If you are training for your first Triathlon, I have one question for you: Have you swam in open water yet?
Well, I have another question too: Do you have a wetsuit if you need one?
Don’t delay! Get out in that water. I may say this a hundred times over the course of this series, but open water swimming is much different than the pool and you will want to get familiar with it before race day.
What do you need to know?
How to sight in open water: It is important to know where you are going and you will have a hard time learning this by following the black line at the bottom of the pool.
Breathing: It is much different breathing in open water than in the pool. Even if the water seems calm it will have more movement than the pool ever will.
Don’t swim alone. If you are new to open water, find a swimming partner. Even seasoned triathletes swim with partners or in groups. If you don’t know anyone, find triathlon groups in your area. Often the group open water swims are open to anyone in order to promote safety in numbers. Your swimming partners can be any level of swimmer, as long as you both are in the water together you are better off than being alone.
