We've all had them, your suit rips during a start, you accidentally sneeze on Michael Phelps, you burp or fart on the starting blocks, etc. (none of those happened to me...knock on wood).
What's your most embarassing swimming moment? (includes, meets, practice, anything swimming related)
Oh, boy, do I have a story!!
The first year I moved here to Roatan in the Caribbean, I started swimming at an inlet called Half Moon Bay. It is 1/2 mile all the way around it. In it, are various little reefs. Well, I was doing backstroke and thought I was in the clear, but I swam across the tip of a reef ripping my suit entirely off from the waist down.
Now my scooter and stuff was on the road which meant I had to exit the water with the top half of my suit only. To make it worse, it was Cruise Ship Day and there were people everywhere walking on the road. I stayed in the water and was trying to time my quick exit to my scooter inbetween groups of people. The longer I waited, more people were on the street.
I finally knew I was out of luck on this one, so I stood up, half-naked and walked proudly to my scooter while people were pointing and laughing. What I was thinking as I was walking proudly was that I'll probably never see them again anyway, so be it.
Donna
I see this as a sign from above that one should avoid backstroke at all costs...
:laugh2:
Goggle trouble:
During my second masters swim meet last March, I had the worst goggle trouble. I dove in for my first event, the 100 IM, and my googles went down to my neck. I thought, well I have to keep swimming or I will be exposed as a real whimp. Then, I realized that I had my contacts in and couldn't drive home without them. So I meekly climbed out. Thank goodness I was in lane 1. The referee laughed as he handed me my DQ slip.
Then, I swam a 50 free with my goggles completely filled with water and almost missed the wall on my flip turn. Then I swam a 50 *** (this was stupid in and of itself) where my goggles were again water filled and on my nose at the finish.
I got out and attempted to tighten my goggles. I took them apart and then couldn't re-thread them because I am now getting old and far-sighted. So I couldn't see to fix them. I was about to scratch my last event and go home when my daughter arrived to watch. She fixed my goggles for me. Then, she roundly scolded me for not having extra contacts and extra goggles at a meet. (I didn't tell her about the 100 IM.)
Then I swam a nice 50 back where I had no goggle problems and did a PB.
I have now (after many pairs) found goggles that I like. I put them under my cap at all times. And I still like backstroke best.
one of my worst moments was a painful one. our club team moved practice to another pool because ours was getting drained and painted. Halfway through the practice we started doing some IM work. The pool was longcourse so I didn't notice how long it really felt (that I had swum past where the flags should be) until I smacked my head on the wall. Apparently the lifeguards took the flags down during practice and neglected to tell us. Otherwise I would have watched the lanelines. Anyway, it hurt so bad. My coach and everyone else on the team who had been on wall heard it.
My first meet, when I was eight (i think), I swam the 50 back in the novice championships. no one had told me about counting strokes or anything. i barely knew how to flip, i just knew i should turn over before the wall. at the turn, i flipped literally on the wall. my butt actually hit it. somehow I still managed to win the race. that was embarassing.
Another awkward moment. When I was in high school, my club coach really emphasized dryline training. one day, he decided to film me and my good friend doing squats, insisting that we did them wrong. that was embarassing enough, but it gets worse. instead of doing this while we were away from the team, he made us do it in front of everyone, while he circled us filming. Then we had to sit in his office watching the tape while he tried to show us what he thought was a good squat. (which was nothing i've ever seen anyone do). he was a weird weird man.
This one is more personally humiliating rather than public.I had been swimming next to this guy for a few years and he was always quite a bit faster than me.I had been working hard on my free and I was getting a little faster. So one day I am swimming next to him and staying right with him for about a mile, I was feeling REALLY good about myself. We finish our workouts about the same time and he gets out..... and is wearing a drag suit.
Mine happened today! My shoulder was really bothering me so I swam with fins today. We were doing a 200 IM set. I did free on the fly to save my shoulder. 2 lanes over is a guy in his mid 20's. He has NO fins! He was taking me to school today on the first 50....note:I was doing free WITH FINS and he was doing fly WITHOUT FINS!!! AHHH! He proceeded to kick my butt on the last 200 IM Note: I had FINS and he DID NOT!! AHHH! I felt bad until I asked him what his best 200 fly time in college was. He said a 1:50.... I felt a little better....:p
Beth:
This happens to me sometimes. Except the guy beating me is 51. Now I'm still doing the fly leg, but WITH FINS as you say. He is very studly, though, (just went a 57 in the 100 fly) so I try not to be embarassed when it happens. He usually makes me go first on fly and back if I have fins, but I make him go first on all things freestyle and all things with PADDLES. BIG PADDLES beat FINS.
walked proudly to my scooter while people were pointing and laughing. What I was thinking as I was walking proudly was that I'll probably never see them again anyway, so be it.
You are one cool chick, Donna.
On a similar note, one day, I was at the gym swimming and someone stole my clothes and running shoes. :mad: I walked out of the gym barefoot wrapped in two white towels. Unfortunately, I gotta see those gym folks again.
leslie - people are ridiculous. you gotta lock your stuff in the lockers. you must have had some nice shoes and clothes!
Swimmerlisa:
My clothes were sitting near my backpack on a pool chair close to where I was swimming. Very nervy! I was really sad about my Mizunos.....
fart on the starting blocks
Not on, but beforehand. There were all these lovely ladies timing this meet, and I needed to let one rip. Well to spare them the deafening sound as I dove off, I decided to go the SBD route as i was stepping up. Needless to say I was the first one off the blocks.
Not really embarassing since i did it on purpose, but funny nonetheless...
This thread is a hoot! I'll even bet there are more stories than not about embarassing moments. Maybe we are just a brave "crowd" willing to share our misfortunes!!
By the way, I was totally naked from the boobs down, my suit was totally ripped off my body. And I am not a pretty sight nude; I am a large woman which makes it all the more appalling. So be it.....
Isn't it kind of fun to be able to laugh about it NOW?
Donna:groovy:
