triathletes do; swimmers don't.
That's one of the problems that swimming has right now, which is hampering growth and creating bad feelings. If people continue to hold these attitudes, we will shut-out the very people that we need to bring in (ie, triathletes and fitness swimmers).
Take a quick look at annual memberships for a second:
USA-Triathlon: >115,000 annual members (not including 1-day memberships)
US Masters Swimming: ~48,000 members (not including 1-day memberships)
Note: USA-T annual membership never exceeded 21,000 until after 2000...
What would those numbers be if USA-T said "real athletes don't need wetsuits" and banned them from their events?
Think about it for a moment...
If we want to make masters swimming more attractive to new people, we should get rid of bad attitudes about wetsuits and the people who wear them.
NOTE: I do not own a wetsuit and have competed in open water swims in the Atlantic Ocean without one.
triathletes do; swimmers don't.
That's one of the problems that swimming has right now, which is hampering growth and creating bad feelings. If people continue to hold these attitudes, we will shut-out the very people that we need to bring in (ie, triathletes and fitness swimmers).
Take a quick look at annual memberships for a second:
USA-Triathlon: >115,000 annual members (not including 1-day memberships)
US Masters Swimming: ~48,000 members (not including 1-day memberships)
Note: USA-T annual membership never exceeded 21,000 until after 2000...
What would those numbers be if USA-T said "real athletes don't need wetsuits" and banned them from their events?
Think about it for a moment...
If we want to make masters swimming more attractive to new people, we should get rid of bad attitudes about wetsuits and the people who wear them.
NOTE: I do not own a wetsuit and have competed in open water swims in the Atlantic Ocean without one.
