This new thread occurred to me while reading posts comparing Spitz to Phelps, as well as reflecting upon mortality considering heart attacks etc. In swimming we immortalize individuals or teams for various feats or contributions, but do little to preserve a feeling for subsequent generations of enthusiasts about what it was like to train and compete 'back in the day'. Just what day am I talking about? Exactly: there have been many 'days' or more properly 'eras' that can be narrowly characterized by differences in equipment, distances swum and trained, coaching methods or more widely by larger factors: world war, global depression, racial segregation, inequality of the sexes. All of these can contribute to very different experiences than what are common today to the younger swimmer; hence, 'what was it like'. I visualize a thread that continues to be added to as new people read it and remember their own experiences. As well, experience can vary with national origin, not just era. There have already been posts on this topic scattered in various threads, please feel free to copy or quote material from them to here.
Please remember that this is not about how fast a particular swimmer was, but about the conditions that defined competitive swimming of that day.
We also have a priceless resource out there: aging swimmers in their 80's or 90's who may be less likely to read or hear of this thread; why not ask them for some of their memories or impressions and pass them on to us, while we still can?
2) Polyester suits.
I bought an ugly Speedo Endurance suit off a clearance rack last summer. I had not bought a swimming suit in 20 years, had not heard of Endurance, and had no clue what I was getting. And the suit will. not. die!
You might want to try Tyr Durafast suits. They are polyester but don't have the scratchiness quality of some of the other polyester products. They last forever--the stitching in the seams wears out long before the fabric. And they don't have the tendency that Lycra has to become form-fitting and shrink-wrapping, which is either obscene or delightful, depending on the form-fitted and shrink-wrapped. Ask your teammates which category you fall into.
Who else remembers the raw-jello eating thing?
During the '70s when I was an age-group swimmer, it seems like eating powdered jello mix straight from the box was the thing to do at swim meets. I thought it was totally yucky and didn't do it myself, but I was seemingly in a small minority.
I think the idea was to pack your muscles with sugar right before a race. I am pretty sure the thinking now is that flooding yourself with raw sugar, albeit sugar with artificial dye to give it fruit-like colors, just causes a quick spike in insulin followed by a plummet in blood sugar--precisely the opposite of the intended effect. Instead of working as a legal PED, or performance enhancing drug, I think raw Jell-O was actually a PID, or perfomance inhibiting drug. Imagine how fast Mark Spitz might have been!
I meant to also quote Chris here in his comment about Tang. It's funny because I buy Tang today on a semi-regular basis. According to the dishwasher repairman, the citric acid in it makes it a perfect product to clean out the accumulate scale and other crud in the dishwasher.
Perhaps it served a similar role in the digestive tract of elite swimmers and astronauts alike?
Tang: former food, current household solvent
2) Polyester suits.
I bought an ugly Speedo Endurance suit off a clearance rack last summer. I had not bought a swimming suit in 20 years, had not heard of Endurance, and had no clue what I was getting. And the suit will. not. die!
You might want to try Tyr Durafast suits. They are polyester but don't have the scratchiness quality of some of the other polyester products. They last forever--the stitching in the seams wears out long before the fabric. And they don't have the tendency that Lycra has to become form-fitting and shrink-wrapping, which is either obscene or delightful, depending on the form-fitted and shrink-wrapped. Ask your teammates which category you fall into.
Who else remembers the raw-jello eating thing?
During the '70s when I was an age-group swimmer, it seems like eating powdered jello mix straight from the box was the thing to do at swim meets. I thought it was totally yucky and didn't do it myself, but I was seemingly in a small minority.
I think the idea was to pack your muscles with sugar right before a race. I am pretty sure the thinking now is that flooding yourself with raw sugar, albeit sugar with artificial dye to give it fruit-like colors, just causes a quick spike in insulin followed by a plummet in blood sugar--precisely the opposite of the intended effect. Instead of working as a legal PED, or performance enhancing drug, I think raw Jell-O was actually a PID, or perfomance inhibiting drug. Imagine how fast Mark Spitz might have been!
I meant to also quote Chris here in his comment about Tang. It's funny because I buy Tang today on a semi-regular basis. According to the dishwasher repairman, the citric acid in it makes it a perfect product to clean out the accumulate scale and other crud in the dishwasher.
Perhaps it served a similar role in the digestive tract of elite swimmers and astronauts alike?
Tang: former food, current household solvent
