I just posted,slightly tongue in cheek,that changing the breaststroke rule so ones head can go underwater was the best change ever.It got me thinking what was the best rule change.(someone else can do a worst change poll.)
Former Member
The one-handed touch/turn in breaststroke...oh wait...it's coming soon. It started with uneven shoulders being legal and, well, there's just no good reason for a two-handed touch. :p
Or we could go Kristina's idea and do flip turns on BR, too. Talk about a lung-buster: 200 yard *** with seven flip turns and pullouts:drown:
Amen Glider!! Either 1 handed turns on BR/ FLY or the flip turns. I swam with some guys at Swim Atlanta where we were all REALLY competitive in practice and we all were doing flip turns on the fly and ***. It was terribly fun for me at least b/c being younger I could hold my breath better. 'Course it's a terrible habit to get into and increases your chances of DQing in a meet. But darn, it makes for a furiously fast IM set.
The one-handed touch/turn in breaststroke...oh wait...it's coming soon. It started with uneven shoulders being legal and, well, there's just no good reason for a two-handed touch. :p
Or we could go Kristina's idea and do flip turns on BR, too. Talk about a lung-buster: 200 yard *** with seven flip turns and pullouts:drown:
I'm all for a speedy quick rule change on the 2 handed BR and fly turns and finishes. I advocated this in the "You are the Rules Dictator" thread. But I'm not so sure it's happening real soon. Change is always at a snail's pace.
Skip must be talking about non-masters ...
I have two sets of "best" & "worst" - one from personal experience, and the other looking at the sport more globally.
Personal:
Best = backstroke flip turn because it helped me avoid becoming tangled-up on the wall as I often was with the old turn.
Worst = backstroke feet flat on the wall for yards rather than toes curled over the gutter, because it killed my start and my 50 time went from a 26 to a 28.
Global:
Best = freestyle flip turns, as Rob mentioned (above)
Worst = the Kitajima breaststroke rule.
:bolt:
With the old rule there was frequently someone who would try to jump just before the beep to get an unfair advantage.
That was called (in Egypt, at least) "stealing" the start. Some swimmers were very good at anticipating the starters' signals and managed to get a jump on the others while still staying within the rules of the time, i.e., feet in contact with the block up to the whistle or gun. I believe even this aspect of the rule has been changed now, i.e., body must not be "moving" when the start signal is given.
