Cold Water Swimming

Crazy people in the Himalayas

Iaman gets his exercise by swimming. Some people like swimming in cold water. We had a pool when we lived in Phoenix. In the spring and fall it was great. In winter the water was too cold, some people had gas-fired heaters. In summer it was too hot, it was like bath water, which wasn't much fun when the outside temperature is 110. After the sun went down you could get some relief from the heat by going swimming, but not while you were in the pool. It was only when you got out that you got any relief. The water evaporated into the dry air and cooled you off. This didn't work during the day time because any cooling effect was canceled by the sun was blasting you.

Lone Swimmer offers a cold water temperature scale for swimmers. He starts at 72°F and goes all the way down to freezing. At 50°F, the intervals drop to 1°. At 41°F a tenth of a degree becomes significant.