Losers who daydream and miss their heat

I guess what it boils down to is how you view Masters Swimming. If you're more serious about it, you tend to take the position that "if you snooze.... you lose". If you're more casual about the whole concept of masters swimming, you feel its not a big deal to hop in an open lane in the same event and just swim to get a time for the event. Not surprisingly, I tend to view masters swimming as more of a "social event" in the end. Note, at the time, I was pretty embarassed and pissed off at myself when I looked over at my heat with no one swimming lane 4. Hell, at the very least, I lost about $65 bucks in that heat (i.e. 10 events divided into $650 for expenses for flight, hotel, rental car etc........ :-) I guess you can run USMS Nationals strictly by the rules, but its just different than a "real" meet where USS competitors are TRULY dead serious about their careers and performances in the sport. Rob....... as for your comment about asking the volunteer meet officials to break the rules. I agree with you. It's my issue with the rule book not theirs in the end. This is why I half jokingly proposed a rule change for this situation in this thread. I don't know........ it seems like you can run a meet with some more "flexibility" with regard to the rules as Meg and others have indicated. My only consolation is that the Evil Paul Smith's 50 backstroke was almost as bad as my no show..... :-) Mr. Gill..... next Masters Nationals, I am highlighting my name all over your heat sheet so you can help remind me to get up for the event..... :-) John Smith

I guess what it boils down to is how you view Masters Swimming. If you're more serious about it, you tend to take the position that "if you snooze.... you lose". If you're more casual about the whole concept of masters swimming, you feel its not a big deal to hop in an open lane in the same event and just swim to get a time for the event. Not surprisingly, I tend to view masters swimming as more of a "social event" in the end. Note, at the time, I was pretty embarassed and pissed off at myself when I looked over at my heat with no one swimming lane 4. Hell, at the very least, I lost about $65 bucks in that heat (i.e. 10 events divided into $650 for expenses for flight, hotel, rental car etc........ :-) I guess you can run USMS Nationals strictly by the rules, but its just different than a "real" meet where USS competitors are TRULY dead serious about their careers and performances in the sport. Rob....... as for your comment about asking the volunteer meet officials to break the rules. I agree with you. It's my issue with the rule book not theirs in the end. This is why I half jokingly proposed a rule change for this situation in this thread. I don't know........ it seems like you can run a meet with some more "flexibility" with regard to the rules as Meg and others have indicated. My only consolation is that the Evil Paul Smith's 50 backstroke was almost as bad as my no show..... :-) Mr. Gill..... next Masters Nationals, I am highlighting my name all over your heat sheet so you can help remind me to get up for the event..... :-) John Smith