The rec.sport.swimming Frequently Asked Questions file version 0.96 1. What is rec.sport.swimming? Rec.sport.swimming is a usenet group devoted to the discussion of all things related to swimming whether competitive or recreational. 2. So what gets posted here? Nearly any topic related to swimming is welcome. (We have even debated the pros and cons of swimming in the nude in a flame-free although somewhat irreverent fashion) Don't be afraid that your questions are too simple; r.s.s is read regularly by people with a wide variety of experiences and ability from first year swimmers to Olympians. Chances are that there's someone else at the same stage in swimming that you are. Here are a few suggestions on posting that make things easier on yourself and others: Help with technique: The best way someone can give advice on technique is to actually see how you swim, and then make suggestions based on that observation. However current technology doesn't enable us to get such a nice picture. So the more you can describe about your particular problem, the easier it is for others to offer helpful suggestions. "My stroke feels weird" is not terrible descriptive. "I've been told I drop my elbows when swimming freestyle" gives a better description of what the problem might be. Meet Results: r.s.s welcomes meet results at any level and from anywhere in the world. However, if you are posting results from a large or multi-day meet, please break up your posts into several smaller messages (i.e. Friday morning prelims is message one, Friday finals are message two, etc.) Large messages can be hard on system traffic as well as causing problems with some newsreaders. Advertising: r.s.s is not normally an appropriate place to post general advertising. However, if you feel you want to provide information a relevant product. 1. Please use the word ADVERTISING at the beginning of the subject header. 2. Please make sure that what you are selling is directly related to swimming and/or aquatics. 3. So what shouldn't be posted here? SPAM: spam is unsolicited advertisement that is posted across a group of newsgroups and has no relationship to the stated discussion topic of the newsgroup. Some examples of spam are the Make Money Fast chain letter, various sex phone line advertisements, and political action fund solicitation letters. It is not a good idea to post replies to spams. All that does is create junk messages in what can be dozens of newsgroups. If you feel that an inappropriate advertisement has been posted in a newsgroup, look for the e-mail address where the post came from, and then send an e-mail message to that person's postmaster complaining about the ad. Say the post came from: goober@spam.com you could then send a copy of the offending material to: postmaster@spam.com and otherwise express your displeasure. FLAMES: a flame is an argument that disintegrates into basically a slinging of personal insults. If you feel that someone has insulted you, walk away from the computer for a minute, and then reread the message. Up to 90% of the meaning in a conversation can be derived from non-verbal means. On usenet and e-mail, those shades of meaning are lost, and it's easy to draw a different conclusion than the author intended. Sarcasm, for example, can be very difficult to identify sometimes. If you feel that you have indeed been insulted by another posted, take it to e-mail. Threads on flames generally are interesting only to the people doing the flaming. TROLLS: A troll is a type of flame deliberately posted to a newsgroup in an attempt to create chaos within that group such as "ALL SWIMMERS ARE LOSERS. THEY STINK". The best course of action is to ignore such a post. The troll quickly grows bored and tries to find some other group he can antagonize. ALL CAPS: Posting a message in all capital letters is considered shouting, a common e-media convention. BINARIES: Please do not post binaries to this newsgroup. If there's a binary or graphic files you think people would like to see, find a home for it on a ftp or WWW site and post directions for how people can get there. 4. I'm a new swimmer. What are some of those terms you're using? crawl stroke: a stroke performed on the stomach and using alternating arm cycles and a flutter kick. It is also a technical description of one of the four legs of a medley event. freestyle: usually used synonymously with crawl stroke. A freestyle race is a race in which contestants may use any stroke to complete the distance. Because crawl stroke is the fastest, it is always used during freestyle races interval: a specific time period in which you must swim a specified distance. A set of ten 50 meter swims on a 1:30 (one minute and thirty second) interval means that you must complete each swim in less than 1:30. If you complete your 50 meters in 50 seconds, then you have forty seconds to rest before your next swim. Most people feel that if you are going to gain the greatest physical benefit from swimming, you have to incorporate intervals into your workout. kickboard: a flat rectangular piece of Styrofoam used to isolate leg muscles in kick sets. lap: a lap is either one or two lengths of the pool. Whether it is commonly used to designate on or two lengths can vary from area to area and even pool to pool. It's usually easier to describe a distance in yards/meters or in number of lengths. long course: used as both an adjective and a noun in describing a 50 meter long pool pull buoy: usually two cylinders of Styrofoam tied together with rope placed between the legs. It enables you to focus on your pull without kicking. set: a number of repeated swims at specified distances with a stated rest interval between each swim short course: used as both an adjective and a noun in most of the world to describe a 25 meter long pool. In the United States, it commonly describes a 25 yard pool. 5. Help! My legs are strong, but my kick just doesn't get me anywhere! It's very common for budding triathletes, among others, to encounter this problem. A flutter kick uses leg muscles in different ways and demands more ankle flexibility than a typical runner has. The best way to get a better feel for flutter kick is to but yourself a medium-priced set of flippers (fins). Flippers really give the swimmer a good feel for how much you need to bend your ankles as well as helping him/her develop a nice concise flutter kick. 6. I keep hearing about a drug problem in elite swimming. What's the deal? There have been three high-profile cases in swimming involving illegal substances lately. 6a. Last summer, American Jessica Foschi tested positive for a steroid at a national-level meet. There are questions surrounding how the banned substance got into her body. Originally, she was given probation by a three person panel. This decision was reviewed by USS (United States Swimming) and she was given a two-year suspension. Then, USS reversed their suspension. Regardless, the USS avoided a series of potentially embarrassing questions when Foschi failed to make the US Olympic team. Regardless of the story surrounding her positive test, she just isn't as fast as Evans and Bennett at this time. 6b. Last December, Australian breaststroker Samantha Riley tested positive for a banned headache medication after taking a tablet given to her by her coach. Riley received no further penalties, but the coach received a two year suspension for providing her with the illegal substance. There is a controversy that is not completely resolved. A fellow Australian, also former Olympic gold medalist, Dawn Fraser, commented that Riley should have been banned for 2 years. The bottom line is that FINA has chosen not to ban her, and that's that. 6c. The China question. It is difficult to form an opinion unless all facts are heard on an issue. The problem here is that China shares a characteristic common with many communist countries in that it places tight controls over the flow of news and information. Here's what is known about the situation: 1. We now have proof that there was widespread steroid use among East German elite athletes in the 1970's and early 1980's . 2. Coaches who were involved with this widespread steroid use later were employed in China. 3. Chinese swimmers showed tremendous time drops in recent years in patterns similar to that among swimmers in the former East Germany. China went from having very few World-class swimmers to dominating the world in many events. 4. Last year, 7 Chinese swimmers, of which 4 were men and 3 were women, tested positive for steroids at the Asian Games. 5. The steroid that was found in their system was previously considered undetectable. It had only been very recently that drug testing technology had advanced far enough to allow its detection. 6. Since then, the Chinese have been mainly absent from the World rankings. In fairness however, since December 1994 till December 1995, there were a limited number of major long course meets. These were mainly the Pan Pacific and European Champs. China was banned from taking part for the former, and not eligible to take part in the latter. Many of the top times according to the 1995 ranking come from these 2 meets. So the position of the Chinese swimmers is cloudy. Clearly, the Olympics will shed more light on this. 7. What's a taper? What's the deal with shaving? In swimming, it is not uncommon for an athlete to focus on swimming well at one particular meet during the season. A taper is a pattern of reduced but high intensity yardage leading up to an important meet. Early in a taper, a practice may not look that much different than a normal practice, but at the end of a taper, a practice may be a warm-up, and a few strong sprints. Take note: just as you can't have frosting without cake, you won't have a successful taper unless you already have a strong aerobic base to taper from. Shaving is something of a swimming tradition that often accompanies tapering for a big meet. The rationale behind bodyshaping is that the drag created by body hair is removed, and the swimmer is thus able to go faster. It is difficult to determine what difference shaving actually makes because it is always accompanied by increased rest. However, shaving most of your body hair does also remove a l ayer of dead skin from your body, creating a truly unique feeling as you enter the water shaved. 8. My hair's drying out. How can I stop this? First, wearing a latex or silicone cap helps reduce the amount of chlorinated water that goes through your hair. Second, make sure that you shampoo and condition your hair thoroughly after your workout. Some people find that shampoos designed to strip chlorine out of hair help them while others find them ineffective. Try a few different types of shampoo and see what works best for you. 9. My eyes keep getting red. What can I do? Get yourself a pair of comfortable goggles. Your eyes and visual health will thank you for them. There are dozens of different goggle brands and styles on the market, each slightly different from the other, and fitting slightly different on the face. A couple of specialized brands and types are: Prescription goggles: for those with vision problems, it is possible to order goggles with prescription lenses in the eyepieces. They give a better sense of wall location and also aid in seeing paceclocks and coaches better. Consult your eye doctor for further details. Barracuda goggles: some people swear they're the best fitting goggles on the market. However, they're some of the most expensive on the market (about $30 US). Swedish goggles: Swedish goggles (aka Swedes) are basically goggles with small eyepieces, no foam or sponge gaskets around the eyepieces, and thin double rubber head straps. There is something of a cult surrounding them and a lot of people swear they're the best goggle on the market. After a break-in period of a few weeks, the eyepieces seem very comfortable, they secure well to your head, and they're extremely cheap. ($3.50 US) 'Real' Swedes are made only in Sweden. Accept no substitutions from Speedo, Hind, and the like. 10. So where are some good swimming sites on the Web? One of the oldest, and very best of the swimming links is at http://www.lornet.com/swimming/sports.htm The Yellow Pages of Swimming (many, many links): http://www.tcd.net/~jj/swimlinx.html United States Swimming has a good site at: http://www.usswim.org/ During the Olympic trials, they were averaging something like 27,000 hits a day, so it may take a while to get around it, but it's worth it. The American Swimming Association has it's page at: http://lornet.com/asca/ The Swimming in Australia page is available at: http://www.gil.com.au/~logan It's a little graphics-heavy, but is generally a good source of Australian swim news. Colorado Swimming: http://www.csi.org/ is a good example of a Local Swimming Committee under USS rules. They've also got a nice officials section as well as many links. The World of Masters Swimming: http://www.hk.super.net/~kff/wms.html lists master's records and has a nice section on FINA rules. The Harvard Men's Swimming page: http://hcs.harvard.edu/~menswim/ is the granddaddy of all web pages for college teams. St. Rick (AKA Rick Oosterberg, net.saint) also has done a great job of posting results from other major US meets at this site as well. Pacific Masters: http://www.hooked.net/users/swim/ and the Canadian Masters Swimming Homepage: http://www.unb.ca/web/Masters_swimming/ talk about Masters swimming and list open water swims. Swim 2000: http://www.swim2000.com/ is a commercial site with some good links and other info. http://lornet.com/~creek/ is the homepage of Cherry Creek High School and is an excellent example of a high school page. 11. How do you convert long course meters to short course yards and vice versa? First, ask any swimming coach and they'll tell you, "meters is meters and yards is yards." That is completely true, they are just different and there are too many variables to do the conversion perfectly. There are many times however, that you need to convert as closely as you can. The following is the best conversion I've found. It takes into consideration the differences in the strokes, since the breaststroke turns, for example, are more important than a freestyle turn. LCM -> SCY SCY -> LCM 50 Fr x - .8/1.11 x*1.11 + .8 100 Fr x - 1.6/1.11 x*1.11 + 1.6 100 Breast x - 2.0/1.11 x*1.11 + 2.0 100 Back x - 1.2/1.11 x*1.11 + 1.2 100 Fly x - 1.2/1.11 x*1.11 + 1.2 200 Fr x - 3.2/1.11 x*1.11 + 3.2 200 Breast x - 4.0/1.11 x*1.11 + 4.0 200 Back x - 2.4/1.11 x*1.11 + 2.4 200 Fly x - 2.8/1.11 x*1.11 + 2.8 200 IM x - 3.2/1.11 x*1.11 + 3.2 400 IM x - 6.4/1.11 x*1.11 + 6.4 For example, a SCY time in the 100 Breaststroke of 1:07.49 would be 67.49*1.11 + 2.0 = 76.91 or 1:16.91 LCM. 12. What swimming software is available? This list is a start (ie. still under construction) at identifing the variety of swimming related computer software. It has been compiled from posts to the r.s.s. group and email replies to me from interested individuals. Your comments and additions are welcome (Tim Meinke: twmeinke@facstaff.wisc.edu). NO ENDORSEMENTS are intended. _____________________________________________________________ For running meets: ProSwim -> proswim@macon.com -> complete meet software; DOS; Colorado Interface Available EasyMeet -> dabineri@tso.cin.ix.net -> complete meet software; DOS; Colorado Interface Available Swim Meet 5.0 -> complete meet software; Windows 3.1 or up needed -> Multiple Electronic Interfaces Available. Meet Manager -> complete meet software; DOS Additional Notes: I know that ProSwim and EasyMeet have demo versions available that can be requested by email. Send your smail address. Swim Meet 5.0, Jim Cooper's program (LSA) can be downloaded either from Colorado Swimming (see below), or from Jim's Wilton Wahoos Home Page (http://www.spav.com/wilton/wahoos/). _____________________________________________________________ For managing team data: EasyTeam -> dabineri@tso.cin.ix.net Also check out Jim Cooper's programs which can be downloaded either from Colorado Swimming (see below), or from Jim's Wilton Wahoos Home Page (http://www.spav.com/wilton/wahoos/).. Team Manager -> ??? _____________________________________________________________ Also, below is the start of a list of ancillary swim related software: The American Swim Coaches Association (800-462-6267) Swimming MAChanics which shows animated strokes, item W100, Swimming workout manager item W200 Swimming Manager Item W300. The Athlete's Diary (log program)- full information and a working demo copy are available at the Web and FTP sites listed below. Available for Windows, Mac, and DOS. Stevens Creek Software The Athlete's Diary & Bookstore WWW: http://www.stevenscreek.com FTP: ftp.stevenscreek.com e-mail: slp@stevenscreek.com UltraCOACH for Windows is at: http://www.ultracch.com email: ucsales@ultracch.com Interactive Windows based software for 3.1 or 95. Colorado Swimming has information on available computer programs. You can find it under "Available Software" linked to from their main web page (http://www.csi.org). ================================================================== Much thanks goes to Jill Marie Spetoskey (jillmari@aol.com for putting together the initial version of this FAQ. Additional thanks to John Lorimer at Lorimer Network Research for providing the server space to contain the FAQ. Additions or corrections to this FAQ may be sent to: Don Overton