Swimming: Calculated Pain, Uncalculated Gain

One thing about  competitive swimming is it doesn’t hurt too bad.  No shin splints, no knee injuries, no twisted ankles, torn muscles or tendons.  Yes, after a good hard race where you swim your heart out, and every ounce of strength is spent, one does drag him/herself out of the pool and collapse.  But that’s exhaustion, not pain.  In hot, really hot climates, it is refreshing.  This is the story of how all 95 lbs. of me…back in the day… went from recreational swimming to competitive swimming.

My mother witnessed two drownings as a child.  Armed with the knowledge it could save our lives, she was determined that the four of us living in Southern climates would not just learn how to swim, but be proficient.  At one point my dad belonged to a yacht club.  He joined it with the sailboat he built with his friend from across the street.  We always wore life vests but still, safety dictated that if we were going to go out on the boat, we needed to know how to swim.  So my mother sat beside the community pool summer after summer as all of us took lessons moving from the ranks of tadpoles to ultimately Sr. Lifesaving.

We moved from that small town to Florida where kids not only swam, and went boating, they surfed the waves at the beach.  When it was time to choose an extracurricular activity in high school, I chose swim team.  I learned quickly that although I knew how to swim recreationally, I would have to swim many hours of practice and go through some stroke analysis to get to the competitive finish line with a respectable place.  Swim practice started in February in an outdoor pool in FL.  Whatever people may think, it is cold in FL in February and colder yet in the water, but I was committed and saw it through.  I practiced every day, Monday through Sunday.  Practices were before school and after school, Saturday mornings and early evenings, and Sunday afternoons. I believed in my coaches and I believed in the team because traditionally they took away State honors each year. I dreamed of placing in local meets and perhaps qualifying for State. I was surrounded by the best. A. swam the 50 free, 100 free, 100 butterfly and 200 IM faster than any girl on our team. B. was not far behind A. and specialized in backstroke and fly. In order to earn team points at meets for longer distances, C.  and D.  swam the 200 free and 400 free faster than anyone pacing themselves carefully in order to give it their all the last 3 laps. D. also was #1 in breast stroke. These four girls raced the 200 Medley and 400 free relays to assure a team win with a stacked roster. I didn’t make it to State my first year.

After everyone…but me…went to State that year we celebrated with a Swim banquet. We enjoyed being together, our coaches’ speeches and the presentations. At the bottom of the program was the presentation of most valuable boy and girl swimmer. Of course A. got that trophy and I believe CB got it for the boys. Then there was a third trophy.  Dr. Constans was our principal and our coach. He spoke about the importance of academics, and the importance of being athletic and managing a sport. I don’t really remember it today but I do remember he called out my name. I remember A. squealed in excitement and seemed as excited for me as she was about her own trophy. I remember a picture of the three of us Most Valuable Girl, MV Boy and me, Highest Academic Achievement. With that I was in for another year.   A. was a celebrity of sorts in our community being a State ranked swimmer.  In the Orlando Evening Star (I still have the newspaper clipping) in an interview she said

I swim all year around.  That’s the way you have to do to be good.  Lots of people just swim for a couple of months during school and give it up the rest of the year.  They never get anywhere that way.”

So I followed her advice and I joined a local swim club for the summer outside of school.  The next year I defined myself as a distance swimmer and added 200 IM, 200 freestyle and the 400 to my events. We lifted weights in the fall and entered the pool in February. I learned it was cold…frigid…when I first hit the water, but then my body actually warmed up with our first 72 laps. As we went to sprints, I actually got hot and yes, I think we all sweated, even if we were in the water. We swam one mile before school and 3 to 5 miles after school depending on how close to a meet we were. It was serious swimming and I could feel myself getting better riding higher on the water, placing my arms as deep and as far as I could to scoop the water, and then I noticed the ripple in my thighs and arms. I began to place at meets in every event I was entered. Dr. Constans even put me on the final relay.

One particular final relay was important. The meet had been close and the outcome of the relay would sway the results for first or second place for the team. E., F., B. and I made up the relay team. I’m pretty sure B. was assigned the final leg, and I was given the second or third leg. The race was

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close and I could see Dr. C’s excitement.  He really believed we could win this.   I got onto the block ready to dive in at the instant E. touched the wall. While she swam her return lap he said gripping the block “We can do this Georgette. You can do this.” I was not convinced. Then he said something that has always stayed with me. He looked me in the eye and said “It’s almost impossible to hurt a healthy trained body.” I knew I was healthy, and he had just told me I was trained…the only thing left was for me to pull it off. I swam my best split that race. The four of us won the relay and the team won the meet. That year, my junior year, I made it to State in a couple of events. By Senior year, I had qualified in 5 events: 100 back, 100 breast, 200 IM, 200 free and 400 free.

These ladies were my heroes and mentors in high school.  They pursued excellence through daily and annual discipline.  I am forever grateful to have swum in their wake.

A. went on to do graduate work in kinesiology.  B. joined the Marines and has retired in Joplin, Missouri.  Her own daughters became outstanding swimmers.  D. is an interior decorator in a neighboring state.  All four of us reunited on FB in the past two years.

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