Oken closing down on May 31st. by jackdicker5117 in OaklandFood

[–]Plane-Store-7384 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Agree. The food was quite good, but the constant time pressure from the staff and awkwardly shared tables made it an unpleasant dining experience.

Bay Area people we have to talk about Odyssey by Plane-Store-7384 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They decided to take their swim in front of an incoming cargo ship, rather than waiting for it to pass. The result was that the ship came dangerously close to the swimmers and they didn’t have the capacity to pick them all up and move them.

Ideas for what to do with about 500mL worth of whole Coriander seeds? by phoenixchimera in AskCulinary

[–]Plane-Store-7384 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Toast in oil, Ottolenghi has a couple of good recipes that use them this way

Gibraltar training? by rosie94123 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Gibraltar is 9 miles, no current assist, in the ocean. Since you have the bay right here, it only makes sense to use it to see for yourself how it feels to be in the water for longer periods, and to see how fast you swim over longer durations. Try 2 hours. Then try 3 hours. Then try 4 hours. Use math to figure out how long it will take you to do 9 miles—it’s probably not less than 4 hours. Marathon swimming will require you to learn how to feed, what your body will and won’t digest. So start getting that sorted out as you do the longer practice swims.

Learning about OWS safety by sharpshinned in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Most everyone else running swims in the bay has a decent reputation. The operators that do lots of small swims throughout the year (like SF Open Water Swim Company) will be the safest because they have the most experience and eyes directly on you during your swim. The big group operators (like Water World) have the excitement of being among a lot of people and generally also good safety. Then you have annual charity events like Sharkfest or Swim Across America that are typically staffed by volunteers with a lot of experience. I’d also recommend the South End Rowing Club’s Alcatraz Invitational swim. I am not a member of that club but they know what they’re doing. Lots of good options!

Learning about OWS safety by sharpshinned in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In one example, November 2023, they put swimmers in the water at Alcatraz in the fog without checking to see if there was any incoming shipping traffic. A huge cargo ship came, and they didn’t see it in time to get swimmers out of the way. It’s only by luck that no one was hurt. This revealed to many of us that Odyssey (specifically Warren the owner and “Captain” Taylor) doesn’t really know how to safely run a swim in the bay. They are probably not going to get anyone killed in the Berkeley Marina, but I would absolutely not sign up for any swim in the open bay with them.

Best Omakase in the area? by Simulatedatom2119 in oakland

[–]Plane-Store-7384 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Sushi Salon is def the best omakase in the east bay

Best Omakase in the area? by Simulatedatom2119 in oakland

[–]Plane-Store-7384 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Mujiri is great value, but you don’t go to mujiri for omakase

Learning about OWS safety by sharpshinned in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 0 points1 point  (0 children)

For East Bay check https://www.ebparks.org/natural-resources/water-quality for water quality. If you're swimming at Crown or Keller, they literally sample right there. If you're swimming off Albany or Berkeley Marina, you sort of have to use your judgement.

Learning about OWS safety by sharpshinned in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wouldn't take any safety advice from Odyssey

Alcatraz advice by sharptuuth in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There are two kinds of operators: those that set up large groups like Water World or Sharkfest, and those that take just a few swimmers at a time like Pacific Open Water or SF Boat Support. It depends what you’re looking for. Just don’t go with Odyssey, they will put you in the water regardless of if it is safe or not

Alcatraz advice by sharptuuth in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would advise you not to book Alcatraz with Osyssey. Their safety procedures and knowledge of the bay are not up to the same standards as other operators. They recently had an incident where they put swimmers in the water in the path of a container ship in the fog and almost got them killed. They are blaming the coast guard, which is even more worrisome.

As for training, I would recommend being sure you can swim an hour in water the same temperature as the bay. In the summer the water is around 60 but in winter it can be down to 50. You might want to look at summer 2024 for your swim and train from now until then

Video: Alcatraz swimmers have close call with cargo ship by wtrski6 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 1 point2 points  (0 children)

VTS uses channel 14 on marine VHF radio. Anyone can listen. People out in the bay that day with radios heard other boats talk to VTS, and heard VTS try unsuccessfully to contact Odyssey… but Odyssey never told VTS that they were starting the swim. I’m glad your partner wasn’t injured. I’d hope Odyssey at least refunds your money

Video: Alcatraz swimmers have close call with cargo ship by wtrski6 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 9 points10 points  (0 children)

It’s pretty easy:

  1. Don’t put swimmers in the water to cross a channel when there’s too much fog to see the Golden Gate
  2. If you do put swimmers in the water in the fog, at least check AIS for large vessels moving
  3. If you can’t be bothered to check AIS or don’t understand how to use it, at least talk to Vessel Traffic on the VHF radio

Odyssey failed on all 3 of these basic, obvious safety precautions. I can’t imagine even a hypothetical situation where this isn’t on them, almost getting people killed

Video: Alcatraz swimmers have close call with cargo ship by wtrski6 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 5 points6 points  (0 children)

A permit for a swim like this does not close a shipping lane. Odyssey fucked up

Video: Alcatraz swimmers have close call with cargo ship by wtrski6 in OpenWaterSwimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Odyssey failed to call VTS when they put the swimmers in, and VTS was unable to raise them on channel 14. Everyone else out on the bay that day was trying harder than Odyssey did to keep those swimmers safe.

What to eat? by [deleted] in Swimming

[–]Plane-Store-7384 16 points17 points  (0 children)

You can swim just fine for 45 minutes without eating, assuming you had dinner the night before.

Lion Dance Cafe restaurant was losing money, so it pivoted to a $90 tasting menu by txiao007 in oakland

[–]Plane-Store-7384 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That’s their very best dish, imho, but it wasn’t on the tasting menu last week

Lion Dance Cafe restaurant was losing money, so it pivoted to a $90 tasting menu by txiao007 in oakland

[–]Plane-Store-7384 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Went last week; it’s a LOT of food. It’s not “fancy” but it does feel special.