Five Races, No Drowning

Time for the annual water slog-fest, aka Cascade Lakes Swim Series, up in the high lakes behind Mt Bachelor. Now I'll see if my long workouts have made a difference.

Friday afternoon: waiting for this meeting to end so I can start driving to the mountains.

It’s around 40 miles to Elk Lake, just below South Sister. Such a pretty drive.

Same foot that was in the meeting...

So here's the deal: enter one race, the Short or Long Series, or all five.

Short Series: 500m, 1000, 1500m
Long Series: 1500m. 3000m, 5000m

 Age group awards for each series as well. Do all five distances, and get a 'Survivor' mug. Most  people pick one or two races; I do all of them, because....me.

Nice crowd:

The right gear helps...

Here's Coach Bob, race organizer, giving pre-race instructions. 

The 3000m is Friday evening. The wind kicks up a bit, making for lots of chop. I swallow lots of water during the race, and take several waves to the face. Makes it hard to breathe!

Saturday morning:
500m...follow a buoy line for 250m, then back. Since I opted for the Long Series, this is a non-scoring event for me. So I go SLOW...I tell everyone behind me at the start that I'll be swimming way off the line so they can pass.

Easy peasy.

Next up, the 1500m. One triangular loop. I warm up well and punch it at the start. Decent time. 

What's the opposite of a traffic signal? What starts with red and stops with green?

                             

Later that day: 

Cracklin'

                          

Best bumper sticker ever: "Visualize Grilled Cheese"

                          

Sunday morning is a bit cooler....

Here's Coach Bob; teaching swimmers for 40+ years.

The steam finally clears...

And it's time for the big boy....5000m. By now, I'm out of the running for a placing in my age group (and the cool event coaster). But I'm swimming better than last year, so it's all good: my favorite coach, after calling me a knucklehead, has taught me to manage expectations.

This morning, I almost talk myself out of the last day's races; I'm tired and unmotivated. Once I move around the house a bit, I perk up and decide to go for it. At least the water is calm.

The 5k is just a long, long slog; my body and head never feel good, but I get it done. Somehow.

An hour of downtime, and it's the final race, the 1000m. Another throwaway race for me, and besides my body is shot. From experience, I know that the first half of the race will be a joke until my arms loosen up. My plan is to go slow until the 600m buoy, then bust it home for my victory lap.

And I do, walking down 5-6 swimmers in the final stretch, including a drag race in the final 100. No, you're NOT finishing ahead of me!

Dave D, you know that Laughing Dog speedo? The one with the dog on the butt? Well, some woman comes up to me after the race and says that drafting  was a lot easier while keeping the dog in her sights!

All done. And all worn out.

Next day, I get the results. 4th in my age group...but wait a second: same scoring total as the guy in third. I must have lost a tie-breaker....I ask the question.

Nope. The organizer overlooked the numbers. Now tied for 3rd. And hard-earned swag....

That's a win. And a wrap.