The Wonderful Manatee

I'm a horribly slow swimmer. How slow? Well, according to the official results, I finished the 1.2-mile swim at the San Diego Triathlon Challenge in 41 minutes, 17 seconds, making my average race speed in the water approximately 1.7 miles per hour.

In order to describe how slow I swim to people who inquire, I like to say that I am manatee-slow. I mean, what's slower than a manatee?

Apparently, I am. According to savethemanatee.org, these animals, commonly called sea cows, "only swim about three to eight kilometers (three to five miles) per hour."

In other words, a manatee can kick my ass. How depressing.

Some other fun manatee facts from the manatee educator's guide:

-Manatees sometimes groan when they stretch.
-Manatees don't necessarily have daily routines or cycles. In general, they will feed, rest or travel at any time of the night or day.
-Flatulence is common in manatees.

Hmm, these characteristics sound vaguely familiar.


Mark = Manatee?