Preparing for the 100 IM at Masters Nationals in May has lead me to think about the exchange between Backstroke and Breastroke. How can USA Swimming (and Masters) further bend over to pressure in the sport for additional speed and record breaking.
I propose that one be allowed to flip from back to *** on an IM by rolling over on to your stomach (like a normal backstroke turn or freestyle turn) and push off on your stomach for your pullout without touching the wall (with your hand).
This could cut as much as a half second off the race. I mean whats the point in touching the wall anymore? We don't do it on backstroke.
Besides, aren't rules made to be broken if its in favor of making the sport faster and breaking records..... :-)
John Smith
Former Member
No it was legit - I was thinking so hard about the lactic acid that crept into every muscle & was trying really hard to pull it all together. Since it was only 100m IM it was all sprint . . . I got lost on the mind over matter stuff & blew the turn.
Hulk said the official did a double take, then slowly raised his hand - I knew what I did was wrong and the judge was standing right over my lane - I think the Official couldn't believe such a Rookie mistake was made at a Masters Meet. Oh well . . . live and learn.
www.pvmasters.org/.../ancm0308.htm
Yep -
I made the error by having a good fly & back that I was so excited I did backstroke turn to *** - I realized what I had just done and hesitated on the streamline push off the wall because then I started thinking "yikes, I hope no one noticed & what comes after back". I've swum the longer IM's this season and I just got lost on what I was doing.
It's ok - I wasn't going to break any records.
No it was legit - I was thinking so hard about the lactic acid that crept into every muscle & was trying really hard to pull it all together. Since it was only 100m IM it was all sprint . . . I got lost on the mind over matter stuff & blew the turn.
Hulk said the official did a double take, then slowly raised his hand - I knew what I did was wrong and the judge was standing right over my lane - I think the Official couldn't believe such a Rookie mistake was made at a Masters Meet. Oh well . . . live and learn.
www.pvmasters.org/.../ancm0308.htm
Did you roll to your *** before the touch? Or did you push off on your back (the "past vertical towards" rule) then roll to your stomach? Just curious.
No, I meant that the solid markers are standard at 5M in high/elite level meets. Your local pool could be anywhere between 10-18 feet depending. The pool where I swim, you have to be careful using the solids as the ropes have been repaired so many times that it's a huge range.
Quality is not so good, but I say 13 feet:
www.youtube.com/watch
(you can see Ande for a split second at the bottom of the screen. I'm the one with the yellow cap.)
I had a discussion specifically about swimming IM during a freestyle race with the referee at our meet once. The only rule (besides not pushing off the bottom, or pulling on a laneline, or leaving your lane) in freestyle is that you have to break the surface of the water by 15 meters. So you can swim IM in any way you want, doing flipturns during the back to *** or *** to *** or whatever but just be careful your breaststroke pullout doesn't go beyond 15 meters. And if your breaststroke pullout does go beyond 15 meters after you've swum half an IM then that's quite impressive (and you probably didn't work your front half hard enough). The ref I was talking to did actually DQ a kid once in a USAS meet for going beyond 15 meters while doing *** in a free race.
Of course I'm not an official so you might want to take it with a grain of salt. Probably wouldn't hurt to ask the official at the meet what they think, and also let them know you're going to swim the race that way.
Now whether or not you're allowed to do a backstroke start during a freestyle race was debated by the refs at our meet and none of them could agree on its legality.
Edit:
Oh, and of course even if you do swim it as a perfectly legal IM it still won't count as an official IM time.
The freestyle rule has been discussed before, the consensus was that you can be disqualified for breaststroke if your style is such that you completely submerge:
Yes! Thanks for pointing that out, this is also what the official said. And the new breaststroke style definitely has you submerged during the glide portion which would result in a DQ. So unless you swim old-school breaststroke swimming breaststroke during freestyle will technically get you a DQ. Only if the officials are picky enough to know that and care of course. They might just be "he's swimming IM, whatever" and not really pay attention to you.
I thought I read somewhere (probably here) that when swimming freestyle, after your turn and pullout, some part of your body needs to be above the water. Would today's breaststroke technique disqualify you as you glide with your body submerged?
Skip
I thought I read somewhere (probably here) that when swimming freestyle, after your turn and pullout, some part of your body needs to be above the water. Would today's breaststroke technique disqualify you as you glide with your body submerged?
Skip
That would be a requirement of backstroke not freestyle. The only requirement for freestyle (if not part of an IM) is that your head must surface prior to the 15m mark.
Paul
I don't know if age group swimming allows in the water starts, but masters do and the USMS rules seem to me to allow a backstroke start as an in the water start:
Those starting in the water must have at least one hand in contact with the wall or starting block.
The freestyle rule has been discussed before, the consensus was that you can be disqualified for breaststroke if your style is such that you completely submerge:
Some part of the swimmer must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except it shall be permissible for the swimmer to be completely submerged during the turn and for a distance of not more than 15 meters (16.4 yards) after the start and each turn. By that point the head must have broken the surface.
Perhaps Kathy Casey will provide a authoritative answer on behalf of the rules committee?
