I'm 28 and just started back up in the water beginning of September, so I think I can speak firsthand to this.
Seconded (or thirded, or fourthed) on the kids thing. I am not there yet so that's not one I can talk about firsthand.
But also, lot of folks that swam for years and years through college may just need a break, or some of them might just be done with the sport completely. I know several on my college team that were practically counting down the days until their last conference or nationals - sad that you'd dedicate so much of your time to something you didn't like to do, but that's the reality for some people. I was as gung ho about the sport as anyone through college, but I surprised myself after my senior year with how ready I was for a break and a change of pace for a bit.
For people that never swam competitively at all, swimming is a sport with a big learning curve. It's hard to learn to move in the water naturally - to move with the water instead of fighting it. It might be stereotypical to say, but younger people are typically less willing to expose themselves to that kind of vulnerability, especially in a public forum like a Masters team.
I'm 28 and just started back up in the water beginning of September, so I think I can speak firsthand to this.
Seconded (or thirded, or fourthed) on the kids thing. I am not there yet so that's not one I can talk about firsthand.
But also, lot of folks that swam for years and years through college may just need a break, or some of them might just be done with the sport completely. I know several on my college team that were practically counting down the days until their last conference or nationals - sad that you'd dedicate so much of your time to something you didn't like to do, but that's the reality for some people. I was as gung ho about the sport as anyone through college, but I surprised myself after my senior year with how ready I was for a break and a change of pace for a bit.
For people that never swam competitively at all, swimming is a sport with a big learning curve. It's hard to learn to move in the water naturally - to move with the water instead of fighting it. It might be stereotypical to say, but younger people are typically less willing to expose themselves to that kind of vulnerability, especially in a public forum like a Masters team.
