Last meet I swam the 100 and 200 IM, the latter for the first time ever. My best strokes are free and fly. My backstroke is quite lame. My breaststroke is slowly getting better. I have no illusions that I will ever get anywhere near a top ten in anything, least of all an IM event. But I would like to improve, and it give me a sense of accomplishment to swim all four strokes in a race and not drown (though the 200 introduced doubt on that front!)
I went 1:16.80 in the 100 (out in 35.83; back in 40.97)
In the 200, I went 2:51.82
fly 34.65
back 46.81
*** (falling piano) 53.83
free 36.53
The 200 was really a mixed bag--it felt absolutely horrible in the middle (why, oh why did I enter this event??? I am thinking about 20 yards into the breaststroke leg) but exciting to complete.
Any suggestions about IM sets for workouts (I swim alone, for the most part) or ways to think about the 200 race? Split goals, etc?? I'm sort of plateaued elsewhere, so this seems like a good thing to work on for awhile. My zone meet is at the end of this month, and I'd like to get the 200 down around 2:45 if possible.
Hi Red,
I went a lifetime best 200 IM at IL States yesterday - 2:44.00. My splits were seriously ugly though!
34.79
43.91
48.82
36.48
Previous best 200 IM was a 2:45.7 from March 97, when I was 22 years old! To put the fly split in perspective, my lifetime best 50 fly (from 1998) is a 32.3. I swam the 50 fly this year in-season and went only 35.5. I tried to take the fly smooth, but I turned and thought, "Wow, my legs are tired. Wow, my legs are REALLY tired. Holy cow, I'm tired. This does not bode well for breaststroke..." On the last turn on free, I saw that there was a girl two lanes over who was just ahead of me. I sprinted my brains out and touched her out at the wall.
Anyways, I really only trained to do a fast 100 free this year, so did not have much endurance and it shows on the 2nd half of that IM. On the bright side, I think there's a lot more room for improvement! Hope we both get to swim another tapered IM next year. :)
Congratulations Ms Feisty!!!! This is even more of an accomplishment when you consider that you swam it in what I think is a kind of dark, creepy pool...
for more falling pianos, please see my youtube uploads on farcebook of me diving off the blocks in my 500 free and Jim falling off the blocks before his 50 free.
Feisty:
Great work! Inspiring swim. I had been wondering how your race would go, and was glad to get the update. Sounds like despite the dead legs, you found a way to push through to a great finish! Maybe sometime next year we'll end up in the same heat and keep those drops going. (I briefly considered heading up for the Illinois meet, but mid to late April is always dominated by work, and I couldn't have maintained enough focus to justify it. But someday...)
I have continued to enjoy reverberating good feelings from my race and time drop from last month--there's something really satisfying about swimming the 200, even if I'm a latecomer to it.
Now it's time to get ready for the 200 LCM race (which I have never swum). This summer, for sure. Especially if I actually learn how to swim backstroke.
Again, congratulations, Feisty! :banana: Awesome drop!
