Swim info has this article:
swiminfo.com/.../3387.asp
Which discusses a new organization for competitive swimming called Adult Swimming Association. Apparantly the initiator is unhappy with the various things that USMS does that are not directly related to competitive swimming, such as the promotion of fitness. Also, he is unhappy with the structure of the national meets. He proposes several variations of the age group structure.
Any thoughts or insights?
Actually, one of the ideas this fellow has suggested that's kind of appealing to me is to have competitions listed not by 5 year age group brackets but rather one year ones--i.e., 49 year olds compete for the record 49 year old times, 57 year olds for the 57 year old record, etc.
What you see a lot of now, it seems to me, is that the top performances in each age bracket tend to be (though not always) swum by people at the lower end of the bracket (especially after you hit 40-44). I think there's a tendency to really try to be at your most competitive during the first year you "age up"--then take something of a break (or at least ease off a bit) for the next four years or so before your next good chance at cracking the Top 10.
Maybe keeping records per year as opposed to per 5 years would give more of us incentive to swim our hardest all the time. Just a thought...admittedly from a 49 year old who is having his best adult year this year, and can't wait till next summer when USMS says I turn 50...
Actually, one of the ideas this fellow has suggested that's kind of appealing to me is to have competitions listed not by 5 year age group brackets but rather one year ones--i.e., 49 year olds compete for the record 49 year old times, 57 year olds for the 57 year old record, etc.
What you see a lot of now, it seems to me, is that the top performances in each age bracket tend to be (though not always) swum by people at the lower end of the bracket (especially after you hit 40-44). I think there's a tendency to really try to be at your most competitive during the first year you "age up"--then take something of a break (or at least ease off a bit) for the next four years or so before your next good chance at cracking the Top 10.
Maybe keeping records per year as opposed to per 5 years would give more of us incentive to swim our hardest all the time. Just a thought...admittedly from a 49 year old who is having his best adult year this year, and can't wait till next summer when USMS says I turn 50...
