Swimming in the ocean

[maristu]

So, I'm heading off to Thailand (Khao Lak to be specific) in a week to start my DMT. I've been training for the past month for the swim test, and went from barely making it across the pool (25m) to swimming 650m non stop yesterday, so I'm happy I've talked to my instructor and we're doing the swim tests in open water, swimming around the boat. And that's where I get nervous, as I grew up in a landlocked city, and have only ever swum in a pool or a few times in the lake. So my question is: how different is it to swim in the sea? There's a lot going through my head, like waves, currents, different buoyancy, and the psychological impact of not seeing a shore or the bottom. How do I work for this? Any help is much appreciated

 

[Phil_C]

Hi Maristu - when you say you have only swum in pools or a few times in lakes I assume that you have been diving in the sea?

Provided that there is no heavy swell or waves then swimming in the sea is very little different from swimming anywhere else. After all your feet are off the bottom when you are swimming so it doesn't matter if you have 3 foot or 30 foot of water below you the swimming doesn't feel any different. The one exception will be that it could actually be a little easier - swimming in salt water, especially if you wear some sort of protection (wetsuit etc.) means you are more buoyant due to the salt content of the water.

I would have to say that it is "all in the mind" - if you know you can swim 650m then you can do it whether you are in a pool, lake or the sea. Part of the reason for the swim tests is to see not only how fit you are, but also how comfortable you are in the water. I will often just bob around on the surface after a dive waiting for students to sort themselves out with their exits onto the boat, and to be honest I never think about whether I am in shallow or deep water.

Be confident in your own ability to keep yourself afloat and swim and don't give any concern to the fact it is open sea.

Regarding current and so on - you are swimming from a boat, if you think about it on the surface the current will affect both you and the boat in the same way - so if you drift, so will the boat, so current will not separate you much, wind might affect the boat more than it affects you because there is a bigger surface, but again not so much that there is any real prospect of separation.

Waves - well if they are very big I can't see the test going ahead, even then you do not remain static in relation to the waves, the waves carry you up with them so unless they break over you again no problem. If they are breaking then it is simply a case of watching them and swimming through them and timing your breathing.

I suggest you sit down and think about exactly what it is that you THINK may be different and and going to cause a problem, and then think it through logically, I suspect you will find you are worrying needlessly.

In my view sea swimming in normal conditions is very little different from any other type swimming.

My open caveat would be I would never advocate sea swimming from the shore if you do not understand the local tides and currents, because you cannot predict where you will be carried and it may be hard to get back to where you want to exit, but in your case you said the swim will be off the boat so this is not an issue.

Just relax, enjoy and don't worry about it. - Regards Phil

 

[TMHeimer]

Agree on everything. Especially the salt water buoyancy thing. This is great for someone like me who is very negatively buoyant. How well you score time wise will be different. A plus is you don't have to make turns like in a pool. Then again, how big is the boat to swim around-- ei., will you be constantly turning and have to look at where you're going? In fact, how can your distance be measured without an exact pool length--approximate, I guess? A small current probably won't matter as you will gain when with it and lose when against it.

 

[tracydr]

You might try reading some of the very good articles on the internet written for triathalon swimming. A lot of triathletes aren't the best swimmers and are learning to swin in the ocean.
Just keep swimming,as Dory says.

 

[Pedro Burrito]

Where are you likely to have to assist or rescue someone? Is it in a pool or is it in the sea? You will need to swim in the sea if you want to work as a DM or instructor.

I'm reminded of a dive in Key Largo where a diver was swept to another boat by current and his dive boat backed up to the other dive boat to pick him up. Both boats turned off their engines and the diver jumped in. Without his fins! The current moved the boats and the diver far apart and the DM of his boat had to go after the diver and perform a rescue tow. This too can be part of your responsibilities.

 

[maristu]

Thanks for all the replies! Phil, I do think I'm overanalyzing things, but it's unfortunately part of my MO, I tend to overthink and overworry and overeverything... Yes, I have dived in the ocean (except for the first 9 dives, all 100 others were ocean dives), and I usually don't care how deep the water is, but then I have my BCD and fins and it makes me feel more in control than just me bobbing around in the water... I have been to the beach a lot (Rio practically every summer when I was a kid) and waded off some, but never far enough to not see the shore, for example. When diving I've jumped off boats during surface intervals, but again always right next to the boat. One of these times I was diving in the Red Sea (Jordan) and I jumped off the boat, and when I came up a second later I was already 10-15 meters away from the anchored boat because of the current, which kind of freaked me out. There was a line and I was fine, and I knew that if I ended up too far away to swim back the boat or someone would come for me, but it still freaked me out a little.

The thing is, swimming in a pool is so controlled. You have your own lane, no waves or currents to worry about (except when you're sharing a lane with someone), and you know that no matter how much you swim you're always a short swim from the edge. I'm used to a slow controlled swim, with long extended strokes. The lake here in Brasilia is pretty small and filled with boats everywhere, so it's usually an easy swim to safety, and there's hardly any swell (and definitely no current). I've been to Khao Lak and I've dived the Similan Islands, and I know that we're usually in open water where I can't see any shore. There's also plenty of surface current and swell in some places, but I'm thinking we'll pick a day and a spot where that's not so much of an issue. What I worry most about is swallowing water when I breathe because of the swell, and panicking because of it. I also worry about having a big boat next to me, which on the one hand is my safety line, and on the other could hurt me if for any reason currents change quickly (especially if it's anchored). I guess the only way around it is to just get there and practice some before the actual test.

And Pedro, I do know that rescue and assisting scenarios are more likely to happen in the ocean, especially considering that's where I plan to work (and eventually get my Instructor cert). I'm not complaining or saying I don't want to do it, quite the contrary. I just want to be as ready as possible when I get there, and wanted to see if anyone had any tips for switching from a controlled environment to the open sea.

At first I worried about not being able to swim 400m. Now that I can do that, I've switched my worry to ocean swimming, and to the free diving requirements (which again, I've never done), and to the equipment exchange, and... Truth is, I'm not me if I'm not worrying about something

Thanks again for the replies! I'll keep swimming

Mari

 

[Pedro Burrito]

Mari,

I did not mean to be critical. Everything you worry about can be worked on. I tried to convince my instructor to allow me to swim across the quarry instead of doing laps in a pool because I get so bored doing laps. Going straight out and back is so much faster than laps but my instructors wanted me to do laps because it's a controlled environment.

I'm a worrier too. My worry, and dread, is diving in the quarry. Guess where I do most of my diving and teaching? The quarry. And I still don't like it.

With the equipment exchange, use a weight belt, start with your teammate's gear on and exchange to your gear. Look at your teammate's foot size and make sure you can wear his/her fins. What's amusing is watching a team exchange everything except the fins because one set of fins won't fit. Then the team has to start over again after they find fins that will fit.

 

[maristu]

TMHeimer, the boat is 27m long and 6m wide, so about the length of a semi-Olympic pool (like the one I'm training at). Since I won't be right next to it, I'm guessing I'll swim about 70-80m each time I go round it, so about 5 or 6 times around the boat should be enough. It'll be a guess, definitely. I don't really mind, though, since I'm pretty sure I wouldn't get more than a 1 on this anyway...

 

[DBailey]

With the equipment exchange, use a weight belt,

More specifically, the performace requirement states that you do not exchange weights (or exposure suit); therefore, a belt or harness is a must.

 

[divad]

If you're a male, make sure you wear swimming pants of some sort.