When I started swimming masters a few years ago, I soon found myself wanting some time standards to compare myself against. Sure, tracking my own PRs is motivating, but I also wanted some sort of objective mark to measure myself against.
There is the Top 10 list, of course, but I'm not close enough to those times for them to serve as realistic motivation. Nationals qualifying times provide a slightly lower bar, but these are still out of many masters' reach. It seems like there should be some sort of time standards that are more widely applicable -- like the A, AA, ... motivational times in kids' age group swimming.
I did use those USA Swimming motivational times for a while, but I got tired of comparing myself to 12-year-olds. Eventually I decided to create my own masters' motivational time standards, using the same method that is used for the kids.
I have really enjoyed using these motivational times over the past couple of years, and I'm guessing they might be useful to others as well. Especially for those, like me, who are competitive enough to be motivated by a quantitative benchmark, but not fast enough to aspire to the Top 10 list.
I have just updated the SCY list, and figured I would post it here for others to use.
Please enjoy. I'd also love to hear any feedback.
I like the fact you were able to come up with this. Since I swim in USA meets I have been using the 17-18 year old motivational times, but they are so hard for me at age 47, but I keep trying.
Hope to see you at some of the South Carolina meets.
SJStuart, this is the cutest thing I have seen in a long time!!! I think it is so awesome you took the time to create this list, even looks like the USA times list, tee hee hee! Now, get to work and make us one for SCM and LCM, then don't forget to update for the next quad plan in 2013!! Just kidding!
You will likely get responses across the board. I highly support what you have done and it is very interesting to see how people quantify their performance.
Excellent work!
I think it's great, especially since it makes me feel a lot faster than I really am in some of my events. It's already motivated me to get some faster times. Thanks for putting this together!
I too think it's a great idea. I am curious how you come up with the numbers, however. What is the methodology?
Would someone with a AAAA time have a shot at a Top 10 time?
It will be interesting to see what will happen when the tech suits are banned what kinds of adjustments will have to be made.
I returned to swimming 6 weeks ago after a very long absence and have felt so syrupy slow, but after seeing your SCM times list, I now have something realistic to shoot for in my age group (55-59 women).
Thanks for taking the time to put together your "motivational" lists. :applaud:
Kind of motivates me to take up another sport. I hate to be negative, but my personal lifetime goal would only make your table if you ran it out through about the letter 'G'.
Please don't take it personally, as it is not anything you have done, it is just my frustration. I find a lot of advice on this forum for people a whole lot faster than me and a whole lot of people at my pool who are slower than me. I had hoped your very meticulously constructed table would address that gap. Maybe next time.
Great idea! This is actually a great idea on doing this sheet. Growing up we always had to have a AAA time (or was AA?) in order to be a Georgia All-Star and get the coveted "All-Star Towel" each year (of which I still have 3 from the 80's!). They would put what time standard you reached (could also be Senior Nats, Junior Nats, Olympic Trials) an had you name stitched on it.
Good to see that I'm somewhere between AA and AAA....I'm almost an All-Star again! :D:applaud:
Kind of motivates me to take up another sport. I hate to be negative, but my personal lifetime goal would only make your table if you ran it out through about the letter 'G'.
Please don't take it personally, as it is not anything you have done, it is just my frustration. I find a lot of advice on this forum for people a whole lot faster than me and a whole lot of people at my pool who are slower than me. I had hoped your very meticulously constructed table would address that gap. Maybe next time.
I certainly don't take it personally, and am happy for the feedback. But it makes me feel awful if the chart had the opposite of its intended motivational effect.
I just used the same formula as is used for the USA Swimming times. It may be that the spread of times for meet-going masters swimmers is bigger than it is for kids. Maybe the formulas would have to be adjusted to do a better job of covering the gap.
Now, get to work and make us one for SCM and LCM, then don't forget to update for the next quad plan in 2013!!
Never fear, I have SCM and LCM also. I'll attach SCM here. I'll wait to post LCM until after I update it when this year's top 10 list is finalized (sometime this month).
