Loved the home page feature on the USMS website today...
www.usms.org/features.php
Since the NCAA Championships are all around us these two weeks, who hasn't thought about our outstanding collegiate swimmers?
But have any of us considered inviting them to join us at masters in their near future?
Masters Swim Clubs in college areas could do all kinds of great things to inspire a retiring collegiate swimmer to join them.
Invite them to talk to the team at a social event would be an easy no-brainer.
But even beyond.
How about asking them to hold a clinic for your club?
And pay them since now they can accept the cash - and probably need it?
What else can we do to entice them to join our clubs (rack up points at the championship meets) and begin the rest of their healthy fit lives?
Yes - burnout is big. Graduating varsity swimmers usually want to be nowhere near a pool, and if you go after them too hard, you'll scare them off. In my experience, it often takes several years before these types want to be back in the pool at all.
One great way to spread awareness is to get these varsity swimmers to work at masters meets. It can be setup as a fundraiser for the varsity team (or their "friends of" group)... i.e., the kids work the meet, and money goes to the team, not individually. We've done this a bunch, and then these varsity swimmers get to see first hand that there is swimming life after college, and that there are even fast swimmers in masters.
-Rick
For a data point of one... it took me about 5 years after graduating college before I had any desire to get back in the pool with a team. Very happy that I did... but I definitely needed that time away.
-Rick
I found the article hokey and unconvincing (and matronizing). College is a time for changes and transitions. The end of a piece of work in college often has some emotional content. I burst into tears during my last German exam! That did not mean I wanted the tenured profs to rush into the room and tell me in how many different ways I could continue with German.
There are other things to explore in the world. Taking a break and marching resolutely in a different direction is fine, and also useful for personal growth.
I am pretty sure that these swimmers will need a break from the pool if they aren't Nationally ranked(top 2% percentile or something) and trying to make a World or Olympic team in the future. When I left college swimming, I didn't want to be nowhere near a pool. Of course, I did the occasional lap swimming once every 6 months. Heck, I didn't want to compete ever again. But, after watching Phelps in the 2003 World Champs, I sort of got the urge to compete again and did in 2004.
I'm sure there are lots of college swimmers who need a total break from swimming, but there are many more who would still want to swim if it was a low stress activity they could do on their own terms. These are the ones USMS can reach out to. There's no reason to just assume they all need or want a break from swimming.
I would think that even more than NCAA swimmers, we should look to ex high school and USAS swimmers. Just because someone did not swim college does not mean that they are not good swimmers who have room to improve times and stay in shape. A relatively small portion of swimmers ever go on to swim college, and even fewer can compete at a D1 level school and go to NCAA's.
Though I only swim for my self and do not compete in any meets, I have always tried to promote the masters swimming cause(both as a form of excersize and a way to compete-all with the support of a team) when talking to graduating high school and college swimmers. It is surprising to me how many have never heard of this program. I think the ball is in our hands and it is up to masters swimmers to "recruit". Was MS present at the Conference and NCAA meets?
One great way to spread awareness is to get these varsity swimmers to work at masters meets. It can be setup as a fundraiser for the varsity team (or their "friends of" group)... i.e., the kids work the meet, and money goes to the team, not individually.
UIC's mens and womens teams work Big Shoulders. They are kind of bleary-eyed at the start of the day, but wake up after a couple cups of coffee. ;)
Skip
When I lived in Flagstaff I had contact with the NAU women's team swimmers and tried to encourage them to continue swimming after college (at the time, I believe none of them made the Div I cuts). Mostly the response was, 'hey, I'm just swimming because I have a scholarship and can't wait to be done with it.'
My take on this is that there IS major burnout associated with college swimming that needs to be overcome before USMS can make much of an impact on this potential group of master's swimmers.
I thought the article sounded desperate and (I'm sorry) too emotional.
Lines like "...And each of us has the responsibility to share our experiences with these athletes..." are just dumb. We do not have any such responsibility.
I would rather see college graduates focus on getting a head start on their career. They may have been swimming competitively for 15 years and are just in no mood to train again. The intensity of college swimming is so high - that burnout is common. I suspect that many finish their college swimming career without love for the sport - they do it out of loyalty for their team, their school, and an ego that says they can't quit.
My son swims in college now. When graduation comes around - I will spend little time trying to convince him to swim Masters. I'll remind him it exists and might be a good way for him to stay fit. But most of all I want him to get the best job he can in a tough, competitive job market.
