Open Water Swim at West Neck Beach: Memorial Day, 2009

Ok, this doesn't look too perfect... could you ask for better open water conditions? I've seen higher "waves" than this in the Huntington YMCA pool -- both of them! As it turns out, my firm rule of not swimming till mid-June or so was sorely tempted this Memorial Day. It's probably a good thing that I got to West Neck Beach late -- had I been there early, I would have been tempted to hop back in my car for the ride home to pick up swim suit and wet suit. The water looked that good even though it was in the mid-fifties.

Most of the swimmers were long gone before I got there -- so no close-up pictures today. But, that is more than made up for in the beauty that was West Neck Beach on this Memorial Day. For those of you who were brave enough -- and this time, smart enough to hit the water early this Memorial Day morning, I hope that you enjoyed your swim -- it looked great from ashore. 

For those of you who missed out -- I hope these pictures will give you an idea of just what you missed this Memorial Day morning. On the other hand, its not even summer yet -- we've got months and months of Open Water Swimming ahead of us -- if only those pesky jellies keep their distance!

Jelly Fish Spotted Signing In at Huntington YMCA

It is not even Memorial Day and our old "friend" Jelly Fish was caught on film, (well digital "film"), signing in at the front desk of the Huntington YMCA. This photo brings with it a number of disturbing AND unanswered questions. Among them:

Where did Jelly Fish get his YMCA Membership card?

How does Jelly Fish carry his YMCA Membership card?

How did Jelly Fish learn how to use the scanner and how in the world did he get up that high to even see the scanner?

But most importantly, has Jelly Fish invited any of his relatives to visit us at West Neck Beach?

Stay tuned for further updates on Jelly Fish and our intrepid outdoor swimmers -- none of us wants to see a repeat of the 2008 Outdoor "Jelly Fish Infested" Swimming Season. 

Open Water Season has started

This weekend, OWS officially kicked off with a few "regulars" hitting the water. I think Don Bond was officially the first to dip his toe in the water on Saturday. Windy and cold would be adjectives I can pass along. On Sunday, Don and I hit WNB for a return visit to the water. Less windy, more cold but for 15 minutes and it almost felt like the summer was here.( except for the cold water part ). Memories of jellies filled by thoughts. The good news is that for the next month, NO jellies will be seen!

Weekend swims will start to become regular again and weekdays soon to follow. If anyone is interested in knowing the scheduled , please email me ( robmartell@optonline.net ) and I will add you to the distribution list.

This Sunday is the tentative next date but I could be convinced of a Friday AM swim if there were people interested in a mile or two in the cold.

Yolanda and Julio Moving to Florida -- First Stop Meehan's!

Yolanda and Julio Velez are relocating to the St. Pete/Gulf Coast area so Bob Miller quickly organized a "Bon Voyage" get together for them at Meehan’s in Huntington. Below are a few pictures from the Saturday, May 9, 2009 party.

The party organizer and the guests of honor together at last!

April Fool's Classic at the Norton Pool, Huntington Y

Thanks to Bob Miller and Friends for another fun Tri/Masters Swim Meet at the Huntington YMCA. Bob sent the pictures below and following information out in an email after the meet:

To our Tri/Masters swimmers:

 

Well, another April Fool's Classic is in the books and it's time to get ready for the outdoor season.   I am including a copy of the individual results from last year so you can compare your times to this year's.  Am also inclunding this year's individual results as well as the relay results.  Congratulations to you all for a really great effort...hope you're not too sore tomorrow...

 

Relay results:  

Orange team - 27 points

Green team - 23 points

 

Individual results:    

Orange team - 81 points

Green team - 61 points

 

Total points:    

Orange team - 108 points

Green team - 84 points

 

Looks like Coach Bob's team (with less swimmers as well...) wins it this year...Coach Lynn - better luck next year.  Seriously, I hope all had a great day!  Look at the times from last year...you should be proud!  Much improved!

 

I also want to thank our officials, Bea and Arthur Hartigan and our timers...Lynn Perszesty, Joye Brown, Lisa Krystal and Tammie Topel.  When you see these fine folk at the Y, please thank them...they are all volunteers!

 

May you all have a blessed Easter and Passover season!  Don't forget to sign up for the next session.  Be safe and see you in the water!

 

 - Coach Bob

Indoor Tri at the Huntington YMCA: March 29, 2009

This Swim Wave managed to get together BEFORE the starters gun went off (Thank You Arthur) for a group photo. They do look happy don't they? Below is video from the start of the first wave of swimmers -- lean away from the screen if you don't want to get splashed!








Different swim wave above... but some really good stroke positions. I'm assuming that these are some of Coach Bob's students!

Running indoors can sometimes be boring... but that never seems to be the case at the Huntington Y.


Below is a video from the run portion of this very successful Indoor Tri:

I can take as much time on the turns as I want right?

This is a really, really good workout!

The Indoor Tri's youngest fan! Somebody sign her up for 2029!

I was sweating to the oldies and the weren't even playing any oldies!

In the Video Below, you can see and LISTEN to the excitement of biking at an Indoor Tri. Drafting was just out of the question though from what I've heard, would have been really welcome as the bike portion of the race was 15 minutes of hard, up-hill work!

If we're the last swim wave, does that mean that we only have to swim for 14 minutes?

Now look way up there... that's how far I want to see the splash from you kicking going!

That's right, I'm STILL turning... it really is a great place to rest!

How long do we have to run?

Don't worry, we'll have the lane lines up BEFORE you finish running!

Bob said, "Mike, make sure you get a shot of the Build Our Y (dot) Org T-Shirt!"

"Funny thing, I was just biking along, minding my business, when all of a sudden, I found myself in the middle of this Indoor Tri -- so how did you get here?"

Got Some Old Swim Paddles You Don't Use?

If you've Got Some Old Swim Paddles You Don't Use -- then Nancy 

has a real good use for them. 

Here's what she recently wrote to Bob:

Can you ask your swim group if anyone has old swim paddles they would like to donate to the Leukemia Society?  I'm also going to post something on the swim bulletin board.  They could bring them to your practice on Sunday mornings or when they see you in the pool during the week.

Harry Gets Shaved for St Baldrick's Day

Looks like somebody won't be needing a swim cap in the pool for awhile... but a wool cap might come in real handy while biking and running for the next few weeks!

It was all in a good cause for St Baldrick's Day to benefit kids with cancer.

 Harry said: I wanted to thank everyone for all your wonderful support. I think you will have a few laughs reviewing the photos. Thank you again for helping out. They raised over 250K at Napper Tandies Bar Northport, NY.

Open Water Swimming: Keep Swimming! A Hypothermia Scare

Open Water Swimming: Keep Swimming! A Hypothermia Scare

Clicking the link above will take you to a very gripping first person Open Water Swimming account and a very real and vivid hypothermia scare that took place in La Jolla Cove and the generally cool Pacific Ocean (at least around La Jolla Cove). There are plenty of tips for us East Coast Open Water Swimmers as well. Read and learn!

A Picture of the Huntington Masters Swim Team from 1991!

Contrary to popular opinion, I do NOT still have this Huntington Masters Swim Team sweatshirt hanging up in my closet -- but thanks to Bob, (he's the young chap standing in the top row all the way to the right), we have a photo of our team going all the way back to 1991! Eighteen years ago -- can you believe it? Time really flies when you're swimming. The 1991 Swimmers were:

Top row (left to right)
Kevin Dearie, Craig Becker, Jeff Becker, Dick Soldat, Bill Rowe, Bob Miller

Front row (left to right)
Irena Jarvis, Donna Boyle, Mike Engel, Marilyn Cavallo, Deidre Clark

CW Post Masters Swim Meet: February 8, 2009

A trio of fine swimmers from the Huntington Masters Swim Team, (Rich, Ken and Rob are pictured left to right), made their way to the C. W. Post Campus -- not for a workout -- but a Swim Meet.

Thanks to Rob who sent out the pictures and even posted a couple of videos on YouTube to boot! When Rich got the pictures, he emailed Rob and Ken back with the following comments:

Hi Rob,
Thanks for the pictures...It's fun to see the videos..and
Congratulations on your PR..
Ken,
You're looking good in the pool...Keep up the good work..as for
me I think I'll enter less events next time and will try to taper a
bit...It was really fun today...See you during the week...Rich

RESULTS:

Rob Martell:
50 breast - 2nd - 33.27
100 breast - 2nd - 1:15.40
100 IM - 4th - 1:13.64

Ken Longo:
50 free - 1st - 26.47
50 back - 1st - 30.10
100 back - 1st - 1:05.99

Rich Huminski:
50 free - 2nd - 29.25
100 free - 1st - 1:06.25
200 free - 1st - 2:24.01
100 IM - 1st - 1:17.94

500 free - 1st - under 6:30.0

Hog Wild for a "Fat Bob"

If "one picture is worth a thousand words" than two pictures have got to be worth... Tom, maybe you can help me with the math here -- you're so good a counting laps! 

Anyhow, pictured above is Paval, the proud owner of a new, gleaming yellow Harley-Davidson "Fat Bob". The name, I have been told has nothing whatsoever to do with another Bob we all know and love. Yeah, right!

U.S. Masters Swimming Unveiled a New Logo in January 2009

Woops, we're a little late but "better late than never" as they say to report that U.S. Masters Swimming unveiled a New Logo in January 2009. See the new logo at left.

“The icon in our new logo embraces our tradition of pool swimming while also coming across as very inviting to recreational and fitness swimmers, open water swimmers and triathletes,” commented Executive Director Rob Butcher. “It was our goal to maintain our heritage while also recognizing the future of adult swimming.”

Save the date of March 29, 2009 (Sunday afternoon), for an Indoor Triathlon at the Huntington YMCA

There will be an Indoor Triathlon at the Huntington YMCA that day. It will be an equilateral race (all 3 legs are the same duration). Should take about an hour total...cost and other details are being finalized. This is a fund raiser for the Y's expansion. It should be a pip of a race and an excellent way to try out the sport for first timers. Best of all, you don't even have to leave the building! It's always summer on the inside!

Anyone interested in doing the race or in volunteering to help run it, (please, please, please), let Bob Miller know ASAP.

Will President Obama Join Us At West Neck Beach This Summer?

Don't you just love starting rumors? Well, here's one for the books...

President Barack Obama plans to join the Huntington Masters Swim Team for an Open Water Swim some time this summer... though I think there was a phrase like "if his schedule permits".

What the heck, two wars, an economy in chaos -- an Open Water Swim in Cold Spring Harbor might just be the thing to help clear his head. You can't play basketball ALL the time -- it puts a real strain on the knees!

Mr. President, the invitation is open and, if you do decide to join us, we'll throw in a 2009 Open Water T-Shirt. See link on the right to get your T-shirt BEFORE it becomes a Presidential Collector's edition!

An Indoor Tri For The Huntington Y?

Plans are afoot, (though not yet formalized), to conduct an Indoor Triathlon at the Huntington YMCA sometime before this cold, cold Winter turns to Spring. Can you tell that I'm writing this when the outdoor temperature is only in the teens -- and that is the HIGH for the day!

Ahh yes, those lazy, hazy days of Summer are just a memory -- so Winter would be a fine time for an Indoor Tri with the proceeds going to the Y expansion drive.

Stay tuned and stay in shape -- you may have a crack at a Tri earlier in 2009 than you ever though possible!