I swam my first 5k on Sunday:
http://hazyracing.weebly.com/5k-swim-race.html
Was visiting family in PA, and noticed that this was nearby, and it was only $25. Heck for that, if I woke up and the weather was crummy, I would have just gone back to bed.
My finish time was about 1:33, which was a little slower than I had wanted, but not bad for a first time. I hadn't been swimming (or doing much of anything) for the past few weeks either. Went nearly from one vacation in the Canadian Maritimes (where I swam just twice) to another in PA. I did get in a few lake swims before/after, which I think helped.
A couple of quirks about this race:
* they also did a sprint triathlon, that started first. the fog was very thick (I'll add in a picture of before/after), that they delayed the start about 30 min.
* it was 4 loops around a kind of rectangular course. we had to get out every loop to walk across a meter to get splits (never had that happen before)
* on my 3rd and 4th loops, the kayakers on one side kept pushing swimmers toward the side of the lake. I was sighting and trying to swim the most direct route (as that is how distance is measured). I thought maybe it was just me, but I chatted with some others afterward and they agreed. Then we noticed they did it to others who were still in the water after we finished.
* there were 30 people who began, 29 finished (not sure why the 1 guy dropped out). just a handful wore wetsuits, I'm guessing maybe 5 max. I wore just a brief and was fine.
Water temp was about perfect--72F. Wasn't too clear, and I was a bit cautious with even trying to stand at the start, never know what you're standing on
Given the cost, I'll definitely try to do this again. Can always swing a visit with family, and it was only 25 min from my Mom's house. ^
Here's the before/after pictures of the lake:
before:
after:
On Friday (2 days before), I went with my sister and kids to Ricketts Glen State Park. Probably did much more hiking (about 7 miles) than I should have, but I was rewarded with some awesome waterfall views!