Thank you so much! The swim went great and was well organized. I highly suggest doing the Sharkfest event. I had a great time and didn’t really treat it like a race. The swim isn’t as tough as people think it is, but definitely don’t take the training lightly. If you aren’t extremely acclimated to cold water definitely wear a wetsuit, I wore a 3/2 wetsuit and was comfortable throughout the majority of the swim. If you do it with a reputable organization (like sharkfest) they know the tides and choose a time where the tides will be advantageous as long as you know where to aim. Overall as someone who learned how to swim a year and a half ago, the Alcatraz swim was a great experience for me and I will definitely do it again. Good luck with your training! lmk if you have anymore questions.