IISA chairman Ram Barkai on Ice miles in the pool or open water

Source: FaceBook

Someone asked me (am Barkai) recently about swimming an Ice Mile in a pool versus open water.

Is it allowed? Which one is tougher, safer or better?

When I started IISA, we had one swim: One mile under 5.0C with safety rules. The focus was on swimming a distance of 1 British mile (1.609m) in water of 5.0C or less, wearing only a swimming costume, goggles, and one cap. English Channel rules.

That was IISA's focus until 2014, when we started racing 1km.

I never knew what the future would bring, except that it was just the beginning, and the best days in the ICE were yet to come.

I realised that people are attracted to challenges for different reasons. Some chase records, speed, scenery or just need to explore. I belong to the latter; I love new challenges.

I have done several ice miles in different locations, with various conditions and water temperatures. The location was always the most attractive, almost like marking my territory with frozen soil. Water temperature never really bothered me. If it’s cold, we swim shorter; if it’s warm, we swim longer. It doesn’t mean I don’t feel it or suffer like everyone; I just accept it in a zen way and do my best.

So, to close that question, Ice Mile was never about location or course.

An ICE MILE It's about swimming the distance under IISA rules! The rest is a personal choice.

I prefer open water to a Pool. I like the open water, the sense of space, and exploring.

I find the pool easier because it feels safer, especially if you can see the bottom with a line. It

I find swimming in a pool easier mentally. I swim one length at a time until it's over. It's not a race; I don't count length. I let my team guide me with distance. I touch the wall on one end, look to the other side, and say, "Let's go there", until someone dims the lights and shouts, "It's over."

Having said that, a pool cut in a dark, murky, icy lake in Siberia or arctic Murmansk is almost worse than open water. I was petrified, swimming in the gutter lane, all frozen, looking at the dark lake under the ice sheet staring at me. I knew one meter sideways would take me to a place I would only be coming out in the summer!

In the open water, distance is visible. It's not folded into length like in the pool. When a mile in the open freezing water unfolds, it can look so far and intimidating. If there are some waves, wind, floating ice, snow and mist, it can seem like I'll be frozen and gone long before I reach that desired end of the mile.

Open water can certainly present additional challenges that a pool doesn't. But a calm lake with marker buoys can feel like a long pool. The rest is a matter of mental and personal preference.

For me, the Ice Mile is such a personal challenge. It is only about me, myself, and the ICE. I don't care about anything else. I hope to look decent at the end, but it doesn't always work for me. I certainly like to get out of the water and walk to recovery unassisted. It's a personal thing. The Ice Mile ends when I warm up, and I want to control that process, from taking my clothes off to the end of the delivery. I am somewhat of a control freak, but it helped me remember all my swims and recoveries and allowed me a speedy recovery!

I dedicated each one of my Ice Miles to a particular objective. A mind-blowing location, New Year's Eve - I did a few every New Year’s Eve in North Ireland, highlands Scotland, Iceland, and Prague. I remember every second of my swim and recovery, but I recall very little from the following Party. Our mind is a funny place.

So, to summarise, an Ice Mile is an Ice Mile. It doesn't get easier because you did it in the same place. Some find comfort in familiar swims; I find boredom and look for different swims that excite and push me further. I find pool easier, and the extra tough conditions in the open water excite and awaken me. I cherish swimming in amazingly beautiful and raw places. No words can describe it; it is so beautiful that I have no other option but to break the ice and bond with that place. Our mind is an amazing place; it's our survival instincts that make us forget the pain and remember the beauty. That is why we need beauty in the ICE.

An Ice Mile is a tough swim. For some, it is the most challenging and scariest thing they will ever do. Make sure you remember it, and it will leave a beautiful memory for you forever. Remember, we are doing it because it is hard, not easy. So, make it beautiful and memorable.