The waves before the storm!

0
1688
Sep 19, 2015... and still swimmin!  28 swimmers and 68F/19C!!!
Sep 19, 2015… and still swimmin!      38 swimmers and 68F/19C!!!

Well that was interesting!

Mike and I got down there early to set up (and Mauro was already there setting up… thanks guys!) and there was hardly a ripple on the water… but by the time we got in the water it was rockin’!  Weird morning actually, because by the time we were packing up and most people had left the waves were dying down again?!

At 68F degrees... nobody wanted to get out!
At 68F degrees… nobody wanted to get out!
... deflating the buoys after they almost blew away!
… deflating the buoys after they almost blew away!
Chris... lovin' it!
Chris… lovin’ it!

It actually made for an interesting swim.  The kayaking was a bit more challenging though!  I kinda felt bad for Mike and Dylan.  We pumped up the 3 large buoys and they towed them out and put them in place.  I gave my little speech.  We all got in and started swimming.  And then we noticed the buoys seemed to be in a bit bigger loop than when we started!  They were blowing away!  They still had weights on them, but they were still blowing away!

Well, always looking at the bright side of things… the water was toasty warm, 68F/19C … and there was no rain yet!

The long and short of it was it was still a fun swim, and with warm water it makes it fun to just surf around in the waves!

I ran into two other groups that seemed to be enjoying the wind and waves… a pair of beautiful swans that came over to check us out (not sure if those are the same two swans that were in the exact same place when they came out to greet me as I finished the last 50m of my Lake O Crossing 3 years ago, but I wouldn’t be surprised!)… and some kite boarders!

two other groups that didn't seem to mind the wind and the waves... the swans...
two other groups that didn’t seem to mind the wind and the waves… the swans…
... and the kite-boarders!!!  They were on their way into Toronto!!!
… and the kite-boarders!!! They were on their way into Toronto!!!

I went up and spoke to the kite boarders and they were getting 4 or 5 set up to kite board all the way in to Toronto!  They said it would likely take them 2-3 hours to do it… I said the way the waves were rolling it felt like we could have raced them!  (but I was a bit reluctant to put any money on that! haha)  It looked really cool, I’ve always wanted to try it.  I’m not sure who was more fascinated by what each other was doing… them or us!  Just cool to see more people out enjoying the lake!

So far so good… we’ll see how the weather and water temp holds out, but if the season suddenly ends, as it often does, I’ll send out an email and let you all know… otherwise… see you next Saturday!

PS.  for those analytically minded (like myself), I went back in my log book to see when we ended LOST Swimming in previous years, my log book goes back to 2003, but I only started LOST in 2006 and in the early years there was only a handful of us, so it just ended when we didn’t show up:

Get out for a swim now... before it looks like this!  This really was Lake O in 2015!
Get out for a swim now… before it looks like this! This really was Lake O in 2015!
  • Aug 30, 2014
  • Sep 7, 2013
  • Sep 15, 2012
  • Sep 24, 2011
  • Sep 11, 2010
  • Aug 29, 2009
  • Sep 13, 2008
  • Aug 25, 2007
  • Aug 19, 2006 (because I left for Dover… to swim the English Channel!)

Cheers,

Rob

Previous articleThe warmest swim this year!!!
Next articleSaving the best for last!!!
I founded LOST Swimming because I like open water swimming and would like to see it grow and thrive in Lake Ontario. I started as a competitive swimmer as a kid and ended up getting as far as a silver medal at Nationals and going to the Olympic Trials in 1988. But I retired after that, I was sick of swimming. So I got into running marathons and have run over 35 to date, as well as a few ultra marathons, including the Marathon des Sables (7 day, ultra across the Sahara Desert). I also kind of fell into triathlons and have done a handful of Ironman tri's too. This gradually got me back in the water and in 2006 I took the plunge and attempted swimming the English Channel. I didn't quite make it across, but the circle was now complete and after 17 years I was a swimmer again! Although I still do plenty of pool swimming, I now much prefer open water swimming and like to say that open water swimming is to pool swimming, what trail running is to treadmill running! As a result I hope to encourage more people to join me for a dip in Lake Ontario as often as we can!