Ironman Lake Tahoe Swim Recon

We arrived Wed, 12 days prior to race day!   Why? Because we can.  John is able to work remotely and I don't have an office, so we are a mobile couple.  Empty nesting has it's advantages.  Don't worry Roo/Mako/Zen have good people living at the house taking care of them.

We rented a great condo at Squaw  - right at the finish line.

Sunday- was Swim Recon.

Air Temperature at 7:45 47 degrees- this is one hour LATER than race start, but well we are on vacation so I did not hop in the water at 6:40.  I will later in the week.

Water temp 60-62.  COLD

I swam 2.4 miles and the start of the swim was calm and relatively nice. Definitely chilly but tolerable.  At the turn around the wind picked up and it was choppy and tough to navigate.  My Roka wet suit fits like a glove, no water in the suit and really comfortable,  If your suit is big you will be flooded with cold water the entire swim- I'd suggest getting a new suit- you want your wet suit tight, really uncomfortable on land.

As for booties- I won't wear them, but consider how long you will be in the water and how cold your feet get.  Neoprene Cap- I will opt out but I think it is a good idea.  I'll do a double cap for sure.   Bring multiple goggles- visibility was low due to the cloud cover and smoke from the fire - so I wore clear goggles.

At the turn around 30 minutes, I was chilled.  I picked up the pace to generate some warmth and felt good swimming.  Strong finish but I was shivering with blue lips and cold hands and feet.  The idea of hopping on a bike wet was NOT desirable.

So consider this when planning your T1.    I may completely change in T1 so I am dry and warm on the bike.  Think about what 45 degrees feels like on a bike!

Any questions...message me, happy to answer if I can.