6am in Deer Lake

So Tuesday I rested and Wednesday I had a crappy swim workout. By crappy I mean I didn't feel like my muscles remembered how to do anything write and my breathing was distracting. All of the body parts were moving on their own so I had no rythm.

This morning I went out to Deer Lake for a swim with the Masters swimmers who are all welcoming and nice people. My instructions were just to shop up at this driveway at 6:00am and stay to the right. So I did and I met Krista and Jeff. If you want to be a masters swimmer then your should name yourself Kristin or Krista or Christina or some variant. No one confirmed this but I think it makes you more boyant. Maybe I will change my name to Chris? Naw to late in life for that.

Anyway change into the wet suits and you could not ask for a more beautiful morning, calm lake with the sun coming up just over the trees. About 60 degrees and no wind. I get my intructions to swim across the lake to the yellow house just left of the sun. Krista points out the two other swimmers already out there and reminds me to keep an eye out for each other. I hear the instruction but I am not really sure what to do with it? As we head out about 150 yards off the shore I am quickly out paced and on my own.
I think this is freaking me out this morning "I should just go back and try again another day."
No I will stay. No I will probably drown and they can tell me wife what happened. NO stop. Just relax and you can't drown in a wet suit.
Stop thinking about sharks and Jason from Friday the 13th. Just focus on your stroke and pushing your armpits down on each glide. Focus on swimming from the core and  letting your head swivel on its axis.
Okay back to relaxed swimming.
Trying to sight the house from the water level all I can see is the Sun and it is HUGE and bright.
Swimming in the open water is amazing and wonderful but I get these minor panic moments where I say "You don't belong out here" or "You are in the middle of a Lake." Then I have to talk myself down of the panic ledge. On the swim into the sun I had to do that about 6 times. The foriegnness of this water and the newness of swimming across lakes and with no one to watch over me together all add to my anxiety.
The masters swimmers are sort of watching, at least enough to tell Amanda "we stopped seeing him somewhere over there". That is not going to happen that is just stupid talk in my head/
I started counting my strokes and I found this is another way I can stop "freaking out". I managed to get past the pointing of wanting to turn back, past the point of wanting to scream out help help for no reason. I am in a wet suit for pete's sake. My panic sense doesn't care that I don't sink at all in a wet suit. My panic sense just wants to panic.
I make it to the far side to the dock at Krista's parents house (see note on names above) and now we head back. On the way back I focus on my form and count my strokes and try not to think about how far it is. I did better on the way back and I did learn that my tendancy is to swim "Wide Right" which is a good thing to know about yourself. I only had about 3 small panic moments (and those were minor ones) on the way back which is an improvement.
Climbing out of the water I am happy to have completed a mile swim before 7:00am and to have completed my first swim in Deer Lake. I think it will get better and easier as I get more used to open water. I intend on going every Thursday morning for July and maybe into August.

The race is getting closer we are at 30 days now. 30 days of training left and then we test out all this work.

Goals
1. Remain injury free.
2. Complete the Triathalon
3. Shooting for 20 minute swim, 60 minute Bike and 40 minute run.

Song for the day is "Oh Happy Day" and "When Dove's Cry" as seen on the Romeo and Juliet Soundtrack. I like that acapala style of singing. Good Acapala rocks. A band called NOTA is my favorite.