OPEN-WATER SKILLS NAILED!

Sharpen up your sighting, drafting and turning now and you’ll be ready for the race season

The cold water temp means most people don’t want to begin their open-water swimming too early. But open-water races start taking place from the end of April, so it’s key to refresh, or learn, the skills you’ll need for the open water before then.

Many think that swimming in open water requires a different technique to swimming in the pool, but I’d suggest you keep things as simple as possible and swim as you usually would. There are three things you need to consider when you tackle open water, though: the lack of a push-off, sighting and drafting. Of course, you can modify your form if you want to, but that’s just another thing to think about.

The best thing you can do in a race is be calm and, by practising the skills outlined here, you’ll have more time and head space to focus on your effort and positioning.

You can perform the following drills in a club or public session, although for the drafting drill you’ll need to make sure that there’s plenty of space!