When you're on a boat, wear a lifejacket.

 If you are on a boat, you really should wear a life jacket regardless of your swimming ability.  It sets a good example for people who may not be good swimmers.  Besides, if for some crazy reason you end up drowning, it saves a bunch of people searching for your body.  

This past weekend, the young men in our ward had a campout, and there were 3 young men that wanted to swim across Ruth Lake in the Uintahs.  I didn't think that much about it, but the other leaders said no unless I swam along with them.  I wasn't wearing a swimsuit, just shorts.  I figured I would just go and swim in my shorts.  It's a good thing I did.  Two of the three boys started to hyperventilate about 1/2 way across the 100-yard length and I had to talk both of them into calming down and just floating on their back to catch their breath.  If I hadn't gone, it would have been big trouble.  Once across I told them to get out and walk around the shoreline instead of attempting to swim across.  

I had my rescue tube with me on the previous day's swim at Butterfly Lake. But today I didn't expect to swim, so I left it at camp.  If I would have had the tube it would have been a much safer experience.

The water temp I estimate was just under 70 degrees. 

Thinking back I should have had them go one at a time.  I had to juggle two struggling swimmers and thankfully it was such a short distance and I was able to talk them into calming down just enough to keep them out of a panic which I could see was starting to set in.  They were able to float on their back and keep swimming elementary backstroke as I reminded them to "Keep your head back, relax your neck, stomach up, and don't panic." 

I think the main issue was the elevation.  Ruth Lake sits at 10,300 feet which is very high, especially for boys that aren't great swimmers.  It was a pretty dumb idea actually, but thankfully it turned out without an incident.  

Finishing the MVP SLOW Database

 MVP - Minimal Viable Product, in other words, the bare minimum level of functionality.  

So I finally finished working out all the major issues with the Digital Experience of the SLOW Database.  Until now it wasn't an option to make it public because I didn't have enough knowledge on how to enable it for guest users.  

Removing the requirement to have users login to view swim data was the biggest hurdle, then the UI, and there is still one issue I don't like.  You have to click the "Related" tab when navigating the database, rather than just removing the Detail tab and having the Related tab the primary section below each Section.  Regardless, I put together a quick video on the home page to demonstrate how to navigate, which includes clicking on the Related tab.  

Here is the SLOW database, which includes all the records that we've been collecting over the year.  The central repository for all open water swim records in Utah:

https://slow.force.com/s/

Also, this last weekend I spent the entire Saturday scrubbing the pool as it was emptying. And once completely empty, refilled with fresh water.  This is the first time I've emptied it 100% since getting it two years ago.  It's as clean as day 1, and I've enjoyed swimming in it a little more now:

Review of the Zygo Underwater Audio system

 I saw an ad for Zygo on Facebook and was thinking originally that it was a scam claiming to stream music underwater.  I've tried using Bluetooth technology underwater and it doesn't work.  Not even cell coverage with full bars above water can penetrate 2 feet of water. But I found out that ZYGO is using FM wavelength and that it is able to broadcast just enough to go through a couple feet of water.

The package came yesterday and here's what it comes with:

• 1 Zygo headset
• 1 Zygo Bluetooth receiver/FM Transmitter
• 1 pair of earplugs
• 1 charging cable
• 1 hard shell stow bag which also acts as a dual charger for both headset and transmitter

The claim is that it will go up to 2 feet below the surface if the transmitter is on the pool deck.  In my case, I want the transmitter underwater in a waterproof container along with the tablet I have anchored at the bottom of the 3-foot depth endless pool.  That way I can watch a movie that is downloaded on the tablet, and hear the movie instead of just read subtitles.  

I've tried the swimMP3 before and was greatly unimpressed with the sound quality.  These really aren't much better.  The sound doesn't go in your ears using air obviously.  The little "speakers" rest on your cheekbones and use vibration to allow you to hear.  You'll never get the kind of audio quality that you would get from Bose headphones by any means!  But it's loud enough for you to hear.  And even when cranked up, when you take them off, the vibration doesn't go through the air like a speaker, so you don't need to worry about bugging any friends you might be swimming with.   But the audio quality is a lot like listening to an AM Radio when I was a kid.  Crackly and muffled, but it's better than nothing.  

Until someone can invent biotech that enables connecting audio directly to the brain, I don't think you'll be able to get much better, given the limitations of physics and the human body.

Anyway, my test of playing a movie and listening/watching it while I swim, was a success.  What movie did I watch?  On a Clear Day My favorite swimming movie of all time.  I noticed that the transmitter has a button on the side where you can press it and speak into the transmitter like a walkie talkie and that is actually very clear.  Much clearer than the audio from any music or movie that you might be playing.   So if you are a coach and want to give feedback to a swimmer that is wearing the headset, you can do so while they swim, and hopefully, if you speak clearly they can understand you.

Here's my video review:

Is it worth $300?  Well, that depends on how well it lasts, and time will tell. If I can get 400 days out of this, I will call it a good purchase.  I will track along with my yardage whether I used Zygo or not so I can track the number of workouts used with it. 

So far I'd give it an 8 out of 10.  I hesitate to give it a 10 because bone conduction technology is just so inferior to traditional high-quality headphones, which you can't use underwater.  It's definitely superior to the swimMP3 though.

5000 total pool miles

Today I passed the 5,000 logged pool miles (including endless pool) not counting open water miles. 

Got in a two hour, 8,000 yard endless pool swim today. Watched the entire movie of Jaws on my tablet which was weighed down at the bottom of the pool. Captions were on and it made the swim go by faster. Probably the only person to watch the whole movie Jaws while swimming. 😀

Song of the day:

https://youtu.be/4qsJLZSlGdY

 Girl, your love is like the ocean

It doesn't seem to end
Can we just keep floating
'Cause it's too far to swim
No rescue or a boat insight
You know it's alright
'Cause when I'm with you
I'll drown in it all night

Girl, your kisses so addictive
And it's always on my mind
Can't resist it for a minute
'Cause it gets me every time
And when you wake up with no make-up
That's true beauty in my eyes
No matter how I try
I lose it when you smile

You take me 5000 miles past heaven
And by the way
I gotta say I love the view
(I gotta say I love the view)
Your beauty is 5000 miles past heaven
Every time
Every time I look at you
(Every time I look at you)

Baby, don't you keep me waiting
Your touch is all I want
'Cause I don't have much patience
When it comes to making love
No need to complicate this
There's nothing more to say
'Cause when you're not here
I'm missing you all day

Girl, your kisses so addictive
And it's always on my mind
Can't resist it for a minute
'Cause it gets me every time
When you wake up with no make-up
That's true beauty in my eyes
No matter how I try
I lose it when you smile

You take me 5000 miles past heaven
And by the way
I gotta say I love the view
(I gotta say I love the view)
Your beauty is 5000 miles past heaven
Every time
Every time I look at you
(Every time I look at you)

Hey God only knows (knows)
How far I'll go (go)
I swear it's like falling from the sky
If looks could kill
Then I would surely die

You take me 5000 miles past heaven
And by the way
I gotta say I love the view
(I gotta say I love the view)
Your beauty is 5000 miles past heaven
Every time
Every time I look at you
(Every time I look at you)

Every time
Every time I look at you
Every time
Every time I look at you