With the continued growth in USMS membership, I would submit that it's time to eliminate the regional teams at Nationals. Case in point: NCMS sent a "team" of 123 swimmers to Atlanta, enough to enter A, B, C, and D relays in many events (e.g. the mens 35+ 200 free relay in which our club team placed 13th behind eight regional teams). It's been argued that the formation of regional teams allows more swimmers to participate in relays, yet local clubs from North Carolina sent as many as thirty or more athletes and could have entered relays on their own as our club (with eight swimmers) did. Swim with the guys you actually train with.
Parents
Former Member
About 300 (out of 1,100) of the projected 2,200 attendees of next year's Spring Nationals will be from Arizona. If you figure USMS will have around 46,000 members at the end of April 2011 that means less than 5% of registered members will be competing at the Kino Aquatics Center. I will be one of them and I will be stoked...but I (we?) will also be a tiny percentage of USMS. Those of us at the meet will have a great time, swim fast, and enjoy some wonderful weather.
Over 40,000 of our fellow swimmers won't know or care however. Its OK though, as long as they are staying fit and realizing their goals then that is fine. These are the majority of our members, so all our talk about relays, scoring, and the like simply does not register. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
Those of us who compete (including myself) are a vocal yet active minority in masters swimming. We are the ones who basically run the organization, go to the meets, and set the direction for others to follow. There is nothing wrong with this so long as we are aware of the needs of the majority of our members and seek to address them.
Just my :2cents:, see you all in Mesa next Spring.
...oh and Puerto Rico this Summer.
FOR NATIONALS!!!!!!!!!:bliss:
I like statistics and all, but I don't get your point for repeatedly pointing out someone is a minority. I didn't understand why you made the point the first time, and I don't understand why it needed to be repeated.
About 300 (out of 1,100) of the projected 2,200 attendees of next year's Spring Nationals will be from Arizona. If you figure USMS will have around 46,000 members at the end of April 2011 that means less than 5% of registered members will be competing at the Kino Aquatics Center. I will be one of them and I will be stoked...but I (we?) will also be a tiny percentage of USMS. Those of us at the meet will have a great time, swim fast, and enjoy some wonderful weather.
Over 40,000 of our fellow swimmers won't know or care however. Its OK though, as long as they are staying fit and realizing their goals then that is fine. These are the majority of our members, so all our talk about relays, scoring, and the like simply does not register. Different strokes for different folks I guess.
Those of us who compete (including myself) are a vocal yet active minority in masters swimming. We are the ones who basically run the organization, go to the meets, and set the direction for others to follow. There is nothing wrong with this so long as we are aware of the needs of the majority of our members and seek to address them.
Just my :2cents:, see you all in Mesa next Spring.
...oh and Puerto Rico this Summer.
FOR NATIONALS!!!!!!!!!:bliss:
I like statistics and all, but I don't get your point for repeatedly pointing out someone is a minority. I didn't understand why you made the point the first time, and I don't understand why it needed to be repeated.
