The song "Perfect Day" that was featured in Legally Blonde kept playing through my head all that day. It truly was a perfect day for an open water swim. About 82 degrees air temp, 71 degree water temp, the lake had recently been refilled due to a dam break over the summer, and the water was clear and clean. I couldn't have asked for better conditions.
Here are some pictures from my race (2K) and a video of some competitors in the 4K race. Finally, I'm embedding the "Perfect Day" video so you can play it and get a sense of just how perfect my day was.
Just after the start -- I'm in the white cap toward the back of the pack.
The little girl in the bright green cap latched onto me at about 250 meters into the swim and stayed with me stroke for stroke until the last 400 meters of the race. Whenever I switched from freestyle to breaststroke, so did she. When I stopped to adjust my cap, she stopped and waited for me to begin swimming again. I don't quite understand what her tactic was, but she really impeded my progress, as she kept swimming into me -- but I figured, hey, maybe she just needs someone close to her to feel safer in the water, so I kind of watched over her. I thought it was odd that such a young child (I'm guessing she was about 10) was swimming alone without a parent or guardian.
All smiles at the finish.
A group of 4K racers - the song playing in the background was recorded live from the race promoter's loud speakers. Yes, it was loud! I could hear the music each time I swam by.
And now, to keep that Perfect Day theme going, listen and enjoy.
