While I have trained hard for the run and put in some decent ride time for the bike portion, I've had minimal time in the water. Recently I did make it out to Centennial Beach to get a feel for the water. spent some time in the lap lanes and then finally ventured into the deep end. After this, I decided I wanted to do a full trial run with swim, bike and run. It all went better than anticipated. My last pool experience was with a clinic put on the triathlon group sponsoring the event. They had us do some laps, do a few other trial strokes and a few more laps for good measure. In that swim, I did about a mile. This really helped to build my confidence!
Nothing comes easily. The more practice you give something will generally provide a better outcome. If after this first triathlon I decide to pursue triathlons, I definitely need to invest more time and energy into the swim portion.