A cold front moved through the Central Coast today and created storm conditions at Avila Beach and on the water. The air temperature was 65 - 70 and the water temp was up to 55 - 57, but still varied several degrees, especially around the Avila Pier. There were stormy looking clouds and a strong, steady wind out of the SW. There was a good chop on the water but no whitecaps yet and an occasional 2 foot swell that would roll through and double up on the chop.
We swam a version of the Ping Pong route, looking for 3200M;
Down the buoy line to the creek mouth, to the third (more seward) crossbars on the Cal Poly Pier, to the end of the Avila Pier, from there to the second crossbars on the CP Pier, back to the buoy at the creek mouth and along the buoys to our starting point.
We didn't quite make 3200M but with the wind, current and chop factored in I think we get credit for 3200+
Tom at the start. We were going to the right.
Tom at the last buoy at the creek.
Tom at the third crossbars point to the end of the Avila Pier, about 650M away.
Me at the third crossbars.
And at the second crossbars.
The leg from the creek to the third crossbars was straight into the wind, chop and current, so it was all about tempo. Find the right rhythm and just do the work.
The next three legs; Poly Pier to the Avila Pier, back to the Poly Pier and to the buoy at the creek mouth, were all variations of swimming across a chop and wind. Tom thought the leg from the Avila Pier to the second cross beams was the roughest. I think that they were all hard, just different. The wind was building so my return along the buoy line to the start was in messy conditions.
This was a great swim. I like keeping up on my rough water skills.
When I got to the showers it was spitting rain, blowing umbrellas down the beach and people were heading for their cars.
Beautiful weather is predicted for next week.
niel
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