A "Short" Night at the Pool

Jess and Christina were back from DC, where they both did terrific:

Jess finished the DC Marathon in 3:55:17, chip time, 636/1387 overall, and 16/63 in her division, clocking 8:59 per mile.

Christina finished the DC Half Marathon in 1:33:33, chip time, 156/2640 overall, and 11/236 in her Division, clocking 7:09 per mile.

But here's the really interesting thing: while they were there they had access to the FBI's training facility pool and its underwater cameras, where they had their swimming strokes filmed and analyzed by one of the instructors. Jess learned that she was turning her fingers up slightly as she extended her arm, which was increasing resistance. She also learned that her arms, instead of going straight forward, should be angled more steeply, to get to the undisturbed water in front of and underneath her body. (At least I think that's what she said.) They both were able to correct flaws in their strokes and shorten their Strokes Per Length (SPL)by about 15%, meaning they were more efficient in the water.

They also noted that they while they were more efficient in their stroking, they were a little slower. As we Total Immersion fans know, the trick to increasing speed is decrease our SPL while increasing our Stroke Rates (SR), and, most important, to find the perfect balance between the two. The tricky thing for those of us who are not elite swimmers is that as we try to increase our SR, our form tends to break down, and we do more churning and less gliding. It's amazing how technical swimming can be.

Finally, to really, really get faster, you not only have to balance SPL with SR, you have to add power to your stroke. I'm afraid this all may beyond my abilities, as I am only mortal, and far, far from elite. But, what the hell, I'll talk to them some more next week, see what else they learned, and I try it out. Can't hurt, right?.

Coach also added a new 200 yard freestyle drill, shortening the time between sprints as follows: a length up at 50%, followed by a sprint back at 100%, repeated 4 times.

Our swim time was shorter, too. We had a good turn out, with all the women there, and me - Mike was working, Gil had to take care of a project at home and Steve couldn't make it. We all had a lot of catching up to do, we congratulated everyone on their recent accomplishments, and we were all pretty interested in Jess' and Christina's experiences with the FBI. Dodie was back, too, and had just had her stitches pulled. With all the talk-talk-talk, we didn't get started with warm-ups until 7:40.

Finally, our class time was shorter. Class is supposed to go from 7:30 until 8:15, but early on, Dodie asked if we could go until 8:30. Coach, being vary gracious, accommodated her request, and made sure his lesson plans kept us busy for the full hour. However, there is now a life saving class which meets at 8:15, meaning we have to abandon two of our reserved lanes at that time. We do get to keep the third lane, for the extra 15 minutes, though. As usual, Kelly took the time after class to swim extra laps, joined this week by Jess.

So, it was, indeed, a "short" swim night (you didn't think I was going to make jokes about the diminutive stature of my teammates, did you?)

Once again, the best part of the evening was Dodie - when she learned that we were losing 15 minutes off the end of our class, she immediately said to Coach, "Well, we will just have to start at 7:15, when the earlier class ends!" And who knows, maybe we will.

Hot! Hot! Hot

This, after Stroke Improvement Class two weeks ago:

Christina - "Are we going in the hot tub?"

Jess - "Are you kidding? That's the best part of the night!"

So off we went, easing into a corner, and letting the jets and hot water loosen everything. As we relaxed, we talked - and one by one, we shared our fantasies.

Gil's fantasy is sleek, and very responsive. Though her clothes shimmer and she wears silver on the outside, underneath she favors black. When he stretches out over her and she responds to his wishes, she can really, really move. Beauty and performance do not come cheaply - but he's pretty sure she's the one, and he's been saving up and says he's willing to pay what it will take to own her.

Jess confessed that knew what she wanted - and that she had gone out and got it! Her needs were, shall we say, "specialized".

Mike admitted that years of pounding had worn out one of his "parts". He thought he could get someone to help him rehab it, that it would feel better and be a little easier than doing it by himself the old way. But she told him that he needed go faster, and work "harder" - and then she made him stand up! (Gil admitted he had tried it once - but he wasn't sure it was meeting his needs, wasn't sure he was getting into the right "zone.")

Speaking of zones, Christina takes a more "asian" approach - she prefers doing it rhythmically, over a protracted period of time, to reach a feeling of "Zen". Sometimes, she admitted, she will practice the art for four hours!

Mike told us that he, too, was attracted to the "asian style", but that he was considering a different kind of "discipline"

Several of us were familiar with the arcane language and postures of a different pursuit, one that encourages you to leave one in front until the other catches up, that encourages you to find your own "sweet spot", that teaches the benefits of powerful hip rotation. Jess pointed out that the technique is very technical. Although none of us had sought the help of a professional, Jess did have two videos, and I had two books to help us learn. (I ordered my "aids" through the mail - discretely. I don't know how Jess got hers.) I lent one of my books to Kelly, but before she could get through it, her husband confiscated it and read it cover to cover - I guess he wants to improve his technique, which is already superior (Don't ask!). We all agreed that to get really good at it, we needed to become totally immersed.

Me? I admit that after two years of indulging in the more traditional activities , I am a little intrigued by the thought of about crossing over. But I am not so sure I can get into the "Hurts So Good" thing.

Nope - the idea that's been slowly twisting in the recesses of my mind lately involves a penguin and LSD. Pretty kinky, huh? Could take me a whole year to work that one out!