Saturday, June 6, 2009

Organizing an open water swim race

Tomorrow's first annual Jordan Lake Open Water Challenge has 114 pre-registered athletes, which is a great turnout. I just went through the entry sheet and saw that 55% of these swimmers are first-time open water competitors, which is also great. We're going to do our best to provide a well organized race. One Step Beyond is partnered with FS Series for these three races. The first race was run in conjunction with a triathlon they were hosting, so everything was already set up. For this one, I have been in charge of most things-

Our checklist of things to do this week included:

make sure the ambulance crew will be there
confirm with the Coast Guard Auxiliary
confirm with Jordan Lake Superintendent
Get the swim caps
Pick up the t-shirts
confirm lifeguards from TAC
Pick up bagels for food
Run packet pickup

Tomorrow I'll be running around organizing things and hosting a short pre-race swim clinic.

Today Bri and I had a good 10 mile run in Umstead Park and then a short bike ride, tomorrow I'll hope to get a ride in.

My old friend Collis, a buddy for 20 years, is coming into town today for the swim and to hang out for a couple days with us. I would rate Collis a top contender but he let me know he hasn't been in the water since April, so now he is my main safety concern. :)

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