I am curious how many of the posters here swam in high school, college, etc. and how close to the top you got. Thus the following not terribly detailed poll.
I apologize for leaving out what surely would have been a significant category--i.e., did not swim at all until taking up the sport in adulthood. I realized my mistake shortly after posting the poll but was afraid that if I tried to redo things to add this category, it would screw up all the other entries so far.
Somehow, I don't believe Michael Phelps is THE Michael Phelps, but if it is, please give us lumpenproletarians some advice. Actually, I am pretty sure that Dara occasionally checks this discussion out. I have read that there is a huge Phelps-bump for age group swimming right now. Maybe Dara could trigger a similar Torres-bump for masters.
In any event, it's nice to see such a diversity here in our ranks. I swam for one year at Michigan, the second worst person on the team, and met a predictable fate at the end of the first season. In this, it seems that I am continuing through life as a prototype of an Average Man, what with 1 year of college swimming the most common experience in the poll so far.
I am curious to what extent former glory (or lack of it) predicts Masters glory. To wit, if anyone is willing to share their top Top 10 accomplishment in conjuction with their youthful success, I think this could be eye-opening. I am pretty sure that Leslie Livingston, who swam only one year at Dartmouth, has swum No. 1 times, at least in relays.
Has anyone set a world record in masters without at least qualifying in youth for Olympic trials?
My own best ranking was 4th in a couple LCM events the year I turned 50, which was light years better than I ever did as a youngster.
How about the rest of you? Has anyone who took up swimming as an adult ever made the Top 10? (Please, Ion, god love you, but this is not a solicitation!)
I apologize for leaving out what surely would have been a significant category--i.e., did not swim at all until taking up the sport in adulthood. I realized my mistake shortly after posting the poll but was afraid that if I tried to redo things to add this category, it would screw up all the other entries so far.
Somehow, I don't believe Michael Phelps is THE Michael Phelps, but if it is, please give us lumpenproletarians some advice. Actually, I am pretty sure that Dara occasionally checks this discussion out. I have read that there is a huge Phelps-bump for age group swimming right now. Maybe Dara could trigger a similar Torres-bump for masters.
In any event, it's nice to see such a diversity here in our ranks. I swam for one year at Michigan, the second worst person on the team, and met a predictable fate at the end of the first season. In this, it seems that I am continuing through life as a prototype of an Average Man, what with 1 year of college swimming the most common experience in the poll so far.
I am curious to what extent former glory (or lack of it) predicts Masters glory. To wit, if anyone is willing to share their top Top 10 accomplishment in conjuction with their youthful success, I think this could be eye-opening. I am pretty sure that Leslie Livingston, who swam only one year at Dartmouth, has swum No. 1 times, at least in relays.
Has anyone set a world record in masters without at least qualifying in youth for Olympic trials?
My own best ranking was 4th in a couple LCM events the year I turned 50, which was light years better than I ever did as a youngster.
How about the rest of you? Has anyone who took up swimming as an adult ever made the Top 10? (Please, Ion, god love you, but this is not a solicitation!)
