Success!

I just returned from the winter swim festival, and this year was awesome! Especially because I completed the 200 and felt great doing it. I thoroughly expected to be last, but I actually was third to last, and beat the woman who I swam against!! Not that time is everything, but I was so happy with how I did.

We stayed at a new airbnb, which we all really liked and will try to book again. It was right on the water and had lovely views, a nice kitchen, and enough space for all of us to have space...  The only flaw was that we could have used one more bedroom. Every morning I cooked breakfast - pancakes Friday, french toast Saturday and cinnamon rolls Sunday. We also had a big group for Saturday dinner, where we had Thai food. And, I was able to get my laundry done :)

The big event, of course, was the swimming. The first event was the hat race - I went a little political with an anti-ICE sort of thing out of paper mache. It took a while to make, and I had a lot of fun with it. It's only a 25 meter swim, but it's good to get into the icy pool and see what it will be like. 

The big race, of course, was the 200 on Friday. It was 17 degrees out, with 20 mph winds and a "feels like" temp of 1. The water is 31 degrees and on Friday you could see it freeze over between swimmers. The 200 was after lunch, and I was so nervous about it, but I reminded myself that I'd done it so many times in practice and been fine, it was just like any other swim, and I just had to pace myself and go for it. When they said to go I took off a little too fast, and by the end of the first length was feeling a little breathless. You are required to have a spotter for the swim, and my friend who was spotting me told me to slow down a little after the first length, which was really good advice. I felt a little puffy, and could feel the strain in my body in the second length, but by the time I was 1/4 of the way done I could tell I was solid and I started to feel more confident. By the end of the second lap I was feeling strong and started to try to focus on my stroke and swimming more efficiently. And by the fifth length I knew I was going to make it and I started feeling good. I was so psyched when I finished and actually beat the person who I was swimming against. It felt like real redemption from last year.

After the swim I went into the lovely warming hut and got to dunk my hands and feet in hot water. They had these socks filled with rice that they microwave for you that feel so good. It was such a good feeling to sit there and warm up, knowing I had done what I set out to do, and feeling like a bit of a bad ass, because it was HARD! I was so happy with it. It took me about 5 minutes and 15 seconds, so for next year I'm going to try to be a little faster.

The second day of the festival I volunteered as an escort, walking swimmers down to the pool and then back up to the warming room after. I really enjoyed it, though I was a bit exhausted by the end of the day. The weather on Saturday was beautiful, sunny and no wind, and warmer - about 20-25 degrees. I went there with three layers on, and immediately had to take 2 of them off because I was sweating. After they have a dinner and awards and such, and then we all chilled at the house. It was so nice out that I thought I would swim the 100 on Sunday, but by the time Sunday morning came along it was windy again, snowing and cold. I had done what I came to do, and decided that I didn't need to go all crazy, so I just did the race I was registered for which was a 4 person relay where we each swam a 50. We had a team of folks from my swim group, and I offered to go first because you stay and cheer your teammates at the end, and that's really cold when you are wet. Two of the other swimmers did the 100, so I though it would be better for them to go later. Anyhow, when I got in the woman in the other lane was so fast that she was almost finished by the time I turned around. Now that's the type of swim race I'm used to :)  I think I built it up in my head as not being a big deal because it was so short, but it was still really cold in the water. After I went into the warming hut and really enjoyed holding one of the hot socks.

I was bummed about the snow because I had to drive home, and I was worried the roads would be bad. I left after lunch and it was totally fine - a little slippery at first, but no real concerns. I got home and plan to sit on my couch for the rest of the evening. All and all a good weekend, and I'm so glad it's over :)