Coach Bill's Open Water Swim Workout Schedule

Coach Bill no longer leads group swims but is available for private training in open water.

Open Water Locations and Resources

Open Water Swim Locations: Note that the Massachusetts DCR ParksPass can be used for parking at Walden Pond, Hopkinton State Park, Nantasket Beach, and most other DCR locations (not all beaches and parks are managed by the DCR). It's $35/year - a real bargain if you swim or run in DCR parks.

• Walden Pond, Concord MA
• Sandy Beach, Winchester MA - meet on the beach (it is very small)
• Hopkinton State Park, Hopkinton MA
• Niles Beach, Gloucester MA
  Note: For the Niles Beach location, to estimate the water temperature, check the WTMP column on the Stellwagen Bank weather buoy (below). The water off Niles Beach is usually 1-2 degrees warmer.
  Station 44029 - Buoy A0102 - Mass. Bay/Stellwagen
• Stage Fort Park, Gloucester, MA
• Nantasket Beach, Hull, MA
• City Point Beach, South Boston, MA - there is very limited parking at this location

Water Quality. Between Memorial Day in late May and Labor Day in early September, the DCR tests water quality at various locations. You can call their Beaches Hotline 617-626-4972 for a recorded message listing any locations with unsafe water.

Weather Cancellations. Generally speaking, I swim if there is a gentle rain falling. I do not swim if there are electrical storms nearby, the air temperature is below 55°F, or if there are severe winds or other dangerous conditions. Summer storms can be very localized, so often the swim/no-swim decision is made only after arriving at the beach. If the weather is questionable, before leaving for the beach I usually check the following webpage for electrical storm activity: North East US lightning activity, last 60 minutes.

Open Water Swim Workout Water Temperatures

As of July all lakes and ponds where I swim usually are warm enough for swimming without a wetsuit. The ocean north of Boston is another matter. The temperature generally rises to mid-to-upper 60s F during the summer and into late September. BUT, there are frequent and dramatic drops to the mid-to-low 50s (for most of us, that is "instant headache" water). So, if you plan on swimming at Niles Beach or some other north-of-Boston location, bring all of your neoprene gear - (long sleeve suits, caps, gloves, socks) you can always leave what you don't need in the car. These temperature drops tend to happen on race day! See what happened below on the day of the Nubble Light Challenge. People who did a "test swim" a few days early found temperatures in the low 70s. When the race started (around 08 EDT on July 10) it was very low 60s:

Coach Bill's All Purpose Swim Training Plan: Open Water Skills + Intervals + Distance

Open Water Skills. Practice sighting. Sight a lot - every 6-8 strokes. You can always sight less during a race if all is going well. Always swim at a specific target. Poor sighting can add 100 yards or more to even a short race. (See the GPS tracks.)

Intervals. If all you do for swimming during the summer is an out-and-back mile, your swimming will get slower, not faster, as the season wears on. Most of your open water workouts should consist of shorter 200-400 yd repeats at above-race pace. Keep the rest intervals relatively short. And keep working on your sighting, breathing, and body position in open water, always. (body position = belly in, neck tall, chin back)

Distance. Perform at least one race-distance open water swim before your race. Sometimes we forget what those longer distances feel like, or even what they look like outside of the little box where we usually swim, and that can be discouraging on race day. But don't overdo it with the distance. Most triathletes do too much distance and not enough interval training during the summer.