Sun Goes Down On Salford

Thursday was the last scheduled swim in Salford Docks for this season. Boating, kayaking and other activities will continue, but sadly no more swims till next spring. Boo hoo! 

So, with the fantastic raised temperatures of this Indian Summer, we just had to go and have a final dip before hanging up our wetsuits for the winter. And, having said that, I'm not ruling out the possibility of a swim when we're up in the Lakes at the end of the month. Especially if this weather continues - who knows?

Raised air temperature is a tricky old thing, it lulls you into thinking the water will be balmy too. I considered going in without the wetsuit as it's such a nuisance. However, cowardliness prevailed and I took the plunge, suited up. At 15.3C, it was bracing, definite ice cream headache when I first put my head under, but that soon faded. We did two laps - half a mile -  relishing the sunset and the clean, sweet water. 
And I keep checking the Salford Watersports website, secretly hoping against hope that they'll relent and give us a stay of execution - a couple more chances to enjoy the weather and the water before calling time for 2011.

Horizontal Buoys

The training continues - last Saturday morning, one circuit of the dock - 400m, 14.5C. This morning, two circuits, 800m, 13.8C. I'm acclimatising but it was very blooming cold - and I didn't wear socks! 

And choppy - at one point the great big buoys that mark the corners of the course were flat on the surface of the water, the wind was so strong. But by then the swimming seemed to get easier, I was bouncing along doing breaststroke, ducking my head under each wave - I got a great rhythm going!

So apart from pool swimming during the week -  2K now in under an hour - I'll be in the dock for three circuits next Saturday morning, then four the week after. Hopefully the temperature might start to rise......  The following Saturday - 18 June - is the real thing in Windermere, but I feel ready for it now. The buzz after Saturday morning swims seems to power me through the rest of the day......

Waiting at traffic lights for a tram to pass on the way home afterwards, I had to snap this lovely little iron grille in the dock wall

We Are The Champions!

Blowing my alias...what the hell...blame the adrenalin high!! 

Self with warthog, gazelle and Eve's young man. Strange item between my legs is woolly hat. Too doolally still to put it on head. 

What an afternoon! Traffic diversions (because of Manchester 10K ) so long-winded I thought we wouldn't get there in time. But we did.....

I was third last to come in at the end of the day, so I had a personal escort of kayakers - who were all totally lovely and encouraging - thank you so much guys and gals

Thrilled, but too worn out to say much this evening, so here are some pictures

next time, my goal is to build up the front crawl

from the canal into Ontario Basin and the final section

always time for a chat. This guy will be kayaking again at the Windermere swim in a month's time

Dock 9, Huron Basin, the starting area - just about dismantled

Imperial  War Museum and The Lowry

Media City

view to a bridge

the BBC's new home

What a wonderful day despite grim weather and low temperatures. My time: 01:06:51. One month now to train towards shaving off some minutes at Windermere.

Sporting Heroes

Just dropped Pete, Eddie and Eve (husband, son, daughter) in town as Pete and Eddie are running the Manchester 10K at 12.10 before doing the swim this afternoon. Gluttons for punishment!  Eve is the communication link and support team.

Eddie is a lovely, lanky 16-year-old, so Pete said it would be like watching a warthog and a gazelle.

I think he's being just a bit hard on himself!

And now I'm watching the coverage on BBC2, they keep flashing across to Salford where the first wave has just completed the course.

The commentator is saying the water is absolutely freezing and he'd need two wetsuits to even consider it......

The participants all look quite cheery though.....oh my god, that's me in three hours twenty minutes.....

Getting in the Zone

Where did all the hot weather go? The blazing sun that should have been warming up the water in Salford Docks this week? 

Tomorrow is the Great Swim and we're in the last wave at 3.20. The cameras will be rolling, and broadcasting live on BBC 2. Ulp! No pressure then.....

This is my cap - you'll be able to spot me bringing up the rear and staggering over the finish line. 

I swam 3/4 mile yesterday, and a mile on Thursday in 45 minutes - a great time for me. I'd be very impressed if I managed a time like that tomorrow. 

Here's the all-important chip that'll keep track of me

and here's that great poem from Sharon Olds, that seems to sum it all up

The Swimming Race

Noon, Orinda Park Pool, three girls

in rubber caps sculpted with rubber

roses, and they had put our fathers

at the far end of our lanes. We curled

our toes over the edge, the gun went off -

they dove cleanly, as I jumped. By the time 

I had surfaced, and started to dog-paddle, they had

finished the race, their fathers had drawn them up

dripping and were handing them sateen ribbons with

rosettes, a red and a cobalt blue,

I held up my head as he'd taught me, and swam

like a dog toward his end of the pool. The day

was temperate and cloudless, live-oaks

in a large cluster full of yellow-jackets to my left,

the lawn to my right, and there before me, 

at the end of my lane - black lines

on the bottom of the pool, where the drowned would lie -

was my father. I paddled, I felt myself approach him,

I was grinning because of the prize I would win

for coming in third, a Big Hunk bar -

the milk and honey on the other side -

and because my father was getting bigger,

leaning toward me, his arms open.

He pulled me out, and held my hand

up by the wrist. My sister sneered, she said

Why did you lift Shary's fist

when she was last? and he smiled, a smile almost

without meanness, one of the last

times we saw him smile, he said

I thought she was winner of the next race, and his

face flushed with pleasure and the shade of the yardarm.

Sharon Olds

from The Wellspring, 1995

Oh bring on that yardarm!!

Fairweather Friend

Great Salford Swim is on Sunday 15 May and Great North Swim is on Saturday 18 June, so time is of the essence and we need as much training as possible in the next two weeks. 

Now that Salford is open for training 6.30 - 8.30 on Monday and Thursday evenings, and Saturday mornings 8 - 11 there is plenty of opportunity. 

After two outdoor swims last week, I thought I was into the swing of it. However, after a weekend of brilliant sunshine but bitter winds I couldn't face getting into the cold water this evening. I went down to offer moral support to my husband and son but I had no regrets about my decision not to take the plunge. 

There was a very strong wind so the water was extremely choppy, and I reckon at least couple of degrees colder than the advertised temperature of 13.2C. 

They managed one uncomfortable circuit with the wind against them all the way round. I was completely nithered watching them (as my mum used to say) so they were chilled through when they hauled themselves out. Top marks for bravery, boys!

Now I'm praying that the wind will drop and the sun shine continually till Saturday to get the temp up before my next decision about whether to opt for the docks or the pool.....

Thrills and Spills

Not long back from Salford Quays where we swam two circuits of the 400m course. Their opening swim of the season!  13.5C - so a bit nippy to start, but tingling when we warmed up and fantastic to be back in the docks again.

Monday at Gaddings was also great, swam 750m, the last 10 minutes or so without a wetsuit, phew it certainly makes a difference.

And speaking of wetsuits.....I am just getting over the fact that my obliging husband cut it with his nail helping me on with it.....before it even touched the water.....my bad humour took till Wednesday to lift. In my fury I reminded him of this Jean Sprackland poem which I introduced him to after some similar outrage a while back

The Apprentice

I married a man with clumsy hands

whose touch left me fingerprinted with bruises.

I had to keep him from my bed

till he learned some delicacy.

I wanted him dextrous

so I trained him on nimble tasks. First time

hanging out washing, he snapped a dozen pegs,

let underwear fall in the wet grass.

Then I had him sowing lettuces,

pricking out the seedlings, growing them on.

He was close to tears with the smallness of the work.

I schooled him in needle and thread,

a hard apprenticeship in gentleness.

He fumbled the button, knocked the licked end of thread

against the stubborn eye of the needle,

stabbed his fingertip. Blood on his white shirt.

One night, after dinner, the final test:

unfastening my silver necklace.

When I felt those skilful fingers

lift my hair and charm the tiny clasp apart,

I stood astonished, sheened in desire. I turned

and took his hands, set them free.

Jean Sprackland

from Hard Water (Cape Poetry)

Harrumph. But a wonderful poem - and a great collection.

Head for the Hills

Yesterday the water temperature at Gaddings Dam was 15.4C - a veritable hot tub! - so that's where we're headed this afternoon to kick off the open water swimming season in these parts. 

I got a new wetsuit when TriCentral had a clearance sale a few weeks ago, it will have its inaugural dip today - may God bless her and all who swim in her!

Important Disclaimer: This is the wetsuit but this is not me...

Season's End

First thing next Saturday (23 October) Salford watersports centre runs the last open water swim of this season. Today the water temperature is 16.5 - 2 degrees warmer than when we swam there three weeks ago, so I think we'll nip down and do a couple of laps to bid farewell till April...which, sadly, seems a long way off, now that the days are getting shorter...

The session takes place in Ontario Basin. I found this beautiful poem that references the two great lakes that the other basins at Salford are named after. Up above is the bridge where one basin runs into the other.

The Huron

I swam the Huron of love, and am not ashamed,

It was many saw me do it, scoffing, scoffing,

They said it was foolish, winter and all,

But I dove in, greaselike, and swam,

And came up where Erie verges.

I would say for the expenditure of love,

And the atrophy of longing, there is no cure

So swift, so sleek, so fine, so draining

As a swim through the Huron in the wintertime.

Ruth Herschberger

from Women's Work: Modern Women Poets Writing In English ed. Eva Salzman & Amy Wack, Seren

Wouldn't It Be Nice...

I do love that song

and it's October, almost time for the Bermuda Round the Sound swim that I mentioned here last year. Maybe one of these years we'll just grab the chance to join in

A Local Swim For Local People...

...well not really - but it was great to be only minutes from the venue!

Here is the medal awarded at the end of the swim - yes!! we made it!

And here are some happy people who have just had a workout to Lady Gaga before entering the water to Oasis Roll With It - fantastic!!

Book us in for next year - wonderful course! And take a peep in the Manchester Evening News tomorrow!!

On the Shoulders of Giants...

Sunny Lowry - cousin of L.S. (painter of matchstick people and after whom the Lowry Arts Centre is named) yes she of cross Channel fame - ate eight-egg omelettes before her Channel swims. 

I've had one egg, two rashers bacon, two slices bread and butter (Warburton's medium white) half  a sausage and two cups delicious coffee.

Here we go...

On Your Marks...

Another bad night's sleep - a combination of pre-match nerves and knowing that I needed to be up early. Anyhoo, we woke to a crisp, clear morning, bright but very chilly as we made our way down to the docks. There were fewer people in than last Saturday, only about a dozen, and as we approached the dark waters (14 degrees C  and barefoot this week, I decided to leave the socks off) I would happily have turned round and gone back to bed. But I am made of sterner stuff, so in we jumped! 

Ohhhh, that initial shock, physical, physiological, psychological, - mind and body shouting danger, get out of here fast. But gradually the breathing calmed down and off we went. One lap, chatting about Roger Deakin, sidestroke, dog paddle, breaststroke and finally crawl...with the face underwater... just enough to take the edge off tomorrow's fear...

(yes, if you're looking closely - that is a shopping trolley in Fisherman's Wharf...!!!)

  And tomorrow, if anyone's in Salford Quays, I'm in the 2.30 wave, you'll recognise me by my wetsuit and green hat, oops, just like 199 others. Well, my number is 5085 - please come over and wish me luck!

Testing the Water

Last night I didn't sleep too well as I knew we were swimming at Salford Quays this morning.

The session was from 7.30 until 9.00, we were up with the larks, rubbered up and into the waters of Ontario Basin at 7.48. Woo hoo!

I decided to wear my swim socks, but the water was surprisingly warm. In fact, I quickly realised that I'd rather have been swimming without a wetsuit. I know it's an aid to buoyancy - you aren't going to sink when you're wearing one - but it certainly interferes with my ability to swim as efficiently and really tires me out. Next year I think I'll invest in a thinner one. In the meantime I'm considering whether to cut the suit's legs off just above the knees to give me a bit more control when I'm swimming breaststroke.

Anyway, the whole experience was fantastic - I'm so glad we did it. Where Windermere is sweet, brown and translucent, the water today was sweet and green. At one point I thought I saw an eel swimming in front of me, but decided not to dwell on this as eels are a bit snaky and I didn't want to think about them too much.

The course was 400m, and 4 laps equals a mile - the length of next Sunday's swim. We decided to do 2 laps - which felt like quite an achievement after our limited outdoor swimming this summer.

When we got out we were buzzing, home for a high carb breakfast - I was ravenous - then the exertions caught up with me and I spent the afternoon sleeping!

A couple of pool swims, another trip to the Quays next Saturday, then the real thing next Sunday. I'm looking forward to seeing the venue taking shape this week!

To Swim or Not To Swim?

that was the question.

To help us make the decision, I thought it would be a good idea to go down to the docks this afternoon and check out the course for the Great Salford Swim. After puzzling over the geography of the route, we asked at the water sports centre and suddenly it all made perfect sense...

Starting in Huron Basin between The Lowry and Media City - the new location for the BBC...

 ...the course for the swim goes down to Erie Basin

hooks round and left into Fisherman's Wharf...

where the water was clear with the sun on it...

and into Ontario Basin for a final triumphal circuit 

The course is varied and we felt excited enough to sign up, without further ado.

So tomorrow's task is a mile in the pool to get the next two weeks of training off to a cracking start...

Great North Saga

Two options have been offered in the aftermath of the cancellation - not a postponement - of the Windermere swim: money back or defer entry to the 2011 Great North Swim. We've decided to go for the defer option. 

And we're now weighing up whether to enrol for the Salford Great Swim on 26 September...

The Family that Swims Together.....

Family outing to Hathersage today as it's our middle daughter's twentieth birthday and we often go there for a swim in the open air pool as part of her celebration. Three generations ranging from 81 down to 6 months - not everyone had a dip, but I think everyone enjoyed the day.

It was a bit chilly, which kept the crowds at bay, but when the sun came out - heaven in a pool. And the water, as always, warm and welcoming. Best bit of course was when the heavens opened. When raindrops hit the water it's truly wonderful to witness and be part of it at their level.

Next Saturday it's the Great North Swim and all our documentation etc arrived today. I feel very unprepared. To paraphrase Scarlett O'Hara, I will think about that tomorrow...  

Holiday Hydrotherapy

Just getting ready to go on holiday, why does the preparation take so long, why do I find it so hard to get out of the door? Here I am doing this, when I should be ironing or getting off to bed or something.....

There seems to be an evening of swimming on BBC Four and at the moment Alice Roberts is introducing wild swimming. It's late, so I must turn off and turn in, but maybe I'll steal a quiet moment tomorrow to catch up on this programme. And I think I'll go and pack Roger Deakin's Waterlog to take with me as inspirational holiday reading.....

One that got away

What faint-hearted, poor excuse for an outdoor swimmer am I ?

My friend from Dublin is over for the weekend for her daughter's graduation. This morning we were meant to be meeting at Hatchmere in Cheshire for a dip. As I've never swum there before, and as we were in Chester yesterday, me and 'im indoors did a recce on our way back home. 

The lake was smallish and lovely, no swimmers there, but several fishermen brollied up on the banks - always a sight that makes my heart sink. 

There's been a well publicised campaign by Hatchmere swimmers, asserting their entitlement to swim in the lake. Some kind of agreement has been reached. The swimming and fishing communities now rub along beside each other, apparently. But as I've never actually tried it, I was a bit wary about finding out for myself how accepting the fisherfolk on the frontline might be in practice. 

Sunday in Manchester dawned, damp, grey and miserable. Making an early morning cuppa I wondered whether we could cry off. No, that would be too mean on my friend, who I imagined would be heartbroken not to swim in an English lake.

At 9.30 the phone rang. She too was having doubts. Yes, we shelved the plan! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Three Cheers! Hip hip Hurrah!

Oh, the unexpected luxury of a day when the wettest I'll get is in the shower or dodging raindrops.

Photo: Jacov Lev

Take Me To Your Lido

I ordered this book about a week ago and it arrived this evening so I'm very eager to start reading asap. It's chock full of great pictures of old pools and lidos from England, Wales and Scotland, but it's more than just a picture book. Using case histories, Janet Smith 'tells the story of Britain's beloved lidos with verve, scholarsip and passion.' It's beautifully presented, feels very substantial and has great reviews from all the readers on Amazon, so without further ado, I'll get off now and make a start.....