While I always considered myself “a swimmer”, I didn’t compete in
high school, college or age group swimming! About twelve years ago I
was taking an evening aerobics class in gymnasium with picture windows
that looked onto an outdoor 25 yard pool. It was a chilly and rainy
winter’s night and there was this group of adults in there doing some
crazy things that I had never seen and I thought they were amazing!
Later I learned that it was a master’s workout and they had been doing
some technique drills…
Intrigued, I signed up for some lessons and started learning about swim
technique and once I got my confidence up, I literally took the plunge and
started swimming with the group, eventually moving to a bigger and more
challenging team, before moving to Friday Harbor four years ago. While I
don’t particularly thrive on competition, I was persuaded to enter some
masters meets in ’06 and ’07. I placed first in my age group in the
1650 yard freestyle at the Pacific Northwest Association Short Course
Yards Championships both years, first in the 1000 yard freestyle in ’06
and second in ’07, as well as placing fourth in the 1650 yard freestyle in
the National Championships.
Which goes to show, I suppose, that you really can teach an older dog some
new tricks. I’ve had some great teachers and coaches and truly believe
that technique in swimming is the key to success and enjoyment. In that
respect, it is one of the most challenging sports there is, but also one
of the most interesting and rewarding and you can do it your whole life,
meaning you have lots of time to get it right!"