What is the worst swimming-related experience you have ever had?

Freshman year in high school. We were the defending Newark (NJ) City League Champions and I was home getting over the measles. I was so disappointed not to be able to swim. My father, who had attended most of my meets, had gone to the championship meet to cheer on the team. About half way through the meet he called my mother and told her to bring me down to the meet. I was not feeling one hundred percent but I got to swim on the freestyle relay that placed third.

Now we know the cause of the famous Newark measles epidemic.

Most of my childhood swimming career was traumatic. I had a coach who's primary methods for motivation were threats, yelling, and curse words. No joke, he'd scream f-this, you little s***, and so on. I started swimming at 7, and stopped swimming for him at 13. It was surreal, but I thought it was normal. Interesting though, is that he had his problems with the swim parents, but for the most part he had their support. It wasn't until I was in college that I learned to appreciate a good coach, someone that finally made me realize that I was in the pool for my own reasons, no one elses.

Did some very high jumping off cliffs in the Kern County mountains as a teenager and hit bottom a couple of times but the one jump that could have killed me was off a cliff at the Colorado River, also as a teenager, when I was foolishly UI. I landed just feet from the rocks. That was the last time I have done something anywhere near as foolish. I can blame it on friends. Fortunately, I grew up quickly enough. Decades later I have not forgotten the fear of hitting the rocks one bit. I've have plenty of mishaps doing flips off the diving board as a teenager. I'm surprised more people didn't cite diving mishaps, but then again, diving boards just don't exist like they used to when I was a kid.

My worst swimming experience so far was at an outdoor long course meet. It was my last heat of the day (50 backstroke), and as they were announcing the event before telling us to jump in the water, a bee flew up and stung me on my right nipple. Then they told us to jump in the water, and I had to try to block out the pain and focus on the event. I must have succeeded, since I managed to knock about 7 seconds off my time from the previous year for the same event! Bob

I got ready for my first flip turn... and when I turned onto my stomach, there was the wall... IT WAS TOO CLOSE... had to flip... and I slammed both of my feet right into the gutters (right on the heel). I did this once except it wasn't my feet that hit. I was at my second masters meet, and I was doing my first 200IM since high school. Since that time they had changed the back stroke turn, I knew how to do it but hadn't been doing it for long. Anyway I come up on the flags, count, flip, and got so close to the bulkhead I caught my suit on it. I didn't have my suit come off, but I did have the back of the suit see thru.

Two scary episodes: Once, when in the caribbean on vacation I decided to swim out to some breaking waves about a mile off shore. My wife was with me so I told her I'd probably be about 40 minutes there and back. Trouble was, after hitting the waves a mile out and turning round .. I swam back not quite in a straight line and ended up some distance along frommy starting point. The situation went from bad to worse. I ended up asking a local to our hotel and he pointed me in the wrong direction; the coastline was very rocky; fell and cut myself and, when I finally guessed I was walking the wrong way I got back in the ocean to swim back the 'correct' way (it was quicker than walking!) Needless to say my wife was convinced I'd drowned and was *somewhat distressed* when we finally met up again. Second time, many years ago, swimming across Lake Geneva from Switzerland to France. Although I finished the swim I ended up with hypothermia and, to this day, can't actually recall finishing. Ended up in a French hospital with no ID on me, no currency etc etc... To cut a long story short ended up discharging myself from the hospital and hiking back several miles to the finish point of the swim. It was blisteringly hot and in no time the sweat was dripping from me. Hypo- and hyperthermia in record time! Yes, quite an experience!

Running into people who are sharing a lane with me is never fun. I feel like such an idiot but you just can't see as well backwards and upside down! Sometimes I'll get the "ugly stare" - people think you do it on purpose and/or they're completely offended at being touched of course. I literally swam up onto the legs of a woman doing freestyle just ahead of me in the lane. Not once, but twice. She was very understanding and I apologized profusely. No matter how good I get at steering, mastering the art of sharing a lane with crawlers evades me. Let me take this chance to apologize beforehand... I really am sorry and it really is embarassing. Still learnin'.

Originally posted by Graham Short Suddenly, at the turn, I was grabbed by the shoulder. The pool attendant shouted, "You'll have to get out now. We haven't got time to finish the three lengths. The pool is closing soon. well done, you were second!" My first competition, and cheated out of the gold medal. I must be missing something. Just how long would it have taken for you to swim an additional 33 1/3 yards? Bob

My worst experience was reading some of Ion Breza's posts.