SWIM PLUS NAVIGATION
ARE WE NEARLY THERE YET?
There are just a few swimming events, like the English Channel (see case study), where navigation is handled
by pilots. For these swims, the difficult calculations of winds, waves, currents and tides are done by professionals who know what they’re doing. For every other race, you’re on your own. You and your support team – oſten just some friends in a boat and/or kayaks – have to create a navigation strategy to get you where you want to go. Geting the navigation correct can mean the difference between first and second place, or even between finishing a race and missing your end-point completely. So, how do you go about navigating a safe course?
WHAT CHALLENGES DO YOU FACE?
The first question to ask is: who should lead the navigation effort, the swimmer or the support crew? Nine times out of ten, the support crew should lead the navigation as they have the advantage of a higher viewing position and access to tools such as GPS and compasses. The swimmer will also suffer significant fatigue during the event, and tactical decisions are beter leſt to those who are clear-headed. Next, you have to choose the best course, and for this you need
advance planning. It’s important to gather information about the event from experienced swimmers who have completed the event before. They can oſten tell you a few simple things to watch out for
48
As more swimmers set their sights on long-distance and channel swims, it is vitally important that they can plot a good course. Paul Newsome of Swim Smooth looks at the basics of swim navigation
Photos © Swim Smooth
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76