Pool time

Down to the pool this morning, getting in my weekly swim session. I almost wasn't going to head to the pool as I hadn't actually secured a spot in the Swim Smooth squad for the morning, but I managed to snag one last minute so it was all good. If I hadn't got into the squad I was considering going for an open water swim instead, but the pool was always going to be easier. One thing that wasn't under consideration was skipping the swim all together, one thing I definitely needed to do today was go swimming.

Why the urgent drive to swim? Well because I am doing a swimming race in a little bit over a week.

A what???

I know right, a swimming race. What was I thinking?

Actually this isn't a new, last minute thing, but rather a decision I made quite some months ago. There is an annual swimming event here in Perth called the Busselton Jetty Swim, which, perhaps unsurprisingly, occurs at the Busselton Jetty. More specifically the swim occurs around the Jetty.

Yes you are correct, that is the same swim course as the old Busselton Ironman course, although the Jetty Swim is a wee bit shorter at 3.6km, mainly because the Jetty is 1.6km long and there is no need to make the swim any longer (as is required by Ironman). The Ironman actually used to go a bit past the end of the Jetty to get the required distance.

The event is one that I have always wanted to do, the location is pretty iconic, the event is well run and lets face it, most Western Australian Ironman athletes have a soft spot for swimming around the jetty, particularly now that the swim course in the Ironman has changed. However, the race is notoriously difficult to get an entry, it is one of those events that typically sells out in hours. I tried in 2017, but was way too late in trying to get an entry and didn't manage to get one through cancellations. I got one last year but then had to pull out for health reasons. When the entries came up this year I thought, "You know what, this is my year" and I pulled the trigger, concerns about swimming fitness be damned.

This race is one of the reasons that I have been swimming pretty religiously for the past couple of months. Obviously I enjoy the sessions too, but in the back of my head there has always been the knowledge that I had to swim 3.6km in February so needed to get in the water. I am not actually concerned about the distance, but I do know that there is an easy way to do the race and a hard way, and I would prefer to do it the easy way if I can. I am not under any illusion that paddling and one swim a week will get me through the race in any form of style, but I do think it has been enough to mean the race will be okay (my hope anyway). But I also have been aware that only swimming once meant that I have had to make that session count.

So far I think I have managed that.