Big Shoulders is an open water swim that takes place every year in September at Ohio Street Beach in Chicago. They have a few options to meet your needs: 5K without a wetsuit, 2.5K without a wetsuit, 5K with a wetsuit and 2.5K with a wetsuit. I swam this race back in 2003 and it was terribly short. And I remember being terribly smacked around during the first quarter of the race. In fact, it was the only race ever where I actually punched a swimmer back. I mean, this guy was swimming right over the back of me and hit me….about FOUR TIMES…not on the side, but in the middle of my back. That was enough for me to stop, crank up and let him have it right back. I mean, dude, Lake Michigan is HUGE! Why the hell are you swimming right on top of me??!?! Never since then, in all my triathlon experiences, have I ever been hit so deliberately by another swimmer.
Anyway, I haven’t done this race for the last several years. Not because I don’t think it’s cool, it’s actually one of the best swim events (particularly for triathletes) in the area. However, I’ve always had long runs to do on Saturday mornings. Well, I guess having an injury that prevents you from running is good for something! I signed up for the 5K, no wetsuit. As my friend Elaine says, “Wetsuits are for weenies!” I convinced Elaine to sign up with me. Even though she changed her entry last-minute to the 2.5K, I’m still proud of her for doing the event.
Traffic on I55 and LSD is a wonderful thing early on a Saturday morning. It’s pretty much non-existent. We made it down in record time and went over to pick up our packets. The lines were small and I got my chip, got body marked and picked up my goody bag (or promotional bag) and stood around waiting for Elaine. I went back to her line, where she was standing in the front describing to me that there was a problem. Apparently, the yahoos working the check-in line gave someone else her timing chip! It took a few minutes for them to assign her another chip so we could get her through the check-in process.
I was calling BC to tell him where we were when I spotted him walking towards us. We set down our things and just talked a little bit while we were being eaten alive by mosquitoes! It was horrible. You couldn’t stand still for 3 seconds without getting bitten. We went over to just put our feet in the water – a comfortable 72 degrees – and went back to prepare for the event.
There were a few familiar faces, but the event has grown so much since the last time I did this. It was really a great sight to see. And even better for me, this wasn’t a mass start, we were staggered into waves based on age group, distance, and whether or not you were wearing a wetsuit. I figured this would be a much easier start than I had just a few years ago.
The water was pretty calm. The air temperature was between 75-80 degrees. The sun was shining. It was absoluely beautiful conditions for this swim. The countdown was a bit rushed – 5-4-3-2-1 and we were off. I thought I had positioned myself on the far outside as to avoid being hit. No such luck. Almost immediately, I was being pushed to the left by a crowd of swimmers on my right. I kept wondering why they were trying so hard to push left. I couldn’t even stick to my line unless I wanted to be bludgeoned. So I followed the line with everyone else and tried not to let the swimmers on my right bug me so much as they kept running into me. I wasn’t sure if they were going off course or it was me, so I just let them pass and tried to fight for my own line.
Once we turned the first buoy, it opened up a lot. In fact, if I didn’t pick up my head to sight, I would’ve thought I was in the lake alone. I was quite comfortable. I swam breathing every 3 strokes and couldn’t believe how smooth everything felt. I was having fun. It couldn’t have been a better day. As we neared the second buoy that would head us back to shore, the waves kicked up. The crashed strongly against the back of my head every time I took a breath to the left. I was happy to be a left-side breather! This was a really long stretch that felt like it would never come to an end.
As I turned the 3rd buoy, which was also exactly where we started I thought about how I’d be almost finished if I had entered the 2.5K race. That would’ve been great! Ah well, I continued swimming along, all alone, and decided I really wasn’t pushing hard enough. I tried to kick up the tempo of my strokes and planned to hold it for the entire second loop. I got passed by a bunch of very, very fast guys. They were too quick to even think about trying to catch a draft.
I tried to focus on my own race and my own rhythym. This is all just practice for the upcoming Ironman. And in that race, I’ll most likely be wearing a wetsuit, which will make a swim of this distance all that much easier! I just hammered. The water was clear and I could see my arms in the pull of the stroke. I tried to focus on form with long, strong pulls. The water definitely was choppier on the second loop and it seemed to take FOREVER to get to the final buoy!
I was on the final stretch and I saw a woman with the same color cap ahead of me. My competitive spirit will not let go as I push as hard as I can to catch her. I trail behind for just a few short strokes and then decide to blow by her. It wasn’t as easy as I had hoped. She picked up her pace and tried to draft just off my hip…wise move. But uh huh, I ain’t havin’ any of that, so I pushed harder and started breathing very heavily. I just wanted to get away from her. At that point, I wished I drafted off her just a little to get some rest before deciding to try and overtake her.
COME ON, where is the FINISH!!! I’ve been going at full-speed for much too long. I have this thing, I never look back when I pass someone. I figure, if you have the time to look back, you’re not pushing hard enough. So I swam like she was on my heels for the final leg. I swam until there was no more water left to swim in. I got up and ran, hearing Elaine cheer for me as I ran to the timing mat, and still feeling pretty great.
Much better experience this year. Not that much thrilled with my time, but hey, it was such a blast. And now I know I need to work on my swimming a little bit more. Guess I can’t just swing by with a swim workout every 2-3 weeks! A great event. Happy I did it.
