adrian is rad

I just signed up for the Alcatraz Sharkfest Swim, which is a mile and a half swim from Alcatraz to Aquatic Park in San Francisco. The Bay is about 60-62 degrees at that time of the year.

I was signed up last year but an injury kept me from swimming.

I swam yesterday, starting either my third or fourth week back swimming since I hurt my elbow last April. I’ve swum since April, but not much; I’ve probably swum as much since the beginning of the year, about three times a week, as I did in all the other time combined. My elbow is a bit tender, but it seems to be holding up alright. I won’t swim on consecutive days (yet) to try to rest it between swims. I’ve been swimming with an elbow brace as well.

Overall I’ve been feeling pretty good in the water. I’ve been swimming fairly conservatively and trying to glide a lot. I feel like I’m swimming pretty slowly, but I pass people who are trashing around (and look like they must be zipping through the water) so I can’t be going too slow. Could I swim the race tomorrow? I’m pretty sure I could swim 1.5 miles in the pool if I had to, but in the cold water with waves and without the benefit of turns (which save energy and time)? I wouldn’t like to try.

Every time I seem to be doing alright swimming, I hurt myself. I hurt my knee in August of 2003 at the end of a 2 hours, 3.5 mile swim in the MIT pool (I was seeing how much I could swim in two hours). That put an end to my breakstroke, which I loved and was so comfortable swimming (and I was pretty fast for a breastroker—I’d regularly pass free-stylers). Last April, I hurt my elbow playing tennis and frisbee golf and swimming. Let’s hope my joints can hold up till July.

Things I may have to get:

• triathlon wetsuit. the water is 60-62. that’s really cold. most people wear wetsuits.
• prescription goggles. they tell you a SF landmark to swim towards and I’m afraid that I won’t be able to see it without