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.
When I don't have a meet on the horizon, which is most of the time, GTD is sometimes the only thing that pushes me to get up at the butt crack of dawn. :bed: The prizes are nice...my equipment bag is most useful.
I don't think too many people are fudging their numbers just to get free stuff. I know a couple of people have unbelievable totals, and I happen to know of one in particular that actually does swim that ridiculous amount every day. :fish2:
I swim with folks that are all about the yardage. They don't care if it's all garbage, just as long as it is a nice big number. I prefer quality, and that's why my goal is 2-300 miles less than theirs.
:2cents:
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
Thank you for sharing about the USMS National Fitness Committee, and for being a member of this committee :applaud:
I'm sure it involves quite a bit of behind the scenes work.
When I don't have a meet on the horizon, which is most of the time, GTD is sometimes the only thing that pushes me to get up at the butt crack of dawn. :bed:
This is also the primary reason that I've participated in GTD over the past few years. Everyone thinks AZ is always warm and sunny, but we have some cold, dark mornings in winter when it is more tempting to just roll over in bed than get up and deal with swimming outside, sometimes on a frosty morning.
Like others mentioned, I do swim with a team (MMAC), and we have a few swimmers who participate in GTD. We have an informal contest among ourselves on distance. The Zone/LMSC reports are handy to see where those on our team fall. If someone falls behind, sometimes we'll give them a rubbing...
Some of us do swim in meets, and quality certainly does matter. Even if we don't swim in meets, we do have sprint workouts, when a 2500 yard workout may be a stretch. Several swimmers on my team particiapte in a local o/w swim series called SCAR, where they can rack up tons of miles.
Participating in GTD also gives me some extra motivation to swim when I travel, for either work or on vacation. Coming back from a 2 week vacation with 3-4 workouts versus none actually does make a big difference.
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
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.
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.
Kirk is correct. Many USMS members have FLOGS and log their daily yardage, but they do not click the link to "enter" the GTD event.
If you do enter the GTD event and then change your mind, you can withdraw at any time and then your yardage totals will no longer be included in the daily public reports.
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
Well said, Robin! :applaud:
Onlybrit, if you think it's "seriously stupid," than either don't use it or do something about it. Why don't you take Robin up on her offer and see what you can do to improve the program? Personally, I think it's excellent. The FLOG is a great tool for keeping track of my workouts in the same way the other posters mentioned. :agree:
As for the prizes, it doesn't cost anything to enter GTD, so being critical of the prizes makes you sound like a spoiled brat. I have received EVERY prize I have earned over the past four years, so the sponsors have followed up on their promises. Perhaps yours got lost in the mail.
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 :).
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¢...
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?
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.
