... so here are the official times:
I never really know what the points are all about – I guess if in a Club it goes towards determining which is the top club. But for Individuals like me, it's the time, and that alone, that is the marker.
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I thought I might find it strange after so long without a competition - and I did. There was a certain surrealism about getting on those blocks, and sometimes you just feel things and you can just tell how they are going to be. I had to make a deliberate consideration of my start and getting into the 50 metres Free, whereas in days of old, all that would have been automatic. But I concentrated on NOT 'forcing', and thus tying up. So I suppose on later reflection, I was a bit too easy and relaxed off the block, and then I had a bit of a shock when I saw that a fellow, two lanes over, was not that much behind me. Now we were in with the slower entries, (yes you may call it 'sandbagging', but I call it 'having clear water to work with'), and that didn't exactly fill me with positive thoughts about my own pace. So cutting a long, sad recount to the bottom line – I won, but the time was rather woeful. We will need to do more competitions to shake off some rust. Certainly, as I said before this lame showing, nothing brings you on like competitions. Only problem here for me is I have to find them, where I can compete as a US Master. Having gone out the first 25 m so lazily, thankfully I did not 'die', as I feared I might, on the return 25 m (I didn't burn, down there either but I didn't die). As I touched, my opponent in that other lane seemed some body lengths distant now but 'mental note' to self was, “more competitions needed for sure!!” I was unaware that there was an electronic display board, as it was something they had wheeled into place after I had swum the warm-up, so in honesty I don't really know what my time was, although someone said later they thought 30 something, so I will not make any excuses, I was just very slow and it may have been 30.99 for all I know. Need to get back around 28 or so, to feel right. The 100 IM was as taxing as I had feared, and again I had an uncomfortable reality check when I turned onto backstroke and saw someone's leg-kick matching mine, level with me – oh dear ! The Breast-stroke was just an opportunity to get my breath a little, and the final 25 m Free was a bit of forced endeavour where one has the definite feeling one is going very slowly but just trying to hang on. The time on that was 1:20:77 I think I recall accurately, but this one was really more a bit of 'training' and I knew it would be a good guide to my general fitness, and how much I need to do to get in shape – Plenty was the reply !! So there you go – now I must look for another meet cos hopefully the more I do, the sooner I'll get back to some pace – fingers crossed. Anyway, two entries, two medals. Champion d'Aquitaine 2014, yo! But, sadly, no “free shit” ... sorry, Alex! |
Robertson Tait
~ Author of fiction Archives
January 2019
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