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Bill Welzien Update - August 2006
Goal: To swim around the island of Key West each month for 12 consecutive months.
Date: Wednesday, August 11th, 2006
Start time: 8:01AM (High Tide in Key West Harbor at 10:14AM -2.39ft. )
Things this swim we some different from the last. The threat of being thwarted by an electrical storm was far less threatening
this time than my last swim, July 11th. However, the possibility of an electrical storm is always there at this time of year. I saw
dark rain clouds around us and I prayed that there would be no fireworks.
My kayaker this time was my five month pregnant daughter Abigail White. She is carrying our first grandchild, a little boy, due
to enter this world at the end of the year. I picked up Abby about 7:35 and we made it to the beach about 20 minutes before our
scheduled time of departure at 8:00AM. We went through the usual ritual upon our arrival. We untied the kayak from the roof
rack of my ’95 Ford Explorer and set is on the beach at the Bertha Street Boat Ramp. The tide was so high there was hardly
any beach to be seen. We loaded our water; food stuffs etc. and I went and parked the car at the bridal path, across the street.
On my way back to the beach I made a quick stop to the Porto Potty in front of the beach rest rooms. (They have been closed
since Hurricane Wilma’s devastating storm surge) and then back to Abby and the kayak. Abby lathered me up copious
amounts of zinc oxide. We prayed and then I stumbled into the water about 8:00AM, feeling some sharp rock under my tender
feet. When I looked at my watch it read 8:01. At that moment I began swimming. I normally prefer to get further out in the
water. This start was right off the beach.
I made an unfortunate mistake. I neglected to move my watch to the stop watch mode. I pushed the button to start the watch
but still was in the time mode. I reached White Street Pier and glanced at my watch and saw the 8 and thought, “Boy that is
great, I made it here in 8 minutes.” A few minutes later I looked at my watch again and it still said 8. Then I noticed it was 8:
26AM. It was at that point I actually started my stop watch. This mistake skewed my first split time and my over all finish time
but the rest of my splits are accurate. To rectify the other times I simply added 25 minutes. My goal is to make my split points
uniform throughout all the swims. This over the many swims should give me a pretty idea of how long it takes me to swim from
point to point.
Water Conditions: At the start the water had a slight chop to it. The sargasm seaweed was fairly thick the first couple of miles
and the last two. That would place it on the Atlantic side of the island. I noticed some itchiness on the front of my shoulder.
Later, after the swim I had what looked like mosquito bites. They lasted several days.
About two miles into the swim the water got choppier and I noticed Abby struggling a bit and as we rounded the island at just
past the second mile it began pouring and Abby was about as wet as I was. I would guess the water was a tad bit warmer than
the July swim. My guess would put the water temperature at 86 degrees. I honestly don’t mind the warm water. I find myself
thinking about my future swim and I am not comfortable with the thought of the winter swims. I have a big problem with cold.
How cold will this water get? That of course depends on how cold the weather is. We have recorded lows in the upper 40’s. A
week of that could pull the water here down into the mid to low 60’s. Spending 6 hours in water that cold is unsettling to me.
I mentioned that Abby lathered the zinc oxide on me thick. When I finished most of what was on my back was gone. I think
swimming through seaweed rubbed it off. The sun was extremely hot and my back was tender that night. However, I did not
peel, so I guess I had only a mild burn. Living down here has tanned my pretty well. I am not one who goes to the beach or
who would ever purposely lay out in the sun. When I do my work outs I do them early just to avoid spending undo time in the
hot sun. However, even the morning sun after time browns the skin.
My starting times thus far have been well chosen as I have not encountered any problems from changing tidal currents. I have
swum though the Flemming Cut (mile 5) when the tidal current was shooting me forward. I don’t think it has been quite that
fast the past two swims but it has been fast. I have definitely noticed fast moving currents as I head through the Cow Key
Channel from mile 9 until 10.
This sport could be maddening if a person hated spending time alone. This is a very lonely sport. Abby is next to me in the
kayak but the only time we speak to one another is when I call for a drink. I don’t want to waste time when I drink, the clock
keeps ticking and while I am not racing to finish I want to keep my time under 6 hours. I hope my times improve as I continue
these swims. I would like to think I am going to grow stronger with each swim. What do I think about? All sorts of things. I
pray, I sing to myself. I think about people I have spoken to. I work through theological and philosophical issues. A lot of the
time I think about my form, my pull, my kick, my breathing. Some years ago I bought the book by Terry Laughlin called Total
Immersion. I find it helpful to go back periodically and read through its pages. I also find myself examining my body, perhaps I
should say micromanaging my body, especially my shoulders, especially my left shoulder. That is the one on which I had my
surgery on March 14th of this year. I had a bone spur on the top of my shoulder removed, but when my surgeon went in he
found a tendon detached and he reattached it. I still have some strange feeling in that area but I am beginning to think that this
is due to my stretching the tendon. When I told my surgeon of my intentions to swim once a month for a full year, I expected to
see some sign of horror on his face but his reaction was quite the opposite. He simply smiled and wished my well. He said
he didn’t expect I would have problems with my shoulders because as he put it, “Swimming is a non-impact sport.” I do notice
that my recovery time after these swim is so much quicker than after distance runs
In my last entry I wrote, “The first half of the island has water deep enough for easy swimming, in actual fact it is the last three
miles that are the most challenging. In some area in the final few miles the water is less than a foot deep. Navigating in such
shallows is not only difficult but fatiguing.” This is so true. In fact after the last swim I would not only say that trying to navigate
in the shallows is not only fatiguing but also maddening!!
Nutrition/ Performance: I continue to use the Hammer Nutrition product Perpetuum. You can learn more of my use of this by
looking back at the July swim entry. I like the Hammer products and the Clif products. They seem to agree with my digestive
system. I haven’t had any problem with cramping or bloating. I drank about every 40 minutes when it was convenient. I say
when convenient because when I am in very shallow water I postpone stopping until I find deeper water. I did try something
new this swim. I drank a small bottle of a product called something like: 5 Hour Fuel. I bought it a Walgreens. I tried it a week
before in a training swim of 6 miles. I found no negatives from it and so after three or so miles into the swim I drank the few
ounces contained in the bottle. I can’t tell you if it helped my but I know it didn’t hinder me. I think I would try it again.
When I finished this swim, I was a bit dizzy and a bit nauseous. I was so hot as I put the kayak back atop my Ford Explorer.
After I took Abby home, and I commend her for a great performance in the kayak, I went to Goldman’s Bagglery. I had a lox and
bagel platter. Soon afterwards I began to feel human again. I need some real food
My time for this swim was 6:08. I have now swum around Key West 21 times
Problems: The first couple miles my left arm felt “yucky.” That is the best I can express it. As I micromanaged I concluded that
the feeling was not my shoulder but my elbow. I have had some “tennis elbow.” I think this is due to my shoulder still healing.
The feeling went away after the first couple of miles.
I was thankful we didn’t encounter any Coast Guardsmen telling us we had to get out of the water.
Goal: To swim around the island of Key West each month for 12 consecutive months. The first two swims are completed. So
far I haven’t broken any new ground. I did the swim twice a couple of times in two different years. The next swim will be ground
breaking
Next Swim: Wednesday, September 20th beginning at 7:15AM. High tide is at 9:29AM (2.12 ft.) in the Key West Harbor.
Tuesday, July 11th, 2006 Start time 7:53AM
Splits:
Start to Mile 2 - 57:17
Mile 2 to Mile 4 - 51:25 (1:48)
Mile 4 to Mile 5 – 16:59 (2:05)
Mile 5 to Mile 6 – 40:50 (2:46)
Mile 6 to Mile 7.5 – 41:05 (3:27)
Mile 7.5-Mile 9 – 48:42 (4:16)
Mile 9 to First piling at Smathers Beach _ 1:16 (5:32)
First piling to Finish - 20:52 (Finish time 5:53:31)
Wednesday, August 9th, 2006 Start time 8:01AM
Splits:
Start to Mile 2 – 61:14
Mile 2 to Mile 4 - 55:15 (2:09)
Mile 4 to Mile 5 – 21:09 (2:21)
Mile 5 to Mile 6 – 42:10 (3:03)
Mile 6 to Mile 7.5 – 41:20 (3:44)
Mile 7.5-Mile 9 – 48:37 (4:32)
Mile 9 to First piling at Smathers Beach - 1:17 (5:39)
First piling to Finish - 21:16 (Finish time 6:08)
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