All amateur swimmers 18 and over should be required to swim at least one masters meet per year. This would help with the transition into adult life, and really show the younger generation the value of masters swimming. Adults who continue to love the sport, that's a great networking tool and a positive way to stay involved with people of similar interests.
Parents
Former Member
If you really want to get more masters at meets, find some way to ease in people who were never swim racers as youngsters. Speaking as a late starter, I find the idea of a swim meet in a pool intimidating. Open water swims seem a lot less daunting - no flip turns or diving. More like the 10k road races I did years ago and much less like a track and field 10000 meter run.
Part of the Masters Swimming Canada one year plan is to promote clubs holding time trials during practices, both informal timings and formal/official time trials. Hopefully the opportunity to participate within your club, during regular workout times, with the emphasis on getting a time versus "competing" will be at least a little less intimidating than regular competition. In Atlantic Canada at least the meets are generally small and very friendly and unintimidating once you are there. I do think that in small meets, where size and efficiency is not an issue, meets could be even less formal and more welcoming, more of a learning experience than a formal test. I am hoping that club time trials could be run more like that without compromising the validity of the times at all. Just as an example, I see no problem with someone having a second go at a race if they get DQed.
I use the road race/fun run versus track events analogy a lot, in board discussions and planning sessions, it's nice to see someone else make the same point.
If you really want to get more masters at meets, find some way to ease in people who were never swim racers as youngsters. Speaking as a late starter, I find the idea of a swim meet in a pool intimidating. Open water swims seem a lot less daunting - no flip turns or diving. More like the 10k road races I did years ago and much less like a track and field 10000 meter run.
Part of the Masters Swimming Canada one year plan is to promote clubs holding time trials during practices, both informal timings and formal/official time trials. Hopefully the opportunity to participate within your club, during regular workout times, with the emphasis on getting a time versus "competing" will be at least a little less intimidating than regular competition. In Atlantic Canada at least the meets are generally small and very friendly and unintimidating once you are there. I do think that in small meets, where size and efficiency is not an issue, meets could be even less formal and more welcoming, more of a learning experience than a formal test. I am hoping that club time trials could be run more like that without compromising the validity of the times at all. Just as an example, I see no problem with someone having a second go at a race if they get DQed.
I use the road race/fun run versus track events analogy a lot, in board discussions and planning sessions, it's nice to see someone else make the same point.
