Swim Slang

RE: Swim Slang

poolraat — Wed, 12 May 2010 08:58:37 GMT

Manatee - similar to noodler, must be super obese. Aquapottamus - see above

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Tue, 11 May 2010 14:20:38 GMT

Superman Start, Superman Turn - the "streamline" is with hands at shoulder width and the head is erect, eyes forward. Only works well if you have the cape to go with it. Flotsam - individual who does not seem to actually be moving their limbs but are merely floating in the "lap swim only" lane. Manatee - similar to noodler, must be super obese.

RE: Swim Slang

Allen Stark — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:55:53 GMT

I still maintain that use of the word "lap" as a noun labels you as a competitive swimming tyro. It's tantamount to wearing your goggles around your neck. Agreed.When is the last time you asked another swimmer how many laps they swam,it is always how far did you swim and you expect the answer in yds/M.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Tue, 11 May 2010 08:10:09 GMT

In that vein, how many times have you had the following conversations with your non-swim friends: Friend - How many miles did you swim today? Me - I swam 4,000 yards Friend - How many miles is that? Me - I have no idea Friend - How many laps is that? Me - 200 Friend - Is that 200 there and back or 200 one way? Me - Wanna get a beer? your math confuses me, but i like your style

RE: Swim Slang

That Guy — Tue, 11 May 2010 07:00:55 GMT

red dot special - after your third or fourth shave at a multi-day championship meet, you are a red dot special. Use some moisturizer after the meet is over. babysitter - age group swim coach who does not really know anything about swimming technique. Babysitters are fine for the little kids, but they are comically useless with older, more experienced swimmers.

RE: Swim Slang

pwolf66 — Tue, 11 May 2010 03:56:02 GMT

How did it possibly take us until now to remember to put gridge in this thread? I blame myself. I blame you also :angel:

RE: Swim Slang

That Guy — Tue, 11 May 2010 03:46:14 GMT

gridge - a few years ago, someone on this forum typo'd the word grudge as gridge but everyone loved it so it stuck. it sounds like it should be a word, so now it is. it is a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb all rolled into one, usable in any sentence provided that you're talking about a grudge match of some sort. "So I entered the 100 free in next week's meet. Any gridges out there?" "You still owe me a beer from the last gridge!" "Watch out for That Guy, he's always gridging people." "She handed me a beer after the race. I asked why and it turns out that she had declared a secret gridge against me, but I won. So... if... she had won, she would have drank the beer herself, and I never would have known about it?" How did it possibly take us until now to remember to put gridge in this thread? I blame myself.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:51:36 GMT

Does anyone know the expression logs? In Germany swimmers call the people at pools logs who just swim this old lady breaststroke(with their head above the water) while blocking a lane. The problem at German public pools is that they don't have any lanes(slow lane, medium lane, fast lane). People basically swim back and forth with no rules which makes swimming almost impossible.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Mon, 10 May 2010 13:05:19 GMT

... hog - one that is in the middle always ... Perhaps the same meaning of a Portuguese slang whose translation to English would be "lane cork". :)

RE: Swim Slang

That Guy — Mon, 10 May 2010 10:35:05 GMT

lawnchair - some backstrokers with poor body position appear to be lounging in lawnchairs. They swim backstroke uphill and bend their hips and knees all the time. You don't want to hear your backstroke described this way. If you do, you need to straighten out your body and start breaking the surface of the water with your feet when you kick. sack of potatoes - there are different strategies for how to dive off the blocks. Most people figure out that the outstretched hands should enter first and the feet should enter last. There are also the spazzes who gyrate in mid-air and end up with their hands and feet entering at the same time and their rear ends entering last, often accompanied by a huge noise. At any Masters meet, you are probably going to see a few bellyflops, perfectly flat entries that are perhaps the result of a foot slipping on the block. On rare occasions though, you get to watch a sack of potatoes dive into the water. It looks like someone threw a bag of potatoes off the starting block. These poor folks' feet hit the water first, and their hands and head enter the water last. They do not move in mid-air. And they do it the same way every time. Is it fear? I don't know. Whenever I see it, I feel amused and sad at the same time. zone zero - ok, you've probably never heard this one. I invented it and have never actally used the term in conversation. It describes lap swimmers who swim with their heads out of the water, their hair dry, and no elevated pulse rate. They are not working on their Vo2max, their anaerobic threshold, or their aerobic threshold. They do not disturb the water. They are barely moving. It's kind of impressive in a weird way, exercising without ever entering Zone 1.

RE: Swim Slang

aquageek — Mon, 10 May 2010 09:57:31 GMT

I still maintain that use of the word "lap" as a noun labels you as a competitive swimming tyro. It's tantamount to wearing your goggles around your neck. In that vein, how many times have you had the following conversations with your non-swim friends: Friend - How many miles did you swim today? Me - I swam 4,000 yards Friend - How many miles is that? Me - I have no idea Friend - How many laps is that? Me - 200 Friend - Is that 200 there and back or 200 one way? Me - Wanna get a beer?

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 16:15:42 GMT

leech: swimmer who leave less than 5 seconds and drafts off the swimmer ahead of him, often touching their toes, but refuses to go ahead.... "Dude, you're totally leeching off me. Either back up or go" "No he is not does work hard. He's a total leech"

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 13:40:23 GMT

I still maintain that use of the word "lap" as a noun labels you as a competitive swimming tyro. It's tantamount to wearing your goggles around your neck. Pshaw. Not knowing the real meaning of a lap means you are a tri-geek, noodler, or perhaps from a country to the north.

RE: Swim Slang

knelson — Sat, 08 May 2010 12:37:09 GMT

You were there at LCM Nats in '08... backstroke "flyovers" were in effect... and they're pretty creepy. I guess I didn't watch any of the backstroke events. So you do your start while the other guy/gal is still in the water? That is weird.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 11:46:57 GMT

I've always considered a lap of anything to be a circuit which returns the racer to the point of origin, whether circumferential or out-and-back. Is this an idiosyncratic use of the term specific only to swimming, or is it a localized misuse of the term which is not indicative of the membership at large? It's odd..swimmers pride themselves on being more of a cerebral bunch of jocks...yet seem to have issues with understanding the difference between a length and a lap...a bit like the ambiguity between "freestyle" and front crawl. :bolt:

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 10:42:43 GMT

This one might cause some discussion... "Lap" (noun)--while most non-swimmers might think of a lap as a "complete circuit" (which would imply coming back to the starting point (i.e., two lengths of a pool)), many swimmers consider a "lap" to be a single length of the pool. I think this usage of "lap" is clearly swimming slang. "I didn't breath at all on the second lap of my 50 free." "Lap" (verb)--this means to pass somebody in a race or set by a full circuit (two lengths) of the pool. Note the inconsistency with the slang way many swimmers define "lap" as a noun. "Lap" as a verb may not be swimming slang at all. "Micheal Phelps could lap me in the 100 fly." I've always considered a lap of anything to be a circuit which returns the racer to the point of origin, whether circumferential or out-and-back. Is this an idiosyncratic use of the term specific only to swimming, or is it a localized misuse of the term which is not indicative of the membership at large?

RE: Swim Slang

That Guy — Sat, 08 May 2010 10:32:18 GMT

I still maintain that use of the word "lap" as a noun labels you as a competitive swimming tyro. It's tantamount to wearing your goggles around your neck. Yep. I had this conversation a couple years ago: Her: How long is this pool? Me: 25 yards. Her: How many laps are a quarter mile? Me: 18 lengths of the pool. Although she was very obviously a tri-n00b preparing for a sprint, to her credit she was there swimming multiple times per week for a couple months. Proper preparation: :applaud:

RE: Swim Slang

knelson — Sat, 08 May 2010 09:12:49 GMT

I still maintain that use of the word "lap" as a noun labels you as a competitive swimming tyro. It's tantamount to wearing your goggles around your neck.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 07:30:47 GMT

No noodler in the history of known noodling has ever complained about a pool being too hot. If you have seen such a blue-hair please immediately take a picture and post. Exactly what I was going to say. Also they are usually women aged 60+.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Sat, 08 May 2010 07:29:30 GMT

piano - when all your muscles seize up and you can barely move forward anymore, you are swimming with a piano on your back. Very descriptive. Merely thinking of this will slow me down.:cool:

RE: Swim Slang

Midas — Sat, 08 May 2010 05:57:54 GMT

RE: Swim Slang

That Guy — Sat, 08 May 2010 03:19:36 GMT

I guess I didn't watch any of the backstroke events. So you do your start while the other guy/gal is still in the water? That is weird. I suppose it wasn't an issue for the 50 back event, which I didn't watch. I swam the 200. Having someone next to you for your start isn't as weird as after your heat, when you're waiting next to someone else while they're doing their start.

RE: Swim Slang

debaru — Fri, 07 May 2010 12:55:36 GMT

No noodler in the history of known noodling has ever complained about a pool being too hot. If you have seen such a blue-hair please immediately take a picture and post. LOL! Aye-aye Cap'n. I'll keep my eyes peeled and will provide a full report upon such a sighting. :bump:

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Fri, 07 May 2010 12:12:23 GMT

DQ - Disqualified DNF - Did Not Finish (started the event but got out of the pool before completing the full distance) NS - No Swim (was entered in event but swimmer did not show up) SCR - Scratch (was entered in the event but Swimmer notified the meet host of intent to not compete after all) DFL - Swimmer has swum the event complying with the rules, but has finished Dead F___ing Last. Chase Starts - Heats 2 thru n for a particular swim event will be started before the previous heat has finished. If seed times are inaccurate or if the starter messes up, some swimmers in the earlier heat can get "caught" by the next heat that is chasing them. It helps the timeline on big meets but geez, I need a little time to recoup before I try to climb out of the pool.

RE: Swim Slang

Former Member — Fri, 07 May 2010 11:38:25 GMT

slackers-swimmers who leave after the 30 minute mark of a 2 hour practice. These species is more prevalent at age group programs where the coaches might look the other way at that. The choice destination after the 30 minute mark is the locker room or the local pizza joint. Oh, if there is a ice cream parlor nearby, they will be there too. The odd thing is that they still look like they did the 2 hours practice by their skinny build. "Slacker, it has been 30 minutes, isn't it time for your 90 minute shower." I always thought that was "Sprinter"?! No?!:dunno: