Lido Key swim report?

bluemermaid9bluemermaid9 Boca Raton, FL, United StatesSenior Member

Many of my teammates and I are planning to make a showing at Lido Key next month. I was searching through the Lido posts and couldn't find a race report for 2017 or 2015. Anyone care to share his/her experience? @j9swim perhaps? Thanks!

Comments

  • j9swimj9swim CharlestonSenior Member

    loved the swim last year! fast current, well run, clean pretty waters. it gets shallow when you are transitioning from the bay back into to the ocean. water was nice - maybe 70 . only negative was sea lice - some of us were the buffet :). i'm looking forward to seeing you and many other happy swimmie peeps - its the opening o the OWS season for many of us!!!

    bluemermaid9
  • I swam around Lido in April 2017. I stayed with a dear friend/fellow marathon swimmer who had crewed and paddled with me before and he kayaked for me. In 2017 the swim was a USMS national championship and there was a good turnout. The race organizers did a good job getting information to us swimmers. They had quite a few volunteer paddlers too.

    We started from the beach on the gulf coast and swam clockwise around the Key. We started in waves. The kayaks line up in the water and you need to find each other. Put a flag or something distinctive on your boat and paddler.

    There is a shallow spot in the first leg on the gulf coast where waves can break. I saw my paddler turn into a wave and turned out to sea with him. Aside from that, conditions were pretty tame. We had a blast riding the tidal push rounding the first bend. Rounding the next corner the swimmers clumped up and it was a bit shallow and weedy.

    I really enjoyed the course for the scenery. Also, if you study the map a bit beforehand, it's easy to track your progress. Water temp was on the warm side for me (low 70s, if I recall). In cooler conditions I like warm feeds. Here, I was grateful we had some cloud cover to keep it cool! I fed every 30min to stay hydrated. I enjoyed when the water temp dropped a degree or so as we were nearing the final turn back into the gulf. We had more wind near the end but nothing extreme.

    The gulf beaches I swam at had sand that was composed of bleached crushed shells. The sand doesn't get hot and the water can be a pretty teal color. I did not encounter the sea lice... can't remember seeing fish either.

    There was a nice Mexican food spread after the race. I highly recommend this swim -- Enjoy!

    bluemermaid9
  • GlobalSwimmerGlobalSwimmer New York NYMember

    Agreed with @j9swim and @cynswims - great conditions and amazing vibe during 2017, which are making me repeat this year - see you all in Sarasota!

    JustSwimbluemermaid9
  • j9swimj9swim CharlestonSenior Member

    2018 Lido Keys Swim report - I have to say I LOVE opening the US Open Water season with this swim for many reasons. First its really well run without having too many rules and they do take safety seriously. The swim is perfect for seeing how your training is coming. There is a bridge at mile 2 and another at mile 4, its a 7 mile swim. This allows you to pace yourself and see for example if you can negatively split the race. Its a perfect 1st Marathon - the water is clear and warm, the course easy to navigate, and the spirit is light and fun loving. The race packet pickup is at the Daiquiri Deck and there are beers at the finish. Lots of the tribe shows up for it from all over the country - the speedsters and the turtles..everyone's pod is there. Speaking of pods there were some dolphins spotted during the swim by at least the paddlers...i didn't see them. If you stay the weekend there is frolicking the day after to work out the kinks and the town has some lovely restaurants and shoppes for you and your other(s) to enjoy together. A BIG THANKS to David Miner & Steve Butler for putting this on. We don't get to do what we love without RD's who do such a fabulous job. XOXO

    thelittlemerwookiebluemermaid9KarenTJaimieflystormsJanetAlicia
  • bluemermaid9bluemermaid9 Boca Raton, FL, United StatesSenior Member

    Lido Key race report. https://wp.me/p7ILb0-3J

    evmothelittlemerwookieAlicia
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