Even our friend Aquageek gets a mention!
www.wsj.com/.../in-u-s-masters-swimming-training-is-more-important-than-the-race-1438622826
I think the article is fine as far as it goes, but it would be nice if they at least mentioned that competition IS a big facet of masters swimming for lots of us. Sure lots of USMS members do not compete, but how many other adult sports can boast of having an annual national championship event where ~2,000 athletes compete?
A telling stat, if possible, would be to cross reference those who compete with their average number of years as a member versus those who don't compete. That would give us a good idea of how important competition is to USMS as an organization.
The issue isn't really "how important competition is" to USMS. Relative to the fraction of members who compete I think USMS allocates a lot of resources to competitive aspects of the sport. And I agree that those who compete tend to be more engaged.
But the question Patrick was addressing is, I believe, how to best "sell" USMS to potential new members. I think once you get people in a good team environment where they like their teammates and coach, then you can convince them to go to swim meets. IMO emphasizing competition from day 1 will be a turn-off to many, including many former age-group swimmers who have been there, done that.
I joined masters at a pretty early age to work out in a stress-free envmt, I stayed b/c I liked my teammates, I went to meets to meet more like-minded people. I don't think that's an unusual progression. Sure I grew to enjoy the competitive aspects of USMS but that wasn't the case initially.
A telling stat, if possible, would be to cross reference those who compete with their average number of years as a member versus those who don't compete. That would give us a good idea of how important competition is to USMS as an organization.
The issue isn't really "how important competition is" to USMS. Relative to the fraction of members who compete I think USMS allocates a lot of resources to competitive aspects of the sport. And I agree that those who compete tend to be more engaged.
But the question Patrick was addressing is, I believe, how to best "sell" USMS to potential new members. I think once you get people in a good team environment where they like their teammates and coach, then you can convince them to go to swim meets. IMO emphasizing competition from day 1 will be a turn-off to many, including many former age-group swimmers who have been there, done that.
I joined masters at a pretty early age to work out in a stress-free envmt, I stayed b/c I liked my teammates, I went to meets to meet more like-minded people. I don't think that's an unusual progression. Sure I grew to enjoy the competitive aspects of USMS but that wasn't the case initially.
