Swim Angel

I experienced my most favorite triathlon volunteer job at today's Naylor's Beach Olympic.

It started with needing some open water practice. Not so much for the distance - just time in the water wearing my wetsuit again. Ironwoman Canada suggested swimming the Naylor's course after the racers finished.

Then I heard TRIgirl DJ was doing Naylor's and was a little nervous. Now, she has absolutely no reason to be nervous - her swimming has just gotten better and better over the last few months. To her Guppy and TRIgirl friends - she looks strong and graceful in the pool.

Open water can be scary though - and while I am far from fast in the water - I am comfortable.

And that is when the thought hit me. We could swim together!

I checked with the race director, who said that would work - that I would be what some races call - a "swim angel."

This morning started early - meeting TRIgirls JR and DJ and the Shady Grove Y - then a hop over to the Wal-Mart parking lot to pick up TRIgirl TP. We drove as the first drizzle of the morning misted the windsheild.

The pre-race transition area seemed calm - though I am guessing that was just a personal advantage of not racing! We ran into more TRIgirls as we pulled on our wetsuits and headed down to the water. A very sweet person came over and introduced herself as a reader of my blog (thank you for the wonderful compliments and kind words!).

No fog this year - the water looked calm, though a fellow Guppy mentioned that there was a decent current (thankfully in the direction we would be swimming down the long straight stretch parallel to the coast). We entered the chilly water and, a few minutes later, our wave took off.

Prior to starting the swim, TRIgirl DJ and I discussed strategy. I would stay to her left side. We swam a bit and then stopped for a few moments to let TRIgirl DJ's nerves settle down. She spent a little time using her "go to" stroke - and we took a few breaks to breathe. I was worried I might be making her more anxious, but, by the second buoy, she found her groove. I'd pop up every few strokes to find her moving smoothly through the water. The rest of the swim, I just focused on trying to keep us on course. We passed a bunch of people at the second turn - and a few other swimmers fell in behind TRIgirl DJ - during the hardest part of the swim - where you had to battle the current to stay on track.

With the swim finish in sight, we stood up and started walking/jogging. TRIgirl DJ even jumped back down to swim the last few yards - and I was so happy for her. She exited the swim, with a big smile on her face - that stayed there the rest of the race until she crossed the finish line to her very proud family.

Congrats to all who raced today - the first time Olympic racers, those who PR'd and those who earned hardware (go, TRIgirl JR!).

And especially TRIgirl DJ - for taking a big step in overcoming the fear of open water!