Location:
Kits Pool, Vancouver, BC Canada
What: A 5K swim in Kits Pool. At 8 complete laps to the kilometer, that makes this challenge 20 return laps, or 40 lengths of the world's best pool.
Why: Because you can.
Who: The Whale Shark, the Mako Shark and whoever else wants in.
Entry: There is no fee and you don't need to be a member of Club Fat Ass to participate in a Flash event, however whining is not allowed. No registration is required but please indicate your participation via the comment form below. You are responsible for your own well being and safety and should be self sufficient.
History: There is a long-standing history to this event. It is rooted in a grudge match. Some of that history is in the comments below under past taunts.
2008 - the Whale Shark wins by 1/4 lap. Vancouver shuts down for a whole weekend to celebrate.
2007 - postponed because the pool was closed due to a strike
2006 - the Mako Shark wins! Whale Shark stops 1/2 way for a snooze
Please read the Release of All Claims. By participating in this event you agree to the terms of the Release of All Claims.
Comments
2009 Done Duel
This afternoon, the third Duel at the Pool was held at Kitsilano Pool in Vancouver. Under cloudless blue skies and with temperatures in the high 20s, duelists, Whale, Reef and Mako shark sized one another up on the pool deck:
Reef Shark. Last minute entry into the duel, his training and technique was unknown. Claims to have swam 3X / week in an indoor 25 meter pool with his kids. Fit from running. Longest swim this year: 2.5K
Kilometer #1
Mako makes a dash for it in an attempt to break the other shark's wills early in the race. Beats the Whale by 1/2 length. No Reef even on the radar.
Kilometer #2
Whale pulls up his dragging butt and touches the bulkhead at the same time as Mako. No Reef in sight. Assumed drowned.
Kilometer #3
Whale and Mako make pit stops at the bento box. (Gels, gatoraid and coke on the menu.) Some slapping of heels and rubbing of shoulders, but Whale makes his move and gains some ocean. No Reef in sight. Assumed being served-up in some sushi bar.
Kilometer #4
All sharks gather at the bento box. Whale ahead by a length. Mako gets a cramp and has to dance around the pool a bit. Reef far from dead.
Kilometer #5 and a bit
Whale out of the water and gloating as first the Reef, then the Mako touch the finish line. Mako considers proposing "double or nothing" for another kilometer, but considers a cold beer a better idea.
Bridges Patio
Sharks review strategy over pitchers of Granville Island lager and nachos. Winner buys. No talk of next duel as arms too sore. Reef and Mako fear Whale will go to sleep in their nachos.
As the clock ticks down to the 2009 duel
word on the street is that the whale shark is ready to rumble. But can he even swim 5K, let alone beat the mako?
This is what happened to the last whale shark to take on the mighty mako:
Just Checking ..
.. the veracity and comprehensiveness of this listing.
Jeezus, you really do represent the triumph of blind hope over cold reality. You keep trailing behind, consistently, lap over lap over hundreds of lengths now .. and yet you keep up with the bravado and taunts. What an eel you are !
Plus .. 2008, 1/4 lap victory ? Come on dude .... it was 110 seconds, which is at least one-half length of Kits pool, if not closer to 3/4 of a length behind.
Get yer facts straight.
Hawaii Weather!
What an awesome week it's been, eh Whale Shark? Beautiful sunshine. Warm weather. A massive pool with crystal-clear, partially-salty water that has not yet been polluted with coconut oil or kiddie pee.
It's now Friday afternoon and I have a moment to reminisse about the past week. Friday: 10 laps and that was all I could muster. Monday: 12 laps and feeling strong. Tuesday: 14 laps and could of gone for more, but had to get back to work, Wednesday: 12 laps, Thursday: off because your arms were falling off, Today: 12 laps and probably could have done twice that.
I figure if I can make this much progress in one week, by the time mid-August rolls around, I will be in a position to reach down your gullet, grab your heart and eat it before the life fades from your eyes.
True, you are demonstrating fine form over the relatively short, early season distances. But how is that different than in the past? What really counts is when I put the hammer down on race day.
I hope you sleep soundly this weekend. Rest those fins of yours because next week I'll be cranking up both distance and speed!
The Mighty Mako
Season-Opener at Kits Pool
Nice job, Whale Shark. I acknowledge, it does pay to train. Must be nice to be able to put 20 laps in at Kits Pool every day!
So my low point has been defined. At least I managed 10 lengths. Yes, you took about 50m out of me, at that. Given a straight line with all of the training you propose to do, I may, indeed, get lapped this year. But I plan to get in at least 2 days a week in the pewl... let's see how long it takes me to catch up.
Nice little taunt, by the way:
http://blog.wirearchy.com/2009/05/28/from-maintenance-to-increased-perfo...
Just Got Back from a Little Dip in the Pool
No, I didn't swim 10K. I don't need to in order to kick your Buick-sized butt this coming August. I do need to make up at least 2 minutes over 5K, however, and to that end, I have resolved to swim more than 3 times in the year preceeding our duel. In fact, I have already done that and we are only 6 weeks into this year. I hope you have a will...
What a Pest ..
.. you are, you whiny titty-ass baby. You don't even qualify to be a fish, let alone a member of the shark family.
I just keep splashing quietly away, putting in my 10,000 - 12,000 metres a week (just back from a 3K splash today). I'll start upping the mileage sometime in early July, building to a final crescendo of grit and muscle in preparation for the late August showdown.
I intend to lap you this summer ... definitive proof that I own your sorry ass when it comes to the noble sport of competitive swimming.
Nice Mouth!
Goodness, Whale Shark, what a big mouth you have. Where on earth did you find such a flattering avatar photo?
Rematch?
OK, I the Mako Shark, do hereby publicly acknowledge that my sorry fat Mako ass got kicked the other day. Yes, the Whale Shark beat the Mako Shark by 90 seconds in a mano-a-mano duel to the death over 5 kilometers.
What does the Mako have to say about that? "I want a rematch!" is what.
Given it was a Thursday afternoon in September, the water was clear of kiddie pee and coconut oil. The sun was shining and temperatures on the pool deck were in the high 20s. Whale Shark and the Mighty Mako were attending a conference that day and decided to dog it for a couple of hours... but not before consuming their respective weights in sandwiches and pie.
Whale Shark and the Mako did their thing for the planet and car-pooled over to Kits Pool, but the devious Whale Shark flung the Mako's special racing shorts (the knee-length, powder blue Hawaiian ones that smell like mold) into the back seat where they remained during the duel. From the get-go, Mako was at a disadvantage as, in the interest of public decency, he had to wear the Whales Shark's gaunchies.
For fuel, the Whale Shark chose orange Gatorade while the Mako went with a bottle of coke as the Sharkies were with his aloha shorts back at the conference. The first 3 kilometers rolled by stroke for stroke as if on an odometer. True, the blubbery Whale Shark did start to pull away at the start of km4, but only after striking the honest Mako on the head with his pull-buoys, which somehow kept flying off whenever the Mako pulled into the lead.
High-5s were exchanged at the end of 40 laps and both sharks dried off in the warm autumn sun and soaked in the magnificent views.
Tradition has it that the winner of the Duel at the Pool buys the looser a beer. However, the spendthrift Whale Shark broke with tradition by returning to the conference happy hour, leaving the thirsty Mako to survive on his own wits.
Best 2 / 3 next summer, Whale Shark?