2.5 miles of lake Michigan practice, 1 miles up and down

Cruising through the weeks leading up to masters open water national 10k(6.2 mile) race and continue logging 28k yards per week. Spent this week in the open water, except two pool practices, focused on longer swims at a solid pace and working on technique. Tired but gaining confidence to swim through the next several weeks and big races to my real test, that at Boston 8 to 10 miles cold (55-65f) ocean race then on to my 6-8 hour English channel qualifying swim in the fall.

Had a good swim with my coach (Marcia Cleveland) in lake Michigan this week. Booked 2.5 miles in a 1-3 foot swells. Learning to sense the pattern of the waves, several big rollers and the calm. During the calm I take advantage and bi- lateral breath which balances my stroke and releives my neck stress, then back at riding the waves. It's amazing how different it is swimming in even easy rolling waves, the extra time it requires, to complete the same distance in a pool or smooth lake. But I am now confident I can take on some big wavy water if needed and be patient and work through it. Next on my trainig regime is to swim a night. I finally found a few folks willing to tolerate me crazy dream and help me out at night kayaking with glow sticks and head lamps while I swim. We'll try easy lake Zurich first and then move on to lake Michigan.

As for Boston, I will be honest I am a little nervous, it's my first big ocean swim despite the fact that I will have been swimming in and around martha's vineyard the week before. Guess where jaws was filmed ... You guessed it...martha's vineyard. Oh the joy of knowing this. But I have to face these fears because In the end, get busy living or get busy dying. I'll be just fine in all these but it's the mental game.

Thank you to everyone that sends notes and akses about how it's going. You can't imagine the challenge of something this big, the details, the logistics, the learning of both oneself and how to work with mother nature. Special thanks to jennifer, mom and dad, Katie, Ted, Kevin, and my swi coaches marita, Marcia and John, and doug McConnell (he inspires me every to try harder). Oh one last driving reason, to teach my daughter that despite very big odds, something like this can be done, I hope she someday she has a similar opportunity of a life challenge.