Phobia.

You've heard of "Snakes on a Plane" right? Well how about "Sharks in a British Lake"?



Holly and I, in preparation for our attempt at a Sprint Triathlon on July 6th, decided it would be a good idea to try an open water swim just to get ready for the big day. We arrived at the lake, squeezed into our wet suits (mine is a MENS size M-L--so its less of a sqeeze than an attempt to zip the suit and pray that it doesnt fall off) and dipped our toes tenderly into the frigid water (at which point Holly yells out "Bleep-bleep the water is bleeping bleep).



I was pumped; our pool workout sessions have been going well (minus the frequent spotting of old men wearing speedos) and I thought that I was ready for the lake. Well, I was wrong. Holly took off and started swimming in her methodical, paced swim. I put my head in the water, stroked twice and immediately had an anxiety attack. You see, one of my biggest fears is being in murky water--and an even bigger fear (thanks to a babysitter letting me watch Jaws when I was 6) is being bitten by a shark or any other sea creature while in said murky water. Now, I tend to think that I am a fairly intelligent person and I generally understand the fact that you probably have a greater chance of spontaneously turning into the opposite sex versus getting bitten by a shark in a cold man-made British lake. That fact being known, I couldve sworn that I saw a "Jaw's" shaped creature swimming beneath me the entire time I had my head under the water.



Holly was a saint the entire swim...stopping frequently to make sure that I was wasnt waving my arms and requesting the kayakers to pick me up. I am adopting Holly's swimming mantra of "Don't panic, don't panic" while I swim from now on. By the end of our open water swim, I was able to keep my head under water more frequently without freaking out entirely. My goal for the triathlon is to swim free-style at least 75% of the time (I prefer to breast stroke so that I don't have to look down into the murky water). This is a lofty goal considering the fact that I will be 1) overcoming a HUGE phobia, 2) Completing my first competitive open water swim in my first triathlon and 3) checking the surface of the water for jaw's fin every 5 seconds.



July 6th should be interesting. In addition to the inherent risk of a shark attack, I may also be kicked in the face and splashed upon by my fellow competitors while trying to get over my shark/murky water phobia.



7 days and counting...