It's a wonderful memory you have, kiddo. Just keep swimming. "The fastest you go in a race is off the starts and turns." "Glide-Glide-Glide-Pull -Glide -Glide-Kick- Head Up." "Whatever it takes." So many coach-isms to count. And I'm happy to hear he's had such an impact on you. Good stuff, and thanks for never forgetting. WWSC forever.
Well, I certainly didn't expect that! Thank you very much for reading and for the comment. I really appreciate it. Still swimming, yes, still swimming.
Wonderful post. Brought back memories of a private coach my Dad hired to help me with my tennis. Charlie Sharples was his name. A bear of a man, but surprisingly athletic. And he helped me ascend from junior varsity to Varsity, where I lettered two years in a row. Your post called up those wonderful memories.
This was touching to me. It’s amazing that you had the same coach for so many years. All of your writing impresses me, but I especially have enjoyed your swimming posts and how you use the mechanics to connect to larger things. I got back in the pool 3 years ago. Do you think you can do one that works around the flip turn? I think something in my balance changed in the fifty plus years since swim team. They make me dizzy. Great writing.
Thank you very much for the thoughtful comment, Jeanne. I really appreciate it and I'm glad that you're enjoying these essays. On flip turns, I hadn't thought about them as a subject before now—but it is a good idea and I will think about whether I have anything original to add.
Your personal essays are ever enlightening, and produce such an expansive calm, this one especially maybe because it's so focused on balance of personality, balance of drag and propulsion, balance of man and water, and balance of moving forward while still getting tangled in memories. Also, not being a swimmer at all, I really appreciated learning the mechanics of it all! The closest experience i could relate it to was when i finally landed wheel pose in yoga. . .over and over again i'd try and get my body in just the right balance of strength and flexibility, and after so so many hours of trying, when i finally bowed my breastbone to the sky, it felt like being liquid. . .like it never should have been hard at all.
Thank you for the comment, Trilety. I really appreciate the kind words—and describing the moment when you get the movement as 'liquid' sounds perfect to me.
It's a wonderful memory you have, kiddo. Just keep swimming. "The fastest you go in a race is off the starts and turns." "Glide-Glide-Glide-Pull -Glide -Glide-Kick- Head Up." "Whatever it takes." So many coach-isms to count. And I'm happy to hear he's had such an impact on you. Good stuff, and thanks for never forgetting. WWSC forever.
Well, I certainly didn't expect that! Thank you very much for reading and for the comment. I really appreciate it. Still swimming, yes, still swimming.
Wonderful post. Brought back memories of a private coach my Dad hired to help me with my tennis. Charlie Sharples was his name. A bear of a man, but surprisingly athletic. And he helped me ascend from junior varsity to Varsity, where I lettered two years in a row. Your post called up those wonderful memories.
Thank you very much for the comment, John. I can picture and like the contrast: "A bear of a man, but surprisingly athletic."
This was touching to me. It’s amazing that you had the same coach for so many years. All of your writing impresses me, but I especially have enjoyed your swimming posts and how you use the mechanics to connect to larger things. I got back in the pool 3 years ago. Do you think you can do one that works around the flip turn? I think something in my balance changed in the fifty plus years since swim team. They make me dizzy. Great writing.
Thank you very much for the thoughtful comment, Jeanne. I really appreciate it and I'm glad that you're enjoying these essays. On flip turns, I hadn't thought about them as a subject before now—but it is a good idea and I will think about whether I have anything original to add.
Your personal essays are ever enlightening, and produce such an expansive calm, this one especially maybe because it's so focused on balance of personality, balance of drag and propulsion, balance of man and water, and balance of moving forward while still getting tangled in memories. Also, not being a swimmer at all, I really appreciated learning the mechanics of it all! The closest experience i could relate it to was when i finally landed wheel pose in yoga. . .over and over again i'd try and get my body in just the right balance of strength and flexibility, and after so so many hours of trying, when i finally bowed my breastbone to the sky, it felt like being liquid. . .like it never should have been hard at all.
Thank you for the comment, Trilety. I really appreciate the kind words—and describing the moment when you get the movement as 'liquid' sounds perfect to me.