GregInTheWater
GLASGOW OPEN WATER SWIMMING COACH
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Most of my blog entries are about races, long swims, or swim holidays. Today I thought I would just write about the routine fun swims that I do in Scotland over the summer. My normal place to swim is Loch Lomond, but this loch is 36km long, so there are plenty of places to get in to go for a swim. Normally I swim in the mornings with a group of swimmers… Read More
I am writing this blog entry during the late May bank holiday weekend in 2020. Normally at this time of year, I would be swimming as often as possible, enjoying the relative warmth of Loch Lomond as the spring sun heats it up past 10c. I used to think I would die when I first exposed myself to water of that temperature; but now I celebrate it, as I know that summer… Read More
One of my swim pals Gary was training for a non-wetsuit attempt on the length of Loch Lomond, a swim of 36 km. As part of that training, we had done the Inchtavannach and Inchconnachan loops several times, building up to distances of 5.5km. The warm summer of 2018 had continued, with the water in Loch Lomond between 19.5c and 20.5c, which was very pleasant for my 2km morning swims with The… Read More
The Great Scottish Swim returned for their annual swim at Balloch on the shores of Loch Lomond on the weekend after the Pier to Pub swim. This year they had introduced a 10km swim event on the Friday afternoon, and I entered during the winter based on the plans to make each lap 2.5km. However, as the event got closer, it became clear that the 10km event would use the standard course,… Read More
The glorious weather continued after the Bardowie race, with sun from dawn to dusk for two weeks. At this time of year dawn is around 430am, with sunset about 10pm, and then the long twilight takes over, with complete darkness a mere dream of colder days. The local media were talking about the heat wave as the maximum temperature sat above 20c for days on days. Memories of the stunning summer of… Read More
Each year I post a summary of my swim events, but this year it is different. I used to write it at the end of May each year, as that was the end of the open water swim season in Australia, and it would cover the 12 months to the end of May. Well, this year I am writing it at the end of May, but it is now covers a different… Read More
The day after the great Scottish Swim, a group of four fanatics from Wild West Swimmers, organised a training swim for the Big Un swim. What is the Big un swim? Well that is a 10 mile (16km) swim from one end of Loch Rannoch to the other, to be held in mid-September. The training swim was to start at Aldochlay and finish at Balloch, down the western shore of Loch Lomond,… Read More
The biggest swimming event in Scotland was held on the last Saturday on August on Loch Lomond. The event known as the Great Scottish Swim is the last swim of the summer in the five race great swim series, with the over four swims held south of the border in England. Usually at this time of year, the loch is at its warmest and can get to 18c. But as this… Read More
I entered a swim at Balloch on Loch Lomond called the Wee Beastie swim to be held in late July. This event comprised three distances of 400m, a half-mile, or the full mile. The swim was to be held on a Saturday afternoon, with the Scottish Aquathlon in the morning, and a full day of triathlon on the Sunday. After my last swim event I decided to enter the… Read More
GregInTheWater 