Swimmers compete in Sea Dogs Open Water Swim
The water was still on the Kennebecasis River Sunday morning, aside from the churning wake created by nearly 70 swimmers.
Organizers of the Sea Dogs Open Water Swim were relieved to see no natural white caps off the Renforth Wharf, as dragon boat races at the same location had to be called off Saturday due to high winds.
Placid water
"I heard that the dragon boat had to be cancelled, and today is absolutely beautiful," said Nathalie Justason from the swim's organizing committee.
Justason said she avoided fretting over forecasts, but felt extremely lucky to see such placid water.
Swimmers had the choice of tackling the "puppy" 1.5 kilometre race or the three kilometre "big dog." Organizers adjusted competitors' swim times to take into account those who got a little extra buoyancy from a wetsuit and those who swam without one.
Blood felt frozen
After finishing first in the 1.5 kilometre category, Olga Bordatcheva said her blood felt frozen as she raced out of the water. The first-time open water racer said she had no idea she was leading the pack.
"To be honest, I just wanted to finish the race as fast as I could," Bordatcheva said on the wharf.
Finishing first in the men's 1.5 km category was Stefan Mader, who was expecting the water would be colder. Mader said he had to tweak his approach to the open water race because he is more used to racing in pools.
"It's more a structured swim in the sense that you really have to plan your race," he said.
Mader said it took a lot more awareness to know where he was in the race, something that is much easier to gauge in a pool.
'It was tough'
While the prospect of beginning a Sunday morning with a brisk swim may not appeal to everyone, Zach Boulanger has been thinking about it all year. Now 14 years old, Boulanger was finally old enough to register in the race.
"I've been working real hard for the past year," he said after finishing first in the three kilometre race.
"I wasn't old enough to do it [before], so I wanted to have a really good first year."
The Saint John high school student came to the race prepared by completing five triathlons this year. Still, Boulanger admitted the Sea Dog swim wasn't easy.
"It was tough," he said. "The first loop felt good, but the second one, I just had to hold on for dear life."
