Let me first say that I had a blast in Atlanta and enjoyed every minute of it (even the last minute of the 1000), so this list is somewhat tongue in cheek:
10. No Starbucks within walking distance of the Hampton Inn.
9. The taste of an Italian soda called "Beverly" at the Coca Cola Museum; it reminded me of viscous lidocaine--what is with that?
8. The stairway access to the pool deck from the stands.
7. Missing out on a medal in the 200 free relay because eight of the teams finishing ahead of us were from "regional" clubs representing entire states.
6. Two swimmers from TXLA trying to recruit my 87 year old father to join their team instead of swimming for Nitro.
5. No Starbucks within walkiing distance of the pool.
4. Turning at the bulkhead, although I nailed all of mine.
3. That one starter who shall remain nameless.
2. Not getting to meet Rich Abrahams, among others.
1. It ended.
Plenty of fruit and nuts.
Wait, I thought it was California that's all fruits and nuts? :)
By the way, I can't believe there were starting problems at a meet in the south. Couldn't someone just go out to their pickup, retrieve their shotgun from the gun rack, and use that for the starts? That would encourage good reaction times, too.
The same solution might also work for massages, if they're not provided on-deck. I'm guessing there were places in midtown that offered massages, and probably plenty of swimmers who would have been willing to schedule and pay for them.
The Atlanta School of Massage was near by as well as my sister's chiro who does ART and massage. In fact, he was within walking distance. I wish people had been given a list of local places to see. That is a great idea.
I still say...let Splash pools come down and set up an outside pool like they did at LCM Nats in 2003 at Rutgers...seemed to work just fine there...
Sure, it worked just fine for the athletes. Not so much for the host who had to pay a fortune for it and hardly made any money on the meet as a result.
For those of you around long enough to remember Chapel Hill in 1992, the same thing happened there. They didn't make a dime on the meet because of the temporary warm up pool in the parking lot.
Unless a host has a legitimate buyer lined up to buy the pool after the meet or the host can secure a low cost rental temporary pool, they apparently are cost prohibitive for masters (our pockets aren't as deep as USA-S who can rely on a few hundred thousand swimmers paying triple annual dues that we pay).
Couldn't someone just go out to their pickup, retrieve their shotgun from the gun rack, and use that for the starts? That would encourage good reaction times, too.The Zones champ meet in Queens, NY used a human beat box when the starting system failed.
I thought everything was just great with one exception.
Heck, even the bulkhead was fine - you swim a freestyle event the first day with 65 turns and your likelihood of missing turns later in the meet decreases dramatically. I did happen to miss one turn in the 200 free but it was because I lost mental focus for a moment, not because of any wall contrast issues.
Had no problem with the warmup pool because I came down every morning and got my warmup in before everything got too crowded and this was a three hour time zone change from normal. Then it was just a matter of a few moderate, one-at-a-time, laps to re-warm up.
Only challenge I had was with the dorms. Although they had full kitchens, it doesn't do you any good if there aren't any utensils. Couldn't even get a glass of water. Not nearly bad enough though to make me wonder if the trip was worth it or not.
I wouldn't hesitate to return if GT hosts in the future.
:chug:
We have to ask why are we doing this: Are we here to kick everyone's in our agegroup's ass? Show the world how great we are as we age? Are we here to enjoy the swimming as a healthy lifestyle choice? Are we here to promote swimming as an inclusive and accessible sport to all, including physically challenged people? Enjoy the triumphs and console the misfortunes of all who attend whether they are awesome swimmers or just awesome people to be around? Ask yourself why you swim? If you want hardcore competition, USA is still an option...if you can't cut it with the 18 year olds...then you belong with masters...but masters belongs to all of us...equally.
Well said!!! I wish more people had this attitude!!!
I actually loved Atlanta and thought most everything was great and the hosts were thorough and fantastic, so maybe this post doesn't really belong on this thread.
But I do have one suggestion about warmup pools. One thing future hosts might consider is including in the pre-meet info a list of other pools that are open to the public and either reasonably near the competition venue or accessible by public trans. At this nationals and other big meets (worlds at Stanford, IGLA in DC) I've driven or walked to other pools to warm up when my events fell later in the day, and that has worked out well.
Although you can often find info about pools online, the local hosts are in a better position to know where such pools are located relative to the competition venue, and which ones are really viable (water temp, crowdedness, lanelines, etc) for serious swimming. I think the Stanford organizers provided us with a list of nearby pools. And while this might not significantly cut down on crowdedness in the warmup area, it would at least provide an option for those who really want to get in a nice long warmup or warmdown swim (and have the time to do so before or after their events.)
The same solution might also work for massages, if they're not provided on-deck. I'm guessing there were places in midtown that offered massages, and probably plenty of swimmers who would have been willing to schedule and pay for them. A listing of such places in the meet program could help match up these two groups, to everyone's advantage. (That's obviously not as convenient as having them free and on deck, but certainly better than nothing.)
Nationals are often held in cities that have plenty of resources away from the competition venue. As the number of us attending nats continues to grow, it might become necessary to look outside the box/natatorium to find everything we need. :)
Hmm, so apparently you interpreted my comment as pissy how?? Because I didn't use any simleys?
Trust me, that wasn't pissy. The problem may be on your end.
No, I didnt say anything about your comment. Stating a fact.
Sure, it worked just fine for the athletes. Not so much for the host who had to pay a fortune for it and hardly made any money on the meet as a result.
For those of you around long enough to remember Chapel Hill in 1992, the same thing happened there. They didn't make a dime on the meet because of the temporary warm up pool in the parking lot.
Unless a host has a legitimate buyer lined up to buy the pool after the meet or the host can secure a low cost rental temporary pool, they apparently are cost prohibitive for masters (our pockets aren't as deep as USA-S who can rely on a few hundred thousand swimmers paying triple annual dues that we pay).
Can USMS help offset this cost?
