Jen Schumacher is a graduate student studying sport psychology at Cal State Fullerton. She is an avid open water swimmer and crossed the Catalina Channel in August 2009. She is now training to swim in the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim, a current-assisted 28.5-mile race around the island in New York. Much of Jen's training involves long swims along the South Orange County Pacific coast with Uncle Dan and alongside a kayak (usually her mom, Barb, or one of her Fullerton professors, Lenny). During these swims, any time they find trash, it is put in the kayak. This practice has motivated her to raise awareness for the Surfrider Foundation and their Rise Above Plastics campaign, to reduce the amount of plastic consumed and left in our beautiful oceans.
The Surfrider Foundation is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world's oceans, waves, and beaches. My Catalina Channel crossing was partially a fundraiser for the South Orange County chapter of the Surfrider Foundation. My Manhattan swim will be similar, with 50% of donations going directly to clean up the waters of New York, and 50% going directly to this chapter of the Surfrider Foundation. The goal of this swim is to further raise awareness of the Surfrider Foundation's mission, specifically their Rise Above Plastics (RAP) campaign. To learn more about this initiative, visit the Rise Above Plastics Website, Rise Above Plastics Blog or watch this short video.
The Manhattan Island Marathon Swim (MIMS) is a 28.5-mile current-assisted race put on by NYC Swim every year. This prestigious international event attracts a large applicant pool; only 25 solo swimmers are accepted, with a few relay teams. The swim is a fundraiser to clean up the waters of New York, and for the charity of each participant's choice. Jen has been accepted and will be competing in this June 12th event and fundraising for the South Orange County chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, and raising awareness for their Rise Above Plastics campaign. Although the majority of the swim is with the favor of the current, swimmers will be against the current at several points and must race to beat the tide. Swimmers face murky, and at times, smelly water, may run into random flotsam and jetsam, and because of this, are encouraged to have current tetanus and hepatitis vaccinations. The water temperature in June ranges from 64-67. For more information about the swim, please visit MIMS Website.
The Catalina Channel is a 21-mile stretch between Doctor’s Cove on Catalina Island to the San Pedro Peninsula. Most attempts are made between late July and September, when the water averages in the mid- to high-60s, with a slight temperature drop as you near the mainland. Due to shipping traffic and currents, the swim begins at midnight. Average crossing times range from 10 to 12 hours, but this is wildly dependent on currents and conditions. A hired charter boat and kayaker guide the swimmer and support swimmers are allowed. According to channel swimming rules, the swimmer may not wear a wetsuit, is not allowed physical contact with anyone during the swim, and must stand unassisted beyond the shoreline upon completion of the swim. Since 1927, 173 people have successfully completed the swim. Jen Schumacher became the 165th person to cross on August 14th, 2009, in a time of 9:02:48. For more information about the swim visit swimcatalina.org.
I have been swimming for the majority of my life: I learned when I was 5 and began seriously competing for Novas when I was about 10. At about the same time, I joined Jr. Guards in Newport Beach and fell in love with the beach and ocean swimming. I did a couple of short open water races with my family, also avid open water swimmers, each summer. When I returned to swimming after a year-long hiatus, I would do every open water swim I could enter each summer. I had begun to increase my distance, entering the 3-mile Gatorman at La Jolla. Finally, in 2008, I was convinced to attempt my first 10K. I swam the Santa Barbara 6-miler with good friend and Catalina inspirer, Dave Galli, and was supported by my sister, Katelyn. I was so anxious about the swim - over 2 hours without stopping! - I had no idea how I could do that. Needless to say, I finished, and I was hooked. I signed up for a 10-miler later that summer, and upon successfully completing that, booked my date for Catalina.
But that is just what led up to my participation in marathon swimming, not the WHY. Throughout the process of training for my Catalina Channel crossing, that was by far the most frequently asked question. After my 10-miler and decision to go for it, I was incredibly motivated to train and prepare for this event, but had never taken the time to consider where my motivation lied. Of course I thought to myself “because it’s fun, and because I love to swim.” But WHY is it fun and WHY do I love to swim? Luckily, I had plenty of time with myself on my long training swims to delve deeper into the big why question. One of my motivations was that very thing I was doing – spending time with myself, getting to know myself, alone in the open water. I discovered I love the feeling of being out there with no boundaries, having the ability to explore this unknown environment. I feel connected to nature and this other world I am a visitor in. Finally, I feel connected to others and strengthen relationships though the experience. My uncle, Uncle Dan, did all of the winter training swims and many of the longer summer swims with me, even though he was not training for anything. My mom kayaked the majority of my long swims, and kayaked the entire Catalina Channel. Having them at my side, as well as the rest of my crew, made the experience an incredible one. I was not crossing alone. I was with my family, my support, and that made it all possible. I was able to put in the hours upon hours of training because I found meaning in the aloneness of the sport, the connection to nature, and the relationships. Now, as I look back on my experience, it is the process that stands out. The entire year of learning so much about myself, sharing my experiences with others, and having this amazing common goal are what made this past year so special, and I can't imagine not having this incredible sport in my life.
The Manhattan Island Marathon Swim will likely take someone my speed around 8 hours, give or take an hour depending on conditions. To prepare for this, I will do some very long training swims, reaching 6 hours. My Catalina training reached an 8-hour training swim, and the swim itself took just over 9 hours. I only stopped for about a minute every 25 minutes to eat and/or drink, and then kept going. When people unfamiliar with marathon swimming discover that it really is a straight 7, 8, or 9 hour swim, the most frequent question I then get is “What do you think about?”
To be honest, sometimes I even wonder that. There have been times where I realize an hour has gone by and I really don’t know what I was thinking about. I call this “zoning out,” like what you did when class got boring as a student, and probably accounts for about 10% of my time in the water on those extra long swims. I try to avoid doing this, but it happens.
When I am not zoning out, I almost always hear music in my head. The song usually matches the rhythm of my stroke, and I just get really into hearing the music and hearing the pattern of sounds made by my hands hitting the water and my breathing. Sometimes listening to the music and the rhythmic sounds of my stroke is all I do, and sometimes this is background “music” to what I am thinking about. When this is all I am listening to, it is like a meditative state and can be extremely relaxing. It keeps me in the present moment because I am focused on my breathing and stroke pattern. I would estimate I just listen to this with no thought (aka meditate) about 50% of the time.
When those sounds are background music, and I am actively thinking about something, most of the time it is about my stroke. I just watch my hands pull water under me and fine-tune my stroke until I am certain it is the most efficient and injury-preventative as possible. When it is what I want, I just observe and make sure it stays that way – PERFECT practice makes perfect! I probably observe my stroke 30% of the time.
The other 10% of the time I still hear the music and stroke rhythm, but am thinking of completely unrelated things to the task at hand. I think about what I have to do that day, the scenery and how beautiful it is, or how happy I will be when I finally finish this swim! I try to minimize these thoughts and get back to something in the here and now (meditation and my stroke technique). These thoughts distract me from the task at hand, and are referred to in the sport psychology literature as dissociation. While dissociation can reduce pain and increase the amount of time you will be able to exercise, it can be a detriment to performance (I swim slower when I am distracted). Association, or thinking about things going on in your body (meditating with the sound of your stroke or watching your stroke), may limit the amount of time you are able to do the activity, but often increase performance. Since the amount of time I am going to swim is fixed and not up to negotiation (at least in my mind I have convinced myself of this), I know that even if I associate, I will still swim for the prescribed amount of time on my training plan. And during a crossing or my Manhattan race, I will swim until I get to the other side or around the island. So because association will not have any effect on the amount of time I swim, but it will increase my performance, I try to associate as often as possible.
Not always easy, but it works. By the way, thinking of this answer during my swim was part of that 15% of dissociation I try to avoid!
I swim in the ocean year-round to acclimatize to cold water. As the water temperature gets colder during the winter, while getting in is always a shock, my body becomes accustomed to staying in cold temperatures (as low as 52 degrees). As the water warms back up in the spring, I increase the duration I stay in the water so that a swim like Manhattan (about 8 hours; 64 - 67 degrees) is tolerable.
No. Wetsuits are not allowed by the majority of marathon swim governing bodies because they provide increased buoyancy and insulation. I do not wear a wetsuit during winter training because the purpose of the cold swimming is to acclimatize to the cold.
I periodize my swimming, so it depends on the time of year. In the winter leading up to a big swim, I swim shorter, faster and more frequently and supplement with more cross training. In the winter I typically swim 8 times a week; 3-4 ocean swims and 4-5 pool swims, with 0-1 days of rest. As the day of the event draws near, I increase the duration and decrease the intensity of my open water swim and because this requires more rest, I remove one swim a week and add one rest day. I may even remove an additional weekly swim as the longer training swims begin to approach 6-8 hours and I need the extra recovery time.
Fueling during a long distance open water swim can be challenging. In my Catalina swim and training, I stopped to "feed" every 25 minutes, and spent no more than one minute doing so. While feeding, I would tread water in place. However, I will be working on speeding this up for Mahnattan. Last year, I had to spend some time to figure out which foods and drinks my stomach could handle, and what quantities were necessary to sustain my effort. I practiced this in my long training swims. I found early on that I am usually unable to keep solid food down, but that a high calorie energy drink (I use Amino Vital) and gel packs (GU) work for me. I try to consume between 300 and 400 calories per hour. Drinking 8 ounces every 25 minutes and consuming one GU every 50 minutes achieves this. It is also important when doing ultra endurance swims to have a backup plan, in case you stomach becomes upset or you get sick of something. My backups were a warm cider drink and strawberry banana smoothie.
During a long open water swim it is necessary to relieve yourself in the water. Most swimmers learn the skill of peeing while swimming by relaxing their lower body and slowing their kick. This skill is essential because failure to eliminate can increase blood pressure, cause intestinal cramping, and in extreme cases lead to hypothermia.
Yes I do. In the ocean I swim with my uncle, Uncle Dan. We do open water swimming year round and we trained together for the entire year prior to my Catalina Crossing. During my Catalina swim I had several support swimmers. Uncle Dan spend the most time in the water with me - the first two hours and the last two hours. We still train together in the ocean in preparation for my Manhattan swim. He is planning on making the trip to New York, but whether he will be on the boat or not is up in the air. If he does make it on the boat he will be my second crew member, accompanying my boyfriend Scott. Outside of the ocean, I train in the pool with the Irvine Novaquatics age group program and occasionally with the Nova Masters program.
Yes, the NYC swim supplies one kayaker and one boat for each participant. Additionally, my mom will be in a secondary kayak. During the Catalina Crossing channel I was guided by a large boat equiped with GPS that held my crew, family, and observers. I also had two kayakers in the water on either side of me.
In both the pool and the open water I prefer to swim with others. In the pool I enjoy swimming with a group and a coach because it keeps me motivated. In the ocean I prefer swimming with another swimmer or alongside a kayak for safety reasons and, of course, the emotional support.
Depending on the visibility, I may be able to see kelp, rocks, the ocean floor, small kelp fish, sting rays, sand sharks, seals and dolphins. The only time I've swum in very deep water (the Catalina Channel), I saw nothing but blue. When I swim at night everything is black, except, depending on the moon, phosphloresents, which are tiny plankton that reflect light.
As I started doing my long swims during the spring and summer, I started to run into trash much more frequently. On the swims where my mom would kayak alongside me, she would pick up trash that was around our path. The majority of what we found were single use plastics: water bottles, food wrappers, plastic bags, etc. As this happened, I began to read about the issues of plastic in the ocean. I learned about the North Pacific Gyre (http://chrisjordan.com/current_set2.php?id=11) and it changed the way I viewed products and the way I consume plastics. I also became aware of The Surfrider's efforts in this area with their Rise Above Plastics campaign. To learn more about this initiative, visit the Rise Above Plastics Website, Rise Above Plastics Blog or watch this short video.
