Masters Swimmers Acting Like Triathletes

This is an excellent observation Mr. Negative. I, for one, plan to take this comment to heart while I try and take swimming less seriously. My first act will be to fill my water bottle with Vodka and take it to practice tomorrow. I fully expect to be the life of the practice!! :bliss: And so that it's not "all about me," I will be happy to share with my lanemates who may or may not be of legal drinking age. . . The only record I expect to break will be the number of times I puke on the pool deck! I agree with you in that masters is all about fun. Not sure how the Vodka fits into the health thing, but one out of two ain't bad! Wait you don't fill up your water bottle with vodka for every practice? Jeez...

I have to say I'm finding this thread increasingly weird. I can't understand the obsession with others. Who cares? Just do your own thing. Amen. You might think about revising this statement. Okay, I'll bite. Why? Horrors! This says Rowdy trained EVERY day. He must not be on board with the rule that it's unseemly to train more than 3x a week to break NRs or grab TTs if you have true "talent." Okay, here is MY source of amusement: swimmers -- usually male -- who seem more proud about how little training they (claim to) do than about their (usually very good) performances. The point is usually NOT to prove some "less if more, quality beats quantity" philosophy but more about "look how little I care, but I can still swim fast." Actually, this really IS something that certain subsets of swimmers and triathletes have in common... Oh, and I completely agree with Laura about the supremacy of SVDL :bow:.

I have to say I'm finding this thread increasingly weird. I can't understand the obsession with others. Who cares? Just do your own thing. What is the impact to you - nothing, zip, nada. And I can't understand the obsession "within" others... but it certainly has stired the pot and gotten a lot of crap flying which is always entertaining... Chris...I'll assume that the "less is more" comment was directed at me. And my point is not about "how little I care"...but rather a belief that taking stock of ones body, resting when needed, and yes quality and technique over brute mileage comes first are my priorites works for me and makes the sport more enjoyable. Don't get me wrong, I love to race and in fact would choose an event/meet any day that provided competition over one that I could be assured a "win" at...and if you and Mr. Nelson want to believe that I'm driven to break records without trying...oh well, guess you got me figured out! Gull...you may see it differently...but IMHO Rowdy is not in the realm of vanity that I think a few of us were trying to point out here. He works for Limu and has done an incredible job (as has the company) in promoting swimming to all levels of swimmers. Fort...I have no jealosy what-so-ever of your ability to do the splits as I see this as a genetic limitiation on my part...I do however hold you in contempt for your putting me to shame in the holding plank department!

And I can't understand the obsession "within" others... You don't have to or need to. It gets really tiring being told on this forum what real swimming is supposed to be - the suits, the training routines, what time I should get up, how many days a week I need to train, the level of devotion I must show my family, etc. But, I guess gossip is more fun. I am fortunate to swim with a handful of Top 10ers and have met many more, all dedicated, none judgmental, and very very helpful.

Don't get me wrong, I love to race and in fact would choose an event/meet any day that provided competition over one that I could be assured a "win" at...and if you and Mr. Nelson want to believe that I'm driven to break records without trying...oh well, guess you got me figured out! Why would you think I was talking about you Paul? :) No, really I don't think I was. I'm thinking more along the lines of the guys who show up to Nationals about once every five years and clean house. Here's the thing, though. A lot of those guys are training, and sometimes training hard, they just don't compete that much. So this probably works both ways. Some of these guys apparently think too many masters swimmers take it too seriously, conversely those who do take it seriously have the perception that others are swimming fast without really putting much effort in and find that kind of annoying.

And I can't understand the obsession "within" others... Do you really need to? Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it should be classified as ludicrous or amusing or vain. But, then, I guess the fear of the unknown is a potent one ... I have a blankie or binky if you need one. Since you are likewise not impressed with the antics of ex-gymnast divers, I will have to find a new "vanity" photo. I'm just not sure I can find one as hot as Gull's. More planks!

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. You might think about revising this statement.

You might think about revising this statement. Okay, I'll bite. Why? Probably because OW races can be very competitive. The competition is different from the competition in the pool but it isn't less serious, in my experience. For one thing, it's head-to-head, direct competition, every time. In Pacific Masters, some of the fastest swimmers rarely or never go to pool meets. They train hard, and focus on the summer-fall OW series, and take it seriously in a healthy, fun way. I like it, but I don't think someone who was really burned out on competition would find an OW swim any more fun than a pool meet unless the swim was in a really special venue.

Some are more genetically gifted than others and it may take them less work to excel than others. It would seem to me that those that are so genetically gifted should appreciate their gift and be gracious to those that have to work hard and still can't be on their level. Laughing at and mocking those that desire to be good and work hard at it is not admirable at all and a huge detractor in my eyes. What is impressive is a former elite swimmer who is humble, sees his own faults, and looks past the faults of others.

Probably because OW races can be very competitive. The competition is different from the competition in the pool but it isn't less serious, in my experience. For one thing, it's head-to-head, direct competition, every time. I think this was the point Chris was trying to make. In OW the competition is head-to-head rather than against the clock, so it's different from pool swimming where people might be going for personal bests, top tens and records.