Thinking back on your swimming history what were some of the milestones that you aimed for along the way? As examples, last year I set out to swim the 100 fly and this year the 200 fly. At the time just completing those events was a significant challenge. Now I'm working on getting under 30s for the 50m free, which for some reason seems to have more significance than going under 32, or under 31. Probably any round number seems significant, like under 1:00 for the 100m. What other goals or milestones do people see as having special significance? I'm interested in milestones at all levels. I'm hoping to construct a list that will give people goals to work towards beyond just improving their current times, probably with an emphasis on goals for beginners. Thanks!
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Originally posted by Dashly
.... My story is simpler and not inspiring at all....
I don't believe anyone can judge what is inspirational (or not). What may seem totally insignificant to one may be a totally jaw dropping experience for another.
I am reminded of a street performer I saw at a fair in Atlanta, GA back in the early 80's. I happened to catch his act about 4 days or more into the festival. He explained that every new fair he went to he would dream up a new stunt to attempt. This particular stunt involved balancing a number of objects on someone's head. I distinctly recall that the bottom object was a glass of water, and the top object was an egg (probably raw). I believe all that was in between was an aluminum pie tin (right side up) on the glass of water, with the egg nestled on top of a curled up business card (obtained from an audience member) inside the pie tin. The object of the stunt was to knock the pie tin (and the card) out of the way and have the egg fall into the glass of water. He claimed that up to this time he had so far been unsuccessful in accomplishing this particular stunt.
I did not think he could do it. And initially I was most impressed with how well the person (an audience volunteer, a young girl) seated in the chair in front of everyone was managing to contain their obviously growing state of near panic as he is stacking all this stuff on top of her head and describing what he is about to (try and) do. This was not a scheduled performance, he simply stopped on a sidewalk in the park where the fair was being held and just began his act (with juggling and such), and people wandering by had stopped to watch. This stunt was the grand finale.
The moment of truth came. He braced himself for the blow (to the pie tin) with a remarkable sense of concentration. The tension of the audience was palpable. Thwack! The pie tin flew out, and the egg fell into the glass! You could have knocked me over with a feather. The audience cheered loudly. He grabbed the glass of water with the egg safely inside of it, held it up and exclaimed, "I did it!" At this point he became even more intense. He pointed at the audience (still holding up the glass), scanning back and forth from one end of the crowd to the other and almost blurted, "There! That is for all the go-getters in life! That is for all of those who keep trying and never give up!" It was quite a remarkable experience.
....
"Close to the edge is okay, falling over the edge is trouble, but going over the edge and walking on air is advanced development."
Originally posted by Dashly
.... My story is simpler and not inspiring at all....
I don't believe anyone can judge what is inspirational (or not). What may seem totally insignificant to one may be a totally jaw dropping experience for another.
I am reminded of a street performer I saw at a fair in Atlanta, GA back in the early 80's. I happened to catch his act about 4 days or more into the festival. He explained that every new fair he went to he would dream up a new stunt to attempt. This particular stunt involved balancing a number of objects on someone's head. I distinctly recall that the bottom object was a glass of water, and the top object was an egg (probably raw). I believe all that was in between was an aluminum pie tin (right side up) on the glass of water, with the egg nestled on top of a curled up business card (obtained from an audience member) inside the pie tin. The object of the stunt was to knock the pie tin (and the card) out of the way and have the egg fall into the glass of water. He claimed that up to this time he had so far been unsuccessful in accomplishing this particular stunt.
I did not think he could do it. And initially I was most impressed with how well the person (an audience volunteer, a young girl) seated in the chair in front of everyone was managing to contain their obviously growing state of near panic as he is stacking all this stuff on top of her head and describing what he is about to (try and) do. This was not a scheduled performance, he simply stopped on a sidewalk in the park where the fair was being held and just began his act (with juggling and such), and people wandering by had stopped to watch. This stunt was the grand finale.
The moment of truth came. He braced himself for the blow (to the pie tin) with a remarkable sense of concentration. The tension of the audience was palpable. Thwack! The pie tin flew out, and the egg fell into the glass! You could have knocked me over with a feather. The audience cheered loudly. He grabbed the glass of water with the egg safely inside of it, held it up and exclaimed, "I did it!" At this point he became even more intense. He pointed at the audience (still holding up the glass), scanning back and forth from one end of the crowd to the other and almost blurted, "There! That is for all the go-getters in life! That is for all of those who keep trying and never give up!" It was quite a remarkable experience.
....
"Close to the edge is okay, falling over the edge is trouble, but going over the edge and walking on air is advanced development."
