Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Bill Sive — Tue, 29 Jul 2014 09:14:56 GMT

From 2010 - 2014 (year to date) I have swum 2,444.04 GTD miles, when I started recording my distance via GTD. You can say I have swum from Long Beach, CA - Pittsburgh, PA. Washington DC is not that much further. Perhaps I can make it to Washington DC by the end of this calender year?! I would say that's not bad for someone who does not have a swimming background, and has only been swimming for 5 years. Yes, GTD is a motivator for me.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

sahoehle — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 03:43:15 GMT

Does anyone else think the go the distance program is seriously stupid. The prizes stink, it's too hard to get them if you even get the prize you deserved. I don't even think most people are even telling the truth about how much they swim to cheat. I think the program is fantastic! Thanks to Nike for donating or subsidizing the prizes. You're getting prizes for things you'd be doing anyway. I'm completely okay with the fact I'll probably get a cap and nothing else this year. It's more than I would've gotten without the program! And yes, some people probably cheat. But they'll get bad karma, so it's okay in the end.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Elaine Krugman — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 03:18:26 GMT

sorry you can't find value in this free program and thanks usms for offering it. Have you all noticed that onlybrit has posted ONCE and has never been back? :bolt: Definitely the sign of a troll. :rolleyes: Onlybrit, how about a response?:banana: I challenge you to give us a valid reason why we shouldn't utilize this FREE program. +1 on thanking USMS for offering it. :applaud:

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

magick17 — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 02:01:18 GMT

It's an awesome fitness motivator.. I love the 50 mile cap. its keeps me in the pool and trying to stay above the set goal. and FYI...most folks do not cheat....even the guy with the most amount of miles is true and honest.... sorry you can't find value in this free program and thanks usms for offering it.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

jgale — Mon, 14 Jul 2014 07:28:41 GMT

I have been using the FLOG tool since it was first introduced (and was an excel spreadsheet). I find it very valuable to track my yardage. It can be a helpful bit of motivation to keep my distance together between races or when life gets in the way. I used to do the same for many years when I was running for my primary sport. That being said, I don't use it to compare myself to others. So if someone is cheating for the external validation, I am afraid that they are not getting it from me! Sorry.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

orca1946 — Sat, 12 Jul 2014 11:18:52 GMT

I think he started this just to stir the pot & see what happens. Much more positive comments than he thought about.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Bill Sive — Sat, 12 Jul 2014 08:25:57 GMT

Go The Distance is what you make it. At first I did not understand why everyone did not achieve 500 miles or better. Then I slowly realized some people only swim one or two day per week. Some people have life events that prevent them from swimming. I have decided to remain quiet on this topic of acheiving 500 miles. A couple of years ago Aqua Sphere sponsored a GTD type of event. It was Men vs Women. The prize was 10,000.00 British pounds sterling. Men came out ahead at the end, but the winner was everyone 60%, if I remember correctly, of the 10,000.00 was donated to Prostate Cancer Research, the other 40% was donated to *** Cancer research. Some Olympic swimmers even signed up. I was glad to have participated. Also a while back I also participated in another GTD type of event in 2012. The goal was to swim the length of the Thames River, by the time the 2012 Olympics started. (see my USMS Blog). I am comfortable with the prizes Nike kindly provides. The validation I receive from GTD was more validation than I received from my former swim team. GTD has a good and honest purpose. I challenge you to find your purpose in swimming GTD or not swimming GTD.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

orca1946 — Fri, 11 Jul 2014 12:08:03 GMT

Paul - now you can just add in all your miles/yards once a week or a whole month if you wish. I think?

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

aztimm — Fri, 11 Jul 2014 01:07:58 GMT

Counting yardage and only yardage is like trying to train for a short drag race by driving a Prius going across america's highways at 68 mph. Yes, you'll log in a lot of mileage, but it won't be race specific. Only a handful of swimmers on my team compete in meets regularly (and based on my unofficial guess from dropping in with other groups, I'd say this is more often the case). There are quite a few more who do open water swimming, and truthfully, when you're swimming a distance, slow and steady is the way to go. Racing 100m in a lake isn't such a good idea...not when you'd still have 3900m (or far more) to go :afraid: Actually, GTD is a pretty good training tool for much of this. Our Triple Crown swimmer used GTD, quite successfully.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Patrick W. Brundage — Tue, 08 Jul 2014 12:18:20 GMT

I just wish I could upload my much more functional Excel tracker directly into GTD instead of having to type it all over again. I have about 6 months of data to catch up on entering for 2014 ;) Other than that, it's a great program.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

flystorms — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 10:07:35 GMT

"I also think our poster is someone in disguise trying to drum up comments! So here was mine!" You know, that thought crossed my mind a few days ago too. Glad to see it's a good discussion item!

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

chowmi — Mon, 07 Jul 2014 09:10:42 GMT

What????? Where have I been all these years??!!! Why would you NOT sign up, even if it's just for fun. After 6am EST tomorrow, yours truly will be somewhere at the bottom of the W45-49 list! I set my goal at 150 miles for the rest of the year, starting 07/01/14 - will probably not make it, but it will be fun to see how far off 25 miles/month I am! I agree that it is a meaningful goal, depending on what you are trying to achieve. I'd like a freebie of any kind. Surely I can make the first milestone by the end of the year, even with only 1/2 year to get there. But I also agree with those that don't believe in it. Counting yardage and only yardage is like trying to train for a short drag race by driving a Prius going across america's highways at 68 mph. Yes, you'll log in a lot of mileage, but it won't be race specific. I also think our poster is someone in disguise trying to drum up comments! So here was mine!

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

swoomer — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 08:31:06 GMT

There is always negativity in the world. This started with a negative assumption, but so many positives have been expressed to validate GTD. Aside from the obvious, the goodies, I tend to focus more on the records year over year. If I had a great spell, and am now in a downturn, I can go back and see what I was doing when things were going better. I can track my training patterns over time and can see what makes a difference in results. I can't see how someone can possibly see anything negative about GTD unless, of course, they are only focused on the goodies. In my world, they're nice but not necessary for my motivation.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

suphillips — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 07:17:17 GMT

I love GTD. It was the primary tool I used two years ago when I started setting real fitness goals and lost over 60 lbs. I started logging everything....my swims, runs, pilates, and I feel like it gave me the documentation I needed to define what it took to maintain the fitness level I want for my life. The weight has stayed off, my distance swimming feels great and is an absolute joy, and I love watching the miles accumulate on my flog. I'm on track for my second year of a million meter goal, and I've never been more motivated for swimming. And although it's probably worthy of a whole other thread, I disagree with the assumption that there is a quantity/quality tradeoff. Ever since I asked my coach to train me for distance swimming, we've been working on doing serious speed play embedded in longer distances, and it has worked amazingly well on both speed and stamina. My distance is up, and my quality is through the roof.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

mcnair — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 04:54:37 GMT

Brilliant idea Steve!!! SSL has been one of the most meaningful movements I've personally participated in lately. I will mention this in the discussion fodder @ convention. I agree; great idea. Not sure I need another swim cap or bag, so just saying donate the cost of my prize to the foundation is a great way for all of us who swim regularly and log our yardage to support this cause.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

mcnair — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 04:51:06 GMT

I think there should be a "Frequent Flyer Mileage" activity. Ok, so maybe the name is a little corny but I would love a good fly challenge. Of course, the FLOG would have to be modified to accommodate sub-categories of swimming. I love this idea.... it's one thing to log total yardage, but when I look back at a month's worth of swims and see 25 2-4,000-yard days I would love to know at a glance how much of that was fly, back, etc. So, one 3000 yard workout might be mostly free, but another racks up 800 in backstroke; another 3000-yarder might include 600 in fly. How many miles of fly do I swim in a month? How many miles of back? Can't really tell that easily now. I swam almost 40 miles total in June, but I bet 12-18 of it was backstroke, because I was training hard for those events. This would also make correlating training patterns and injuries a lot easier... what percentage of my yardage does the fly have to be at before my shoulders start really annoying me? Where is the breaking point? These are all questions I try to go back over my training logs to answer from time to time... but I'd love to look at the flog and see the running totals in one spot.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Judester — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 04:32:53 GMT

Hi onlybrit- I think people with opinions like yours should become a member of the USMS National Fitness Committee and come up with useful, motivating ways to benefit our usms swimmers. I happen to be a member of the committee and would be happy to present any of your ideas during our next conference this September in Jacksonville, Florida. The idea is to offer a variety of activities and programs with the hopes that most of our members will find something that benefits their swimming lifestyle. GTD may not be perfect, but you can tell by the log pages that a large number of swimmers use it daily on some level and possibly enjoy the benefits it provides them. I'm sorry GTD isn't working for you. Sincerely, Robin Walker I think there should be a "Frequent Flyer Mileage" activity. Ok, so maybe the name is a little corny but I would love a good fly challenge. Of course, the FLOG would have to be modified to accommodate sub-categories of swimming.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Bobinator — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 04:18:36 GMT

Brilliant idea Steve!!! SSL has been one of the most meaningful movements I've personally participated in lately. I will mention this in the discussion fodder @ convention. (light bulb!) What about and option to cash our prize and have it go to the swimming saves lives foundation instead? Would that be too complicated, or possible?

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Elaine Krugman — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 02:36:51 GMT

I think there should be a "Frequent Flyer Mileage" activity. Ok, so maybe the name is a little corny but I would love a good fly challenge. Of course, the FLOG would have to be modified to accommodate sub-categories of swimming. Try this for a good fly challenge: www.grinswim.org/.../butternuts.html Several Forumites have taken the challenge, including me (900 yards, 2000 yards, and 1000 yards continuous fly). Give it a shot, Judester! :cheerleader:

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

knelson — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 12:59:57 GMT

I also don't really understand why the totals are publicly ranked Because GTD is an event. You can flog without entering GTD, correct? If you aren't interested in being ranked just flog without entering the GTD event. That's my take, anyway.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Chris Stevenson — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 12:09:33 GMT

The OP was obvious a troll and not worthy of direct response. But more generally this thread and various others I have seen over the years makes me question why there are prizes in GTD at all. The focus should be on setting goals and tracking one's progress toward that goal. The GTD tool is useful in that it can tell you how far above/below pace you are, and you can compare to previous years. The swag is a distraction. I also don't really understand why the totals are publicly ranked, though I do like the ability to aggregate by (say) team since that can be motivating. And if one doesn't think that total mileage is worthy of tracking - an opinion I am sympathetic toward - then clearly it isn't a tool for you.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

Former Member — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 11:11:27 GMT

Well, count me as one who really appreciates GTD. I need that extra little nudge of a year-long distance goal to keep from slacking off, and I appreciate the way GTD calculates whether I'm on pace or not in terms of year-to-date mileage. I also have a big head full of thick hair, so I stretch out swim caps way too quickly. It may be a little thing, but I absolutely appreciate that getting the 50-mile cap means one less I have to buy over the course of a year.

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

__steve__ — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 10:43:06 GMT

Maybe a bag tag like the "swimming saves lives" tags or a pair of goggles (Swedes are cheap, for example). (light bulb!) What about and option to cash our prize and have it go to the swimming saves lives foundation instead? Would that be too complicated, or possible?

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

smontanaro — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 10:22:47 GMT

While onlybrit's comments were perhaps a bit harsh, they did resonate with me. I write this as someone who hasn't been in the water since perhaps March, so keep that in mind. I have participated in GTD for several years, and am nominally participating this year, though I am stalled for now. I'm a guy who's generally a pool swimmer, and who never wears a cap. How many 50-mile caps do I really need? I think it would be nice if the shorter distance goals changed from time-to-time. Maybe a bag tag like the "swimming saves lives" tags or a pair of goggles (Swedes are cheap, for example). Looking at this year's awards schedule, there appears to be nothing between the 50-mile and 500-mile marks, at which point you get a new suit, which I'm guessing will be of more value to women than men. Despite the prodigious efforts of a number of swimmers, most people aren't going to make that 500-mile goal. For me, it would just mean more shoulder problems. I'd much rather pay for my shiny new swimsuit than for an MRI. Looked at another way, of the 7032 people who have logged at least 50 miles so far this year, if current trends hold, perhaps 750 people will be awarded a swimsuit. I'm sure that's a substantial commitment by the sponsors, but it's likely not an achievable goal by the bulk of the USMS membership. Just my 2¢...

RE: Go The Distance program is stupid and overrated

pmccoy — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 09:54:47 GMT

Does anyone else think the go the distance program is seriously stupid.I'm sure someone else does somewhere. Its fun for me but I'm sure it isn't for everyone. Most people that don't like it voluntarily don't participate.The prizes stink, it's too hard to get them if you even get the prize you deserved.As others have pointed out, it is hard to complain about free stuff when there is no cost to participate. A couple years ago, they did gift certificates that required that you purchase a certain amount in order to redeem them. That was kind of lame but I wasn't willing to complain about it. They probably helped out some people that were planning on buying some equipment. I just quietly chose not to redeem them. I think the swim bags (250 miles) are pretty nice. They don't exactly overnight your prizes the second you hit the required yardage but I've never failed to receive any prize promised to me.I don't even think most people are even telling the truth about how much they swim to cheat.I finished first in my age group one year. The Nike prize van didn't show up at my doorstep showering me with gifts and praise at my accomplishment. I didn't get a medal. There was no All-American patch or a top ten mention. I didn't even get an email. Somewhere in a forgotten 2012 archive is my name on the top of a list. That's hardly an incentive to cheat. The only drawback I've seen so far is that accepting gifts from Nike could impact my 4 years of NCAA eligibility :).