Swim it or skip it?

Early next month, I expect to receive notice that I qualify for "early bird" entry into the 2015 Great Chesapeake Bay Swim. The charitable donations I received from friends and family for this year's race in Maryland boosted me into a category of swimmers who can bypass the popular event's lottery selection process.

A decision will need to be made.

To swim or not to swim?

There are plenty of reasons to skip.

And at least one biggie to stick with it:

That's Blake, 7, swimming three-quarters of a mile across Lake Terramuggus this past summer. 

....

The Bay Swim is a weighty undertaking. Here are the practicalities: At least eight hours in the car. Hundreds of dollars spent on hotels, restaurants and the entry fee. A day the kids lose from school. Hours spent in the pool getting ready. And here are the associated intangibles: Guilt over training. Feeling too often like real life -- responsibilities -- are getting pushed aside. Anxiety. Am I in good-enough shape? Am I prepared for the conditions? Is this really worth the risks? People die doing this sort of thing. I have children! 

I have children.

In June, I drove home from Annapolis weary. It had not been a fun family trip. The four-plus miles in the water had been the easy part. I resigned myself to this event being too hard on all of us to do again. Too much time training. Too much money. Too much to ask. We had even missed the school fair! But somewhere on the Jersey Turnpike, Blake asked from the back seat, "Mom, do you think I can do the Bay Swim next year?"

"No," said. "It's too advanced for you."

(I said something similar to Thomas once. It resulted in this.)

"But," I told Blake, "If you keep up your swimming all summer, there is a race you can do in August that's shorter and good for beginners."

Intangibles: Motivation. Inspiration.

We came home to summer-league swim team, kids triathlons and laps in the lake. 

And in August, Blake was the youngest boy to enter and complete the half-mile swim at the Lake Quassy Open Water Swim Festival. We swam together stroke for stroke, but he finished a few seconds ahead of me.

The next day, we were telling the neighbors about the swim. 

"I stayed with him," I told my friend, "but he really didn't need me."

I turned to Blake.

"Do you think you could do it on your own next year?" I asked him.

"Well, I'm not sure," he said. "You were pretty helpful out there."

Intangibles: Appreciation. Trust. And let's add admiration.

I admire the boy who challenged himself last summer, who worked hard with a smile on his face, who now wears his race T-shirt with pride, even though he "swims" in it because they had no youth sizes. 

So was the Bay Swim worth it? Will I be there next June?

There's a decision to be made.