Race Club Article

Interesting...........I'm guessing that at least some of Gary's success came from doing the exact type of background that he's critical of. From earlier discussions I recal that Gary went 1:33+ in the 200 free as a freshman at Texas........I doubt that Eddie didn't train him hard to do that?

I think age group coaches tread a line between developing individual talent and keeping the "team" cohesive. And by that I mean not showing favor to kids who are able to sprint at 12 by having them go 5000 yards a day and the others 9000+. Remember they also have to keep the parents happy. Everyone doing the same workout has advantages to team unity and teaching kids to work hard as individuals yet in a team environment. Yet as they develop their individual events, provide them with sets to enhance their skills in the appropriate lane. My take: everyone should warm up as a group, do a set as a group, then break up into event specific lanes for a set, and then come together for another set. As for ugly distance swimmer strokes: Hackett and Jensen look fine to me and alot of the European sprinters now swim straight arm.

I agree. Though I was always a swimmer. I chose that life very early on. When I was an age group coach, I encouraged parents of kids under 12 to put their kids in other sports, and to let me put them in different events. I had a boy who wanted to swim distance because his big sister was a good distance swimmer. But he blossomed in two years into a great sprinter, because he started growing and getting stronger. He now hates the required 1650 every member of the team over 12 is required to race every year.

Paul, Are you baiting for an argument? John Smith

Recently the New York Times magazine had an article on Emiy Hughes, Sarah's sister and claimed that ice skating had the largest imbalance between practice times and performance time. I thought immediately that this author is not familar with most swim training programs. Eddie Reese is a great swim coach. So is Dave Salo. They have both produced great swimmers. They take a very different approach to training. So who's right? Without some kind of peer reviewed papers on training yardage and performance that is data based we'll not really know the answer to this question. Otherwise, these discussion quickly devolve into conjecture-based arguements. So where do I stand? I do support that part of Gary Hall's letter that urges young swimmers, and their parents, not to specialize in the sport too soon (is it 11, 12, 13, 15 ?) and once they elected swimming to train "smart" AND "hard" (see Dave Salo for another definition of hard). Yes, if you are a 1500 swimmer you'll need to put in those yards but how much do you really need to train to be the "best you can be" at the other distances? One final, somewhat related comment. I greatly respect Gary Hall as a swimmer. He swims with great technique and, in the most mental of all races, great toughness. Based on everything I seen in swimming over the past four decades this technique comes with lots of hard work. One swimmer does not make a thesis true but it does speak to his dedication to our sport in his own way.

These are great points and it's an interesting point to ponder. When I see age group coaches having EVERY kid in the pool do a 10,000 for time, I wonder who that is good for. Is it good for the coach so he can tell his buddies he got his kids to do it? I know hardly anyone that does that type of swim will be a better swimmer becaue of that. Mentally tough, most definitely. But I think there are other sets you can do to develop mentally tough swimmers and at the same time develop their skills to their best events. Mind you, I am the epitome of a one trick pony in the water, so I am probably somewhat biased. Currently my backstroke is faster than my freestyle! On a somewhat related note, I think it was Tom Jaeger who said something like the best athletes in the pool are the sprinters. Who chooses to be the distance guy?

Some stuff rings true in his article especially as it pertains to the 50s and 100s. However, swimming the 200 and above in the final heat at US Nationals, unfortunately requires both natural talent (i.e. genetics) as well as a solid aerobic base built from a relatively young age. There are very few Rowdy Gaines's out there that can start so late comparatively and reach the very top. While I agree it is important not to "burn out" young kids with 10,000 meter a day regimes like the old Mission Viejo days in the 1970s, one must acknowledge the benefits of a training base that is accumulated through the years. No one wants to have to do this mentally or physically, but the benefits are certainly proven. It's a balancing act. How much yardage to do early on as well as picking your "right event" as Gary puts it. John Smith

Craig III You bring out an interesting point about comparing older age group swimmers from the 1970s and early 1980s to the swimmers these days. Personally, I don't find a lot of improvement in the depth of the heats from then to now. I agree there are many overweight kids these days, more now than then it seems. The top talent has marginally improved over the last 3 decades, but not as much compared to the preceeding decades in the 50s and 60s compared to the 70s and 80s. Questions: Did this "over training" a quarter of a century ago help or hinder in the end ? Are we lacking on aerobic base in some of our age group kids these days ? Personally, I think the super yardage teams like Mission Viejo back then went a bit overboard. It simply burnt out too many kids mentally. But, I think there is purpose for an aerobic base early in your career. I do remember swimming 2wice a day (8-10K or so) 2 days a week when I was 12 in the summers. Highschool was harder (10K-12K) 3 days a week plus weights and Texas in the early 80's was even harder intensity and slightly more yardage still. I suggest that the concept of "base" has been slightly lost on a the vast middle talent group of swimmers these days...... i.e. the average "John Smiths" out there. I have spoken to college coaches now that feel that their incoming Freshman don't have sufficient base compared to the 1980s. They have to train many of their Freshman very hard the first 2 years where as before it was already there for the taking. John Smith

John.......another overlooked factor in the current training strategies is th heavy emphasis on springint at the college level. A mid level 500/1650 high school kid would be hard pressed to find a scholorhip these days vs. the same level for 50/100 specialist. My solution........double the points in the 500, 1650, 400IM & 800 free relay.

Okay, it's official, Gary Hall is indeed a God!