Sunday, December 29, 2013

Sunday, December 29, 2013


For the last swim of 2013 Avila put on a great show.  It was clear, sunny, and very warm on the beach with no wind and 53 degree water.  There was a swell out of the SE that produced an occasional 3+ foot set of waves and put some real roll on the water's surface.  Rob, Niel, Tom Lorish, Amy and John Hampsey were joined by Loren and Kelly, a couple of Rob's friends from out of town.  Loren and Kelly were reacquiring their open water swimming chops so we started out with a loose plan to swim a shortened triangle that would give them a chance to ease into things.  Rob stayed with Kelly who was going without a wetsuit and was having trouble getting in.  John accompanied Loren who decided to head back to the beach rather than swim too far out from shore.  If you have not been in cold water in a while caution is always the best course. Tom, Niel and Amy worked around the end of the pier and back towards the 'buoy' line.  John had dropped off Loren and swam east parallel to the beach to reconnect with us.  We swam back to the pier and came in.  

NEW YEAR'S DAY SWIM

We are going to swim (in the water) at 9 AM on New Year's Day.  We will walk out to the end of the Avila Pier and swim back to shore.  Wear whatever you are comfortable in.  The water will be about 53 degrees.  If you want to start from the beach and swim out and back that is fine too. POTLUCK afterwards. 
The 9 AM start time will give us a chance to get in and out of town before the people attending the Avila Beach Polar Bear Plunge arrive, or, you will have a prime parking spot if you want to stay and do the plunge at noon.

niel

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Niel, Rob, Amy and John Hampsey swam today.  The water was 53 degrees. It was calm with on a small swell and an occasional set of 2 to 3 foot waves.  There seemed to be a lot of gulls around but not much other wildlife.  We swam out and left, down to the end of the sea wall which is about where the buoy line ends.  We turned and swam to the end of the Avila Pier and came in along the pier to our starting point.  We covered a little over .6 of a mile.  
My gps didn't start when we did so there is no route map today.

Rob and I ran into Alan Raul and Cary Geihs out on the pier.  They have organized a Avila Beach New Year's Day Polar Bear Swim.  Check out the flyer.
We'll talk next Sunday about what we want to do for a New Year's Day swim.

niel

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Sunday, December 15, 2013


Niel, Brad, Jon and Ron swam today.  Allison paddled for us.  Rob decided to soak up some sun on the beach.  Ron is from Bend, Oregon, in town for a few days and found us through someone he spoke to at Kennedy.  He has done some tri's, including the beyond Ironman distance one in Bend.  They do their open water swimming in lakes so this was a treat for him. The water was 53 degrees, it was mostly sunny with no wind and small waves.  Except for the water temperature the swimming conditions were great.  Ron turned out to be a strong swimmer, keeping up with Jon and Brad.  Jon and Brad were tired/recovering and this was going to be new for Ron so we stayed close to the shore incase anyone decided to bail out. This swim was 1603 meters and I was in the water for 34 minutes.  After we got out there were several pods of dolphins close to shore.  The water did not feel much warmer to me than yesterday's mile in 50 minus temperatures but I was not nearly as cold after I got out. 

niel

Will Swim For Food, Saturday December 14, 2013


The 4th Annual Santa Cruz Will Swim For Food Fundraiser

Rob Dumouchel, Ali Beug, Leslie Tappin Lorish and I had a wonderful experience Saturday at the Will Swim For Food Fundraiser in Santa Cruz. There were more than 70 swimmers that raised a total of $70,640.00 (so far, donations are still being accepted!) for food banks from San Diego to Oregon as well as Virginia and Louisiana.  
It was sunny with an air temperature of about 40 degrees at the start.  The water temperature was cold for this time of the year at 48 to 50 degrees.  
I had a great swim and thanks to our donors the Avila Dolphins raised $2120.00 for the SLO Food Bank!
Deserving special comment are Rob, who swim without a wetsuit, Leslie, who swam in spite of a bad cold and Ali for whom this was the longest, roughest and coldest ocean swim that she had yet done.
About 15% of the swimmers went without wetsutis.



It's 40 degrees out, let's go swimming!



That's me , Rob, Ali, Leslie and someone in pink wading in.  It actually didn't feel super cold at this point but towards the end of the pier I could tell that the freezing feeling was not going to even out.
Leslie and Rob towing their ducks.  For a $150 donation you get a wood duck decoy that you can decorate and tow around the pier.
Down the other side of the pier and heading towards the finish.

 The finish.


The cool finishers medals are made out of blue glass.


niel

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Niel. Ali and Rob swam today.  It was 50 degrees and sunny when we got in with a mild offshore breeze, 1 to 2' surf, 53 degree water and flat swimming conditions. There were even some dolphins about halfway down the beach creating massive swim envy.   We decided to swim down to the point and back, covering about a mile in a tune up before next Saturday's 1 mile Will Swim For Food trip around the Santa Cruz Pier.  This Sunday's 50 degree air and 53 degree water was sure different than last weeks 80 degree air and 56 degree water.  I was most of the way to the point before I began to feel evened out with the water temperature. The return swim was into a small chop that had come up along with a line of high clouds that blocked out our sun.  When I got back to the pier I swam back to pick up Ali and we headed in to the beach together.  With no sun it was too cool to linger on the beach so once we showered and dried off everyone headed off.

At the Palm Springs Tri this weekend were  Rick and Rhonda Mareina (1/2 on Saturday) and Duke Parmley (Olympic on Sunday).  Rick had a time of 6:08:53.  I didn't find a time for Rhondia and results for the Olympic were not available as of this post.  If the weather conditions were anywhere near the cold and windy weekend that NOAA predicted they were going to have a Beyond Category experience.  Hope all went well.  Can't wait to hear all about it next Sunday.

niel

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Sunday, December 1, 2013


What a day at Avila!  For me it began when I pulled into town and found Front Street from San Francisco St. to San Luis Street filled curb to curb with Harleys. Must'a been hundreds of bikes. Avila was the conclusion of a toys for tots run that attracts riders from as far away as San Diego and the central valley.  It was quite a site.  
The weather was just spectacular.  It was warm and windless, almost too warm on the beach, with no clouds, 1' surf and no swells. The water was 56 degrees.  Niel, Rob, Duke, Amy and Rick swam out and down to Fossil Point and back.  The swim out involved some regrouping, on the way back we swam without stopping. I covered .92 of a mile in a casual 38 minutes.  The water was clear enough that I could easily see the bottom when we were near the point.  

niel

Friday, November 29, 2013

Friday, November 29. 2013


Rick and I swam at 11 AM today.  The conditions were pretty nice.  It was sunny (at first) the water was 55 degrees and there was no wind.  There had been some large waves here on Thursday but they were mostly done Friday morning.  There were occasional 4' to 5' waves but a lot of pretty flat water in between and a 1 to 2 foot swell out of the SE. Rick and I did a counterclockwise triangle without going under the pier.  With a little timing we got out between the large waves without any trouble.  I'm still retraining, getting used to navigating without the buoys, so our route was a bit ragged, but the swimming conditions were quite good.  Riding up and down on the swell was fun.  When we got out I almost felt OK with having had that second piece of pie yesterday.  After the swim Dale McVay treated us to a ride buy. It was nice to visit with her for a while.  We'll be back Sunday for more.

Brad Masushita is competing in his first full Ironman distance tri in Mexico Sunday so keep a good thought for him!

niel

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Sunday, November 24, 2013


We had 11 swimmers, one kayaker and 7 otters in the water today.  Rob, Sylvia, Yvonne, Niel, Duke, Ali, Amy, Rick, Brad, John Hanse and Kim swam, Allison paddled and the otters entertained themselves by following our slow clumsy selves in the water.  We only have one buoy left on the east side now and I expect that it will be gone next week, so swimming at Avila is now in winter conditions; no buoy line to organize a swim by and colder water.  The water was 54 degrees today with a small swell out of the SW.  There was no wind.  Sylvia and Yevonne swam left, parallel to the beach and back.  Niel, Duke, John, Ali, Brad and Amy swam with Allison over to the Poly Pier and back.  Rob, Kim and Rick swam around the Avila Pier. As you can see by the plot, without the buoys my route became less organized.  Brad and I made a jog to connect with Amy and Ali and I swam straight to the pier on the way back.  Buoys or not this swim was still about a mile. I was in the water a total of 38 minutes. 

I'd like to swim early on Thanksgiving but it will probably rain, so maybe a Black Friday swim could happen.   I'll float the question on the Google group site and see if anyone else wants to do a Work Off that Second Piece of Pie Swim.

niel 

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Sunday, November 17, 2013


Details of today's Grumpy Old Men Swim;

We had beautiful fall weather at Avila today.   It was sunny, warm and it started out calm.  The water was clear, 56 degrees and there was 1+ foot surf.  Sylvia and Yevonne got in early by themselves and swam left down the buoy line, on towards Fossil Point and back.  I was on the pier taking the water temperature when Sylvia and Yvonne were wading in and I could clearly hear their comments on the water temperature, but they get a pass on the grumpy thing because Sylvia doesn't wear a wetsuit and Yvonne goes with just a shortie.  The grumpiness was from the second group.   Ali, Niel, Rick and Duke did almost the same route.   Ali was extremely happy because she was getting reaquainted with her wetsuit after swimming without it up to now.  Niel was grumpy because his lower back was bothering him.  Duke was grumpy because he rode from Orcutt to Halama and back yesterday which was 80 miles with a lot of climbing.  Rick was grumpy because he had run for 2 hours yesterday in new (second time) shoes and blistered his feet.  So, the three guys dragged out butts into the water and swam to catch up with Ali.  When we got to the point the swimming was doing me enough good that I decided to stay out longer, so I swam to the end of the pier.  Duke, Ali and Rick headed back along the buoy line.   I finished up in 42m 30s and covered 1878 meters.
While we were relaxing and warming up on the beach a large pod of dolphins came along the beach. Some came in as close as the surf line while others were 50 to 100 meters beyond the buoy line.  They were numerous and very active with lots of splashing and jumping.  I don't know if they were playing or chasing lunch but it was fun to watch. 

Rob threw out the idea of an Avila Dolphins holiday party.  We have not had one in a while but they always used to be a lot of fun so let's get one planned.  So, Rob, Allison, who is doing the organizing?

niel

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Sunday November 10, 2013


We had a small crowd today but a nice swim.  Sylvia and Yvonne swam down to Fossil Point and back and Niel, Jon and Rick swam a half triangle.  It was sunny with a slight breeze that started in the SE and switched to the SW. The water was 56 degrees, clean looking and the surf was 2 to 3'.  There was one seal messing about in the surf while we were getting in.  

Katie  did her first full length Ironman yesterday at Lake Havasu. She finished in 12:53. The details are at http://www.hitstriathlonseries.com/images/stories/havasu_full_13.pdf
Way to go!

Rick Marina has a full Ironman distance race coming up so he is considering doing a single martini lap in training.  No date yet. Tom, are you interested in joining in?  Anyone else?
I'll paddle for one swimmer.

niel

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Sunday, November 3, 2013


We had nice conditions and and a good group of swimmers today.  It was sunny with only a slight offshore breeze and the water was 57 degrees.  Pretty decent for November.  Swimming today were Ali, Niel, Rick, Sam, Amy, John Hampsey and Duke.  Sylvia stayed on the beach and Rhonda came by as we were getting out.  We decided to do a mile by swimming down past the end of the the buoy line to Fossil Point and back.  You can tell by my trace that we took different lines and I would up a ways inside the group at the turn around.  We all turned in at the second buoy to avoid getting too close to some fishing lines near the pier.  We covered 1585 meters in a total time of 35 min. 44 sec.  Ali deserves recognition for being the only one in the water today without any neoprene. 

Here is a follow up on the Will Swim For Food fundraiser.   The swim is Saturday December 14th. It is a one mile swim around the Santa Cruz Pier and is a fundraiser for local food banks. Last year over $50,000 was raised and this year they have set a goal of $80,000.  You can check out the history of this swim at http://www.willswimforfood.com/index.php
Rob did it last year and I am joining in this time so there is a Avila Dolphin team! We are raising money for the SLO Food Bank and so far have $885.00 pledged.
The water will be in the low 50's but wetsuits are welcome.  There are four ways you can participate;  
If you want to join the swim you should e-mail Rob at robdumouchel@gmail.com or Nick Alaga the event director at director@willswimforfood.com  and let them know that you want to be a swimmer.  Nick will send you a link so you can create your pledge page, set your fundraising goal and join the fun.  
If you want to donate you can do so to an individual swimmer through the website, or, if you want to donate by cash or a check you can give your donation to a swimmer. It will be recorded toward our fundraising total and the swimmer will forward the donation to the Food Bank .
Lastly, you can sponsor a duck!  Check them out on the website, this looks like great fun.  For $150.00 you can sponsor a full sized duck decoy. The donor gets to decorate it and select swimmer who will tow it around the pier. 

Correction - Lastly, our own fast swimming Jon Harmse completed the Florida Ironman Saturday in 10:52:31.  He was bib number 1282
Congratulations to him and hope to see him next Sunday.


niel

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Wednesday Evening, 30 October 13


John Siegel and I had a great time on the last evening swim of the season.  There was a steady breeze that was blowing directly offshore and the water temperature was 56 degrees.  It was sunny and comfortable on the beach.  The surf varied from ankle slappers to an occasional three footer.  We swam the triangle counterclockwise.  The sun was already dropping behind the hills when we got in so it was never a problem but it did feel like there was some winter in the water temperature.  The chop was only 4" to 6" high, almost not noticeable while swimming, but I could always feel the current pushing me away from the beach.  The lights along Front Street were coming on as we finished up.   We covered 1576 meters in 36 minutes.  

If you look back at the last three times that I posted this route, both CW & CCW, the time has varied by only 24 seconds but the distance by 70 meters.  A combination of the effect of wind and tide on the location of the buoys may account for the different distances but I must have managed to be swimming faster on the days when I also wound up swimming further for the time to work out so well.

Thanks to John Siegel for being the most consistent evening swimmer this summer.  See you in the spring John.

niel

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Sunday, October 27, 2013


Conditions were very nice today, except for the cool gray gloom that hung over the beach.  It definitely felt wintry, damp and cool, but the water was still 58 degrees and with no wind, waves or current it was perfect for swimming, except the gray fog/overcast made the idea of getting in the water unappealing.  While Sam, Niel, Rick, John and Sylvia were inclined to veg out on the beach Katie was having none of it.  Her energy dragged all of us except Sylvia up and into the water.  Rick had to swim and dash so he did the left half of the buoy line while the rest of us swam with Katie to the end of the pier.  Thoughts of heading in along the pier ran into Katie's assertion that we couldn't get out without doing at least a mile, so we headed to the creek and completed the triangle.  1646 meters, 36 minutes in the water.  Thanks Katie for being there today and having the energy for the rest of us.

John is doing Ironman Florida next weekend.  Good Luck and have a great race. 

niel

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Wednesday Evening, October 23. 2013


The water temperature is still hanging up there at 58 degrees but this evening's swim was different in all other counts.  It was sunny but windy and cool.  The breeze was out of the SW and was strong enough to make the flags stretch straight out.   The water was clear but choppy with a current following the chop.  There were also chest high waves for a change.  Sylvia and Yvonne joined Niel, John Siegel and Mark.  Sylvia and Yvonne stayed on the buoy line while John and Niel did a counter clockwise triangle.  Mark experienced a cramp just as we were starting towards the water and couldn't get it to release so he stayed out.  We had hoped that going CCW would reduce the time spent swimming towards the setting sun but I'm not sure that it made much difference.  The chop wasn't too troublesome but the current required a committed push on the second and third legs.  When John and I came through the pier and headed towards the beach there did not seem to be any waves coming in.  As we swam in I kept looking back over my shoulder but never did see any waves.  That was true right up to the point when John and I got picked up, tumbled and washing machined within 50 yards of the beach.  We covered a mile in 36 minutes.

Next Wednesday will be the last evening swim until next spring.

niel 

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Sunday, October 20, 2013


Today we had a nice crowd, very nice conditions and a great swim.  The water was 58 degrees and very clear with no wind, waves or chop.  John Hampsey and Amy had been working to do their first swim out to the rock that is off of Fossil Point and this was to be the day.  Allison was on hand to paddle escort for them.  Also swimming to day were Sylvia, Fast John, Ali, Duke, Brad, Sam, Katy, Rick, Niel and Dan, a guest swimmer from Santa Cruz.  Sylvia, Sam, Dan and Ali swam parts of the triangle (I'm not sure just who did what) while the rest of us joined in on the swim to the rock.  Allison would (properly) stay with John and Amy so the rest of us were navigating on our own.  The clear water was nice, I even saw some schooling fish below me at one point.  Brad, Fast John and Rick went off of the front of the group.  Katy pulled past me on the way out and Duke and I seemed to arrive at the rock at the same time.  Once we swung around the rock and headed back I didn't see anyone else until reached the shore and I stood up.  There were Duke and Katy doing the same within 20 feet of me.  I was swimming for 52 minutes and covered 2545 M/1.6 miles.  John and Amy came in all smiles having accomplished one of the signature Avila Beach swims.

niel  

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Wednesday Evening, October 13, 2013


Last Chances to Do Summer -

Conditions at Avila were calm with flat seas, no wind, no current and 60 degree water.  John Siegel and I swam over to the Cal Poly Pier and back.  It was beautiful.

Avila Beach, 6:30 PM, 10/16/13

There will be two more Wednesday evening swims before the time changes and we are done with evenings until next spring.  


niel 

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Sunday, October 13, 2013

At 11 on Sunday I was heading south, but still somewhere north of Santa Rosa and Rob was in recovery mode from too much ocean related fun, so the following post is courtesy of John Hampsey - 

Sunday, Oct. 13th
The foggy morning gave way to bright sun by the time we gathered at Avila this morning. Attending was Duke, Rick, fast John, Amy, her brother Bo, and John H. The water had rolling swells and was generally clear, with a temperature approx 56-57 degrees. We swam to the first buoy, then headed south past the last buoy to fossil point. After re-gathering we all headed out to the end of the pier that was boat-free and fishermen-free. It was an invigorating swim that included navigating through some prehistoric-looking kelp patches. Finally, we swam the length of the pier back to the beach. Total swim distance around 1.3 miles, exact time in water unknown, but all agreed it was a terrific swim.

Thanks John!

niel

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Sunday, October 13th, 2013

The foggy morning gave way to bright sun by the time we gathered at Avila this morning. Attending was Duke, Rick, fast John, Amy, her brother Bo, and John H. The water had rolling swells and was generally clear, with a temperature approx 56-57 degrees. We swam to the first buoy, then headed south past the last buoy to fossil point. After re-gathering we all headed out to the end of the pier that was boat-free and fishermen-free. It was an invigorating swim that included navigating through some prehistoric-looking kelp patches. Finally, we swam the length of the pier back to the beach. Total swim distance around 1.3 miles, exact time in water unknown, but all agreed it was a terrific swim.

John H.

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Sunday, October 6, 2013


Avila Beach was doing its best to be summer in October today.  It was warm with clear skies, no wind and very clear 56 degree water.  We had a nice crowd today; Niel, Fred, Sylvia, Duke, Rob, Ali, Tom, Rick, John H., Amy, Gerry and Fast John.  Stephen, Mary Ann and Brad got in late and swam a similar route.  The water conditions were great for swimming but we had a couple of man made conditions to work around.  The buoys were set out for a yacht race and the participants were forming up off of the end of the Avila pier so that part of the ocean was off limits, and there were two or three jet skis messing around at the mouth of San Luis Creek so heading down that was was not a good idea.  We elected to stay on the east side of the pier and swim down towards Fossil Point and back.  It was great having the rare opportunity to swim at Avila in water as clear as it was today.  I could see shadows and shapes on the bottom in 12 to 15 feet of water. There were some real cold spots, especially near the pier and where the bottom was rocky.  We swam 1499 meters in 33 minutes.

I'll be out of town next Sunday and Rob and Allison are supporting one of the last Catalina Channel swim attempts for this year on Friday and may not be back in time, so I'm appointing Duke swim master for next Sunday.  


niel

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Wednesday Evening, October 2, 2013



Three swimmers this evening; Niel, John and Mark.  The water temperature was 57 degrees and there was a slight wind and noticeable current from left to right along the beach.  There had been a complete ring of fog around Avila at 5 but it had moved off by the time we were getting in.  Mark is doing Scott Tinley next weekend so he wanted to do a sprint along the buoy line. John and I accompanied him to the end of the line where he turned around and we headed towards the end of the pier.  We completed the triangle in 37 minutes and covered 1650 meters.  There was a lot of kelp and sea grass in the water, I guess that it is the time of the year when the summer growth dies and breaks off.  If you look at the plot of the leg from the end of the pier towards the creek you can see the kink in my route where I ran into a huge mat of floating kelp and had to detour around it.  We had very nice swimming conditions. John and I had a wonderful time and he had brought his own jug of how water, so we each had our own full bottle for an after shower rinse.

niel

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Sunday, September 29, 2013



We had beautiful swimming conditions today.  It was sunny, warm and calm with flat seas and 55 degree water.  We have not seen 55 degrees since the spring so we are moving into fall swimming conditions.  Sylvia and Lisa, who is a friend of Rob's and a regular with the Monterey Kelp Krawlers, swam along the buoy line.  Rob joined Niel, Byron and Rick to the east end of the buoys and doubled back.  We swam to the end of the Avila Pier, over to the Cal Poly Pier and back along the west end of the buoy line.  We covered 2265 meters or 1.4 miles in 48 minutes.  There were some temperature drops of several degrees that kept things interesting. The wind started picking up when we settled back into our chairs so our timing had been just right.  Rhonda and Sharley joined us for the post swim discussion of yesterday's riding, who was racing where today and plans for this coming week.

niel

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Wednesday Evening, September 25, 2013

Brad and a couple of friends swam the buoy line.  It was very wind, lots of chop and cold water. The water at the port has been 53 - 54 degrees over the last 24 hours.  It must have been narley!


niel, who was sitting it out in a meeting :-(

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Sunday, September 22, 2013


It was sunny, breezy and very uncrowded at Avila Beach today.  There seemed to be almost no one else on the beach on this beautiful September day.  The water was 57 degrees and choppy due to a steady westerly breeze.  There was a yacht race under way with numerous boats maneuvering near the end of the Avila Pier so our route would stay close to the beach today.  Swimming today were Sylvia, Gerry Gross, Niel, Brad, Fred, Rick, John H., John and Hank.  Rob was here but was going to fool around in the surf with his hand plane. Sylvia and Gerry swam their own route.  The rest of us swam the east side of the buoy line down to Fossil Point and back.  We covered 1547 meters/ .96 mile and spent 38 minutes in the water.  John H. and Fred continued on and added part of the buoy line of the west side of the pier.  
There will be days, probably early next year, when we will wish the water was 57 degrees, but for now it is a matter of getting used to falling temperatures and cooler days.  

I wonder if we will see any water temperatures in the 40's this winter?

niel

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Wednesday Evening, September 18, 2013


Tom Lorish and I swam this evening.  There was a light but steady offshore breeze that was putting just a ripple on the water.  The air was very warm and the water temperature was 56 degrees.  There were some seals around but no birds or signs of bait fish.  Tom and I swam out to the end of the Avila Pier, over to the usual spot on the Cal Poly Pier and came back on the same course.  We covered 1.37 miles in 46 minutes.  The swimming conditions were great with no chop, swell or current to deal with.  I thought that it was colder by a degree or two over towards the Poly Pier and Tom thought that it was colder near the Avila Pier, so, I can say that the water temperature was variable.  The difference of opinion might have had something to do with me starting the swim with my wetsuit unzipped or that Tom wears a Farmer John.  There were several seals that were checking us out when we stopped at the Poly Pier and two of them followed me all of the way back to the beach.  They had some friends that joined them near the Avila Pier.  It was kind'a freaky.  

niel

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Sunday, September 15, 2013


Today we had sunny skies, calm winds and 59 degree water.  Rob and Allison were able to join us today and \Allison brought her kayak so a supported swim was possible.   Sylvia, Susan, Ali and Amy swam along the buoy line and Niel, Duke, Rick, John, Fred, Tom and Katie swam to the rock off of Fossil Point.  The water temperature was nice and even. We had a bit of a swell rolling across our route on the way out and a strong surge when we swung around the rock, but otherwise the swimming conditions were great.  Tom and John were well off the front by the time we arrive at the rock.  They headed straight back to our starting point while we decided to angle to the end of the Avila Pier before coming in.  We covered 1.7 miles in 57 minutes.

niel

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Wednesday Evening, September 11, 2013

Things looked good for a nice swim this evening.  The water was 60 degrees (maybe), it was sunny with scattered clouds, there was a steady SW breeze pushing a wind chop and current. There were a lot of fishermen on the pier, all grouped up along the surf line, but the single cormorant that I saw swallow a fish seemed to be the only one catching anything.  There were no other birds or seals in sight.
Swimming tonight was Mark, Marie, Susan, Niel, Tom, Raven and Stephan.  Raven lives in Madera.  He had been in King City working on a photovoltaic installation and wanted to get in the ocean so he found us through the website.  He said that he wasn't too concerned about the water temperature because his thermostat seemed to be set extra high.  I loaned him a cap to go with the goggles and the shorts he was wearing.  Marie and Susan were going to swim the buoy line.  The rest of us set off to do an easy triangle.  I went through three temperature zones just getting out to the buoy line.  When we formed up at the end of the buoy line we waited for Raven, who was steady and comfortable swimmer but slower than the group.  He was all smiles and enjoying himself and joined us on the swim towards the end of the pier.  Tom and I both stopped to check on him because he stopped several times and seemed to either be having some trouble with his goggles or found swimming into the chop to be uncomfortable.  It turned out that he was having a great time and kept stopping just to enjoy the beautiful views around the bay.  I guess that the rest of us could learn something here.  Mark headed in along the pier while the rest of us headed towards the creek.  The water was very warm and funny tasting near the creek, so we swam back towards Raven (the bump in the plot) and then swung back along the buoy line, under the pier to the first buoy and in.  Mark had picked up Susan and Marie and helped Susan get to shore.  The cold water had caused her asthma to flare up and she was having some difficulty breathing.  They all got out OK but Susan will be doing her open water swimming at Lopez until Avila warms up.
We were in the water for 47 minutes and covered just over a mile.

niel

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Sunday, September 8., 2013

Today's swim plot is brought to you by Operator Error
and a completely dead battery at the start of the swim.  :-/

We had a nice group today made up of Niel, Sylvia, Duke, Tom, Amy and her brother Bo, John H., Brad, Casey, Gerry, Fred who came up from Santa Maria for his first swim with us and Ali and Robin who were first timers.  The water was 61 degrees with a steady but small chop out of the SW.  There was thick, low overcast, almost fog everywhere. There was also a lot of hopeful looking fishermen but I did not hear a seal or see a pelican or cormorant or any other sign of fish or bait being around when I was on the pier taking the water temperature.  
The general idea for the swim was to do the regular triangle clockwise but as usual there were several variations.   When we formed up at the last buoy Amy and John H. decided to stick to the buoy line.  They continued on down to Fossil Point, returned all of the way to the last buoy at the creek and came back to the pier.  Sylvia stayed with Ali and Robin who on their first time out swam the east half of the buoy line.  The rest of the group swam to the end of the pier where Brad headed in and we poised for Leslie who was taking pictures of us from the end of the pier.

The rest of us swam to the creek buoy and back to the pier where we found Rob.  He and Byron were accompanying a group of Rob's swimming friends from LA who were attempting to swim around every pier in SLO County today.  They had begun in San Simeon at 7 AM and were working their way south.
Leslie Lorish grabbed this shot of the LA group circling the Avila Pier. 


We will still be swimming Wednesday evenings at 5:30 until some point after the time changes and we loose too much light.

niel  

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Wednesday Evening, September 4, 2013


Mark, Marie, Susan and Niel scored great swimming conditions this evening; warm weather, clear skies, a very small wind chop and 67 degree water!  There were several flocks (?) of pelicans around but they were not finding anything to dive on.  One seal and one otter made up the rest of the wildlife.  Niel and Mark swam a counterclockwise triangle while Marie and Susan swam the buoy line.  The top foot or so of the water was really warm, there were not even any cold spots.  Mark and I were in the water for 38 minutes and covered 1580 meters.
I'll be back for more of this Sunday!

niel 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Wednesday Evening, August 28, 2013

I did not swim this evening but a good group got in and enjoyed nice conditions.  John Siegel, Susan, Mark, Mary Ann and Stephen (I think that I have the last two names correct) swam. Distances ranged from a half to a whole triangle.  The water was about 60 degrees and still very clear.  The wind was falling during the swim so conditions improved with distance.  A pod of 4 or 5 dolphins passed down the length of the buoy line as the swimmers were getting out.

I won't be swimming Sunday.  Watch the Google group to see who is showing up.

niel

No plot 'cause I didn't swim but I have sorted out my issues with access to my Finis account so there will be plots again in the future. It was something to do with cookies that their web guy sorted out for me.

Monday, August 26, 2013

Sunday, August 25, 2013


We had the best little swim ever!

It was Rob, Niel. Duke and John.  It was overcast, but dead calm, the water was flat, very clear and 60 degrees.  Duke, John and I had used up our legs Saturday on our bikes (separate rides) and John went and ran something like 14 miles Sunday morning or so we were looking to get stretched out with a nice easy swim. Rob was in for whatever. We went in on the west side of the pier thinking that a counterclockwise triangle was a possibility.  The water was nice and the swimming conditions were about a easy as they could be, the sun even came out when we arrived at the end of the pier.  While we were discussing our next move there were several wistful looks towards our chairs on the beach so that is what we did.  We swung wide towards the second buoy in line to avoid the fishing lines.  The water was clear enough that I could see sunlight reflecting off of the sand on the bottom when I stopped at the buoy.  We covered about 7 tenths of a mile.  Duke said that we had done one of our shortest swims on just about the best swimming day ever.  Hey, everyone was smiling when we got out of the water and that is what I call a good day at the beach.

niel

Sorry about the wimpy plot.  Finis has not been able to figure out how to let me log in to my account. 

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Wednesday Evening, August 21, 2013



John Segal and I swam a short mile (1471 M) from the left side of the pier down to Fossil Point and back. The water was clear, 61 degrees but much warmer close to the point, with a wind chop and current running right to left.  Coming back towards the pier was 'uphill' but OK.  As we were getting in we saw 3 or 4 large black dolphins heading west between buoys 1 and 2.  Cool! They didn't seem interested in us once we got in the water.  

No details on the plot of our route because the Finis website is in a snit and will not allow me to log in. :-/

niel

Monday, August 19, 2013

Sunday, August 18, 2013


Two Posts Today : Our Regular Sunday Swim at Avila Beach and a Report on the Trip to Monterey to Swim With the Kelp Krawlers

First, John Hampsey sent me this post about Sunday at Avila.  John and Stuart enjoyed a swim that makes me wish that I could have somehow done both of today's swims! 

Thought I was going to swim alone today at Avila since everyone was with the Kelp Crawlers in Monterey. But a new person showed up--Stuart, late 20s, very good swimmer. He had heard about the Sunday Avila group. As Stuart and I entered the water Jerry showed up, but he swam a bit later on his own.

The water, @ 56 degrees, appeared calm but actually had rolling swells and a strong current. Stuart and I swam the buoy line to the left, running through several kelp gloms, made me think of the rest of the group in Monterey! We then decided to continue on to Fossil Rock, stopping just short of the rock. Stuart looked down and about 15 feet below us in the water was a large black round object, an errant flying saucer or old mooring? ... We turned to swim back and Stuart asked if I saw the dolphins. I saw two in the distance by the shore. But he said—no, the ones right next to you. And Yowzer! There they were, four dolphins about 6 feet from me. It was sublime. They were probably checking us out, but we swam on, not wanting to give them too much to mediate upon. There was also a motor boat cruising nearby; I cursed them with hand signals for being inside the buoy line.

Strong current against us going back. We reached the pier and kept on going, underneath and a couple more buoys toward the creek. Then back to the pier and in... Entire swim was about a mile; in the water about 45 minutes with some lollygagging and chatting. As we walked up the beach we were welcomed by Dave VM sitting in his chair, waiting for us like a sea god on sabbatical. He had kept his eye on us and seen everything.

--John Hampsey, Sunday, August 18th 

Road Trip to Monterey to Swim With the Kelp Krawlers



Making the trip were Niel, Duke, Byron, Brad, Rob and Rick, who were swimming, Allison who would be paddling a borrowed kayak and tending herd on us, and Kris, Sharley and Rhonda.  Victor Plata dropped in to join us.  He was on the US Olympic tri team in 1994 in Athens and is now living with his wife and young son in Monterey.  I met Victor while he was attending Cal Poly when we kept finding ourselves sharing a lane at the SLO Swim Center.  I had not seen him in a couple of years so it was great to catch up with him and have some fun together.  I'll always be envious of the wonderfully smooth stroke he has.  I got to see it again briefly each time he blew past me.
The Kelp Krawlers swim at Lover's Point Park every Sunday, plus mid-week during the summer, and put together some groups of 20 to 30 swimmers that do several different routes. The conditions looked great; it was overcast but clearing, calm, no surf, a water temperature in the upper 50's and high tide.  The height of the tide has a lot of impact on the swimming here because at high tide the kelp covers the smallest area and has more open channels to swim through.  The one mile swim starts on the beach at Lover's Point and is an out and back route through a broad kelp bed and then across an open stretch of water to a NOAA data collection buoy. The 1.5 mile route begins on the other side of the point, hooks through the kelp and out to a yacht club marker.  From there the the swim continues roughly parallel to the shore, past Lover's Point to the NOAA buoy that is the turn around point for the one mile swim, and then back along the 1 mile course to the beach.  The consensus was that having driven all of the way up here we should get the most for our efforts and do the 1.5 mile swim.  We had a great time. The water in the cove at the start was cold but became more comfortable once we got off shore.  I felt like I was swimming in the open ocean.  The water was very clear by Avila Beach standards and seemed very deep because I could see white and purple jelly fish below me down in the water column.  After seeing the first few I got apprehensive because I remembered Rob's story of having swam here and having a solid carpet of jelly fish only 6 feet below him, seemingly just out of reach.  Today is saw on only every few minutes.  The other great experience was feeling the big long period swells passing under me, gently lifting me up and down without interfering with my swimming.  I've previously only experience this when I was well offshore.  Navigation was tough, first because neither of the buoys have much of a silhouette above the water so they are hard to find and second, that nice big swell meant that most of the times I looked up to navigate I saw only the back of a swell.  I had one more individual issue, my goggles were leaking and I was having to stop and clear them so I was quickly off of the back of the group and didn't have anyone to follow.  I did see Rob on and off and Allison's kayak was close by part of the time but between the swell and not having any landmarks along the shore I never could tell where I was along the route.  The last leg to the beach was into the swell and the chop was bigger, again more of an open ocean experience then the wind chop we have at Avila Beach, but the beach was easy to see and Allison parked her herself and her red kayak at the entrance to the channel through the kelp which was a great help.
We covered 1.52 miles and spent 53 minutes (including time for photos) in the water.
We had lunch together and then went our separate ways for the rest of the day.

Thanks to Kris for taking the pictures!  In order to see the details you will need to double click on some to enlarge them.  

The beach at Lover's Point
 
Getting in

Heading for the channel through the kelp

Arriving at the yacht club buoy

Arriving at the NOAA buoy

 
Allison making the entrance to the channel through the kelp. 
There are some swimmers in the kelp.
Sharley and  Rhonda. Where are they?
Who's got the car keys?



Sun's out for the finish