots. If you know Wellington this is a bit of an ask.
I am now eating for two (me and my wetsuit). Wetsuits are not allowed for the swim so I need to pack back on a bit of the lard I have shed over recent months.
The forecast for tomorrow is offshore winds at Takapuna so I will be heading down to swim a couple of hours before breakfast.
I am now eating for two (me and my wetsuit). Wetsuits are not allowed for the swim so I need to pack back on a bit of the lard I have shed over recent months.
The forecast for tomorrow is offshore winds at Takapuna so I will be heading down to swim a couple of hours before breakfast.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Background
As many of you will know I had some shoulder problems last week but a couple of sessions with Physios seemed to do the trick and I managed to complete the 10k epic at Taupo on Saturday and the 2.5k Masters championship on Sunday in mainly choppy conditions and no shoulder problems.
Taupo is a good swim. Water temp approx 20c and you can see the bottom all the way. Its a bit unnerving to see all the golf balls and know you are swimming through a driving range.
Its Tuesday night and Im off for an early night having done a 2hr swim at Parnell this afternoon. Its hard to believe that I am just over a week away from the swim.
My thanks to everyone who has swum with me and encouraged me over the last year. Between now and the swim I will be swimming solo as I need to find my own pace which is probably going to be a bit slower than the usual race to Cable buoy.
You will see a map on the blog with a small track going out from Tamaki Drive. This was my Nephew Isaac bravely paddling out from fergs Kayaks in a 30 knot northerly today to test out a tracking system which will hopefully allow you to follow my progress on the Strait.
Taupo is a good swim. Water temp approx 20c and you can see the bottom all the way. Its a bit unnerving to see all the golf balls and know you are swimming through a driving range.
Its Tuesday night and Im off for an early night having done a 2hr swim at Parnell this afternoon. Its hard to believe that I am just over a week away from the swim.
My thanks to everyone who has swum with me and encouraged me over the last year. Between now and the swim I will be swimming solo as I need to find my own pace which is probably going to be a bit slower than the usual race to Cable buoy.
You will see a map on the blog with a small track going out from Tamaki Drive. This was my Nephew Isaac bravely paddling out from fergs Kayaks in a 30 knot northerly today to test out a tracking system which will hopefully allow you to follow my progress on the Strait.
Monday, January 17, 2011
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