Am I alone in pursuing freestyle only?
I never understood/appreciated anything other than "swim as fast as you can from A to B".
I was a long time hard-core runner, and the different swimstrokes seems to me to be akin to running backwards or sideways. (Or....heaven forbid......Racewalking!!)
Why shouldn't swimming follow the same path as running? Ie No stroke rules. Just go from A to B in the water anyway you wish? As fast as you can.
School me! Kick my ass! In my newbieness I cannot understand anything other than "A to B in the water as fast as you can."
Why do we have these 4 different strokes? It seems like a beauty contest. (I expect to be crucified for such blasphemy.)
Educate me, USMS people. Help me understand why you would want to find a way to swim slower!! :)
Double arm backstroke is just as official as "standard" backstroke. Per the rules, just about anything goes in backstroke as long as you are on your back. If double arm is faster for you, go for it. I have seen it used in meets, once I did it in a meet to see if it was faster(my normal backstroke is so slow that I need to notify the officials to have a calendar watch to time me.)
To add to this I think there is a point, maybe around 80-85 years old, where double arm becomes faster for many people.
Double arm backstroke is just as official as "standard" backstroke. Per the rules, just about anything goes in backstroke as long as you are on your back. If double arm is faster for you, go for it. I have seen it used in meets, once I did it in a meet to see if it was faster(my normal backstroke is so slow that I need to notify the officials to have a calendar watch to time me.)
To add to this I think there is a point, maybe around 80-85 years old, where double arm becomes faster for many people.
