Swimming experts (Page 2)

Eh, the put down doesn't really upset me.  I was being snarky and find it funny that AG didn't actually look at my recent swim results.  It makes his response pretty darn funny.  Or maybe he did and that is why he deleted his post. ;-)

AG needs to back off of the podium a bit and realize he isn't the be all end all of swimming discussion.  Particularly when Gary Hall peeks in.

And just to keep this on target with the OP.  Since he has found what a joy open water swimming is I would highly recommend he find an OWS event in his area and enter - just to have fun swimming in a setting like that.  I had a blast when I did mine.

I would wager that he wasn't the one that deleted the post. ;-)

And yes, OWS events are a ton of fun. If you have them available, I highly recommend them, either as competitive events or OWS familiarization.

John

LOL!!
Sand101, I can't believe you're satisfied with swim splits of only 1st in your AG in your last 2 races.  Slacker.

Nice job!

Don

I find the swim debates to be pretty funny because in the context of a triathlon, it really doesn't matter. If you're a pro - sure, then you need to shave the minutes. But most folks here don't need the absolute most efficient swim stroke / technique.

With minimal form improvements (and time invested), you can get probably 80% of your potential efficiency gains. The amount of time and energy it takes to squeeze out that extra 20% is exponentially more than the initial time investment, and buys you maybe another minute or two in an oly? Alternatively, you could spend that energy improving your bike or run pace, which will shave a lot more from your overall time.

just muh two cents. 

  

Just to play devil's advocate, I'd argue that it does matter.  Being efficient in the water means being better rested on the way out of the water.  It isn't all about speed.  (I'd also opine that the arguments about turns in the pool are useless - I don't care about turns.  I work hard on stroke drills, though.)

But then again I'm a swim guy, so I'm admittedly quite biased.

This is best response imho.

The buoyancy of a wetsuit / salt water can make a huge difference in a swimmers overall stroke and "feel" of the water.  I would guess that the buoyancy put you in a much more effective swimming position then you get in the pool.

Cheers,
-j

I agree - I focused on speed gain in my post, but the point applies equally to use of energy (and I meant it to address both but sometimes what's in my head and what I actually type are two different things ). For most of us, I'd say the conservation of energy for use in the bike / run is the most important of the two so your point is well taken.