Why does it appear many masters swimmers are taking USMS so seriously?
What's the difference between the typical "selfish train all day", "it's all about me" triathlete and a masters swimmer who seriously trains as hard as they can.... particularly to focus on setting masters records?
Seems like there is a growing parallel between triathletes and many masters swimmers these days.
Isn't it just "masters swimming" for health and fun in the end?
Does a masters record really mean that much?
Is this a good thing? ..... or a turn off for those who look on with amusement.
"Cater"..... of course not..... "try to attract".... yes. These are individuals with great experiences and knowledge to share with others in the sport, not to mention their potential friendship.
Most would enjoy working out and racing for fun, but most don't feel it's "real" competition compared to their previous experience. Sometimes they are amused by what they see.
e.g...... when they hear or see a participant getting wrapped around the axel because their performance wasn't included in a USMS top 10 listing, they think it all seems a bit ........ well......... ridiculous.
So you are talking about clashing attitudes of two camps: those who are excited to compete as masters and those who do not deign to do so. What I guess I hear you saying is that you would like to find some way to dampen this enthusiasm by not, for instance, making such a "big deal" about Top Ten, or records, etc. Maybe by doing away with them altogether.
So let us put aside egos and emotions and just ponder this idea for a minute.
Certainly such a move would anger some people, but are they perhaps a vocal few? Would it make USMS a more attractive place for those -- whether they are former elites or not -- who currently are turned off by the competitive aspects of masters swimming?
My own thoughts:
-- I suppose there are some people who do not compete because they feel that some take it too "seriously" and are turned off. I think this is a small number of people, and that most do not compete b/c they simply don't want to be bothered to give up weekends and spend time & money to do so. They are happy just going to practice and staying fit, and need no further motivation to do so. I don't see how de-emphasizing or eliminating Top Ten or national records will attract these people.
-- This is the sport of *competitive* swimming, is it not? I don't think the stopwatch should ever be eliminated. The pools are of regulation lengths, so that means there can and will be comparisons. (In this sense, this sport if very UNLIKE triathlons, where course and conditions play a huge role in performance.) That means people who go to meets will get times for their swims and can make of them what they wish: they can chart their own improvement (or not!) and/or they can compare to others.
-- Personally, although I am focused on time-based goals, I would have a difficult time without comparison to others to provide some context. Almost everyone gets slower with age and that's a little depressing...so the question is, am I get slower relative to others of my same age? So in that sense, I don't need formal "top ten" recognition or anything, a simple ranking would be fine. (In fact, I think that ranking should extend beyond 10 to be most useful to members who compete. That is in the works, I believe.)
-- I do agree strongly that, at the club, LMSC and national level, we should go to a lot of effort to recognize and celebrate all types of swimmers, not just the "ultra-competitive" types. I think USMS does try to do those kinds of things too, with events like Go The Distance and new tools like the Fitness Logs.
-- Finally, for those former swimmers who are turned off by competitions, I would recommend Open Water swimming. Times are less meaningful there, there are no records (except for the cable swims) nor are there Top Ten listings. While OW events are held as races and naturally some take it pretty seriously, the sense of accomplishment from just finishing a race is pretty significant. Of course, this recommendation is more than a little ironic, given the title of the thread...:)
"Cater"..... of course not..... "try to attract".... yes. These are individuals with great experiences and knowledge to share with others in the sport, not to mention their potential friendship.
Most would enjoy working out and racing for fun, but most don't feel it's "real" competition compared to their previous experience. Sometimes they are amused by what they see.
e.g...... when they hear or see a participant getting wrapped around the axel because their performance wasn't included in a USMS top 10 listing, they think it all seems a bit ........ well......... ridiculous.
So you are talking about clashing attitudes of two camps: those who are excited to compete as masters and those who do not deign to do so. What I guess I hear you saying is that you would like to find some way to dampen this enthusiasm by not, for instance, making such a "big deal" about Top Ten, or records, etc. Maybe by doing away with them altogether.
So let us put aside egos and emotions and just ponder this idea for a minute.
Certainly such a move would anger some people, but are they perhaps a vocal few? Would it make USMS a more attractive place for those -- whether they are former elites or not -- who currently are turned off by the competitive aspects of masters swimming?
My own thoughts:
-- I suppose there are some people who do not compete because they feel that some take it too "seriously" and are turned off. I think this is a small number of people, and that most do not compete b/c they simply don't want to be bothered to give up weekends and spend time & money to do so. They are happy just going to practice and staying fit, and need no further motivation to do so. I don't see how de-emphasizing or eliminating Top Ten or national records will attract these people.
-- This is the sport of *competitive* swimming, is it not? I don't think the stopwatch should ever be eliminated. The pools are of regulation lengths, so that means there can and will be comparisons. (In this sense, this sport if very UNLIKE triathlons, where course and conditions play a huge role in performance.) That means people who go to meets will get times for their swims and can make of them what they wish: they can chart their own improvement (or not!) and/or they can compare to others.
-- Personally, although I am focused on time-based goals, I would have a difficult time without comparison to others to provide some context. Almost everyone gets slower with age and that's a little depressing...so the question is, am I get slower relative to others of my same age? So in that sense, I don't need formal "top ten" recognition or anything, a simple ranking would be fine. (In fact, I think that ranking should extend beyond 10 to be most useful to members who compete. That is in the works, I believe.)
-- I do agree strongly that, at the club, LMSC and national level, we should go to a lot of effort to recognize and celebrate all types of swimmers, not just the "ultra-competitive" types. I think USMS does try to do those kinds of things too, with events like Go The Distance and new tools like the Fitness Logs.
-- Finally, for those former swimmers who are turned off by competitions, I would recommend Open Water swimming. Times are less meaningful there, there are no records (except for the cable swims) nor are there Top Ten listings. While OW events are held as races and naturally some take it pretty seriously, the sense of accomplishment from just finishing a race is pretty significant. Of course, this recommendation is more than a little ironic, given the title of the thread...:)
