My first meet in 16 years is fast approaching. Although I practice diligently, my pool does not have starting blocks and does not allow diving of any kind. I have many fears regarding my first meet, but the standout fear is that my goggles will fall off, flood with water, or become wrapped around my neck during the start.
I did some searches to see whether anyone had advice on how starts should be performed to minimize the possibility of this happening, but came up blank. Any advice would be appreciated?
By the way, I certainly hope that I can at least do a few practice starts in the warm-up area on the day of the meet. Diving in after 16 years (and with my goggle phobia) will be intimidating.
My first meet in 16 years is fast approaching. Although I practice diligently, my pool does not have starting blocks and does not allow diving of any kind. I have many fears regarding my first meet, but the standout fear is that my goggles will fall off, flood with water, or become wrapped around my neck during the start.
I did some searches to see whether anyone had advice on how starts should be performed to minimize the possibility of this happening, but came up blank. Any advice would be appreciated?
By the way, I certainly hope that I can at least do a few practice starts in the warm-up area on the day of the meet. Diving in after 16 years (and with my goggle phobia) will be intimidating.
Suggestions above are good. Tuck your chin and go in streamlined. Try not to worry. What if the worst happens and you lose them or they leak? Just shake it off and swim your next race. I took 24 years off, did my first start in a warm up pool and got through my first meet without a major mishap. You can do it too. :cheerleader:
But my next meet, my goggles flooded 3x and I had to crawl out once when they were around my neck (contacts). So I had to experiment with the goggles a bit. I do what Glenn suggested now and have a pair just for meets (speed sockets). It also took me awhile to get a good fit. I always felt like my goggles were leaking. The local swim store recently suggested I try junior size goggles. OMG, it worked. Much better seal and no leaking.
So have a good fitting pair of goggles and go for it. Might take awhile for you to feel "back in the saddle" again on starts. But there's nothing to do but do it.
My first meet in 16 years is fast approaching. Although I practice diligently, my pool does not have starting blocks and does not allow diving of any kind. I have many fears regarding my first meet, but the standout fear is that my goggles will fall off, flood with water, or become wrapped around my neck during the start.
I did some searches to see whether anyone had advice on how starts should be performed to minimize the possibility of this happening, but came up blank. Any advice would be appreciated?
By the way, I certainly hope that I can at least do a few practice starts in the warm-up area on the day of the meet. Diving in after 16 years (and with my goggle phobia) will be intimidating.
Suggestions above are good. Tuck your chin and go in streamlined. Try not to worry. What if the worst happens and you lose them or they leak? Just shake it off and swim your next race. I took 24 years off, did my first start in a warm up pool and got through my first meet without a major mishap. You can do it too. :cheerleader:
But my next meet, my goggles flooded 3x and I had to crawl out once when they were around my neck (contacts). So I had to experiment with the goggles a bit. I do what Glenn suggested now and have a pair just for meets (speed sockets). It also took me awhile to get a good fit. I always felt like my goggles were leaking. The local swim store recently suggested I try junior size goggles. OMG, it worked. Much better seal and no leaking.
So have a good fitting pair of goggles and go for it. Might take awhile for you to feel "back in the saddle" again on starts. But there's nothing to do but do it.
