Swim Squad

By paperbackwriter · Nov 9, 2018 · 483 · 3
  1. I look up from the pool, puffing and panting, my lungs screaming for oxygen, legs still treading deep water. The humourless trainer looks down, all powerful, ready to bark more instructions. "Now. 10 more laps of freestyle stroke. And keep your head down" I sink mentally and physically whilst looking at the other lanes. A steady stream of fast moving swimmers flash by, almost creating a slipstream like a group of cyclists. Im not cut out for this I think to myself. Look at those kids! They must have had water births!
    I'm 10 years old. Ive decided to try my luck with the local swimming squad. This is my first and last day with them. But please don't call me a quitter! :)
    PoemNerd212 likes this.

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  1. PoemNerd212
    Oh man, this brought back memories of swim team for me. I had a similar experience to yours, except I stuck with it and had many more similar experiences to this after :p. It was still pretty fun, though. Thanks for sharing.
    PoemNerd212, Nov 9, 2018
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  2. paperbackwriter
    Ironically I still loving swimming and it has become a staple of my fitness regime. it truly is a lifetime sport,
    But honestly I think swimmers have one of the toughest training schedules of any sport. Waking up at 3 or 4 am each morning. 2 hour grind in the pool. and I heard some clubs come back in the afternoon and do it gain.
    And on one small point. Ive always admired how a bunch of swimmers can share one lane, sometimes the swimmer in front and behind only a metre apart. They really swim as a pack rather than individuals.
    And I never mastered the tumble-turn btw ! :)
    paperbackwriter, Nov 9, 2018
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  3. GrahamLewis
    I went out for Little League baseball simply because everyone else did it, and I ran out of excuses. But my ineptness soon became apparent. [apologies to people who don't understand American baseball, but I think the context will become clear] I only played in the late innings, and then in center field so that the other two fielders could cover for me. My coach soon gave up, and when I did get to bat, he always (knowing the poor control these young pitchers had) told me to simply keep the bat on my shoulder and wait for them to walk me. Which they invariably did.

    My only real memories are these: (1) tripping once while walking to first base; (2) causing our team to miss out on some runs because when the 2d base coach was yelling for me to "go, go," meaning to run, I though he was saying, "no, no," meaning to stop -- so we ended up with two players on one base, meaning two outs and the end of the inning; and (3) letting a ground ball roll between my legs during the championship game, thus letting in two runs in the last inning and costing us the title.

    Good days, those. But I did like the shirt.
    GrahamLewis, Nov 9, 2018
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