Showing posts with label Cold Water Swim. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cold Water Swim. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

The Challenging Cold Water Swim in the Escape from Alcatraz Duathlon


A longtime Seattle executive with a technology background, Edward Anderton serves as managing director of Scarlata Chocolate, a company that produces dark chocolate that emphasizes the use of local, organic, sustainably sourced raw materials. Also a fitness enthusiast, Edward Anderton took part in the Escape from Alcatraz duathlon and placed second within his age group in August of 2015.

The challenging annual event starts with a 1.5-mile swim from a ferry just off Alcatraz across the San Francisco Bay Area to the city, followed by a 7-mile run. The swimming portion is infamous for its difficulty, with swimmers contending with strong currents, fog, and bone-chilling water that make a full wetsuit a must. 

A unique element of the swim portion is that the strong and changeable currents create an L-shaped course, rather than a simple A to B proposition. Top performers typically aim for efficiency and energy conservation in the beginning as they take a direction that compensates for the current and lands them at the Marina Green.