How fast do you swim?

[Kitsune06]

I do 25m, stop, hang on the side of the pool, gasp, pour water out of my goggles, stretch out, wait until I can breathe again, do another 25... repeat until I'm at 15.... and I lose all rhythm and sit there for a minute, all wore out. =P I try, I try. I actually am getting better...
Lise, I swim like a 3-legged cat, too.

[light_sabe_r]

I'm a slow swimmer. Takes me around 45s to do 50m then I have to do the next 150 on my back.

Gotta start SQUAD again I think.

[Bluetree]

I'm pretty slow, too. In a 25-meter pool, I can do a steady 64 laps (round trip) in about an hour, but that is with short training fins, slightly under a minute per 50m.
I only swim once a week, but hope to lower my time substantially when the winter weather keeps me off my bike. I am so happy with my SportCount lap counter... it is the best!

http://www.sportcount.com/products.php
P.S. There is a guy on eBay who sells these cheaper than the MSRP.

[Offthegrid]

I started at 400M (was dying!) and have worked up to 1,000M in three sets (200M, 500M, 300M) with 1 minute rest between. But I'm using fins for now. I'm not kicking, but of course they do make me go faster just from moving side to side. I want to feel very comfortable with the stroke before I lose them.

I was just curious how fast middle of the packers would swim. I'm considering a sprint tri in May, but it would be my first co-ed one, and I don't want to be last out of the water. 5th last is OK.

[Grog]

I was just curious how fast middle of the packers would swim. I'm considering a sprint tri in May, but it would be my first co-ed one, and I don't want to be last out of the water. 5th last is OK.

What's wrong with being last? I would be annoyed if I finished a LONG time after the before-last person, say if I took 15 more minutes to swim 1000m, but otherwise my philosophy is that someone has to come last and it could be me, I don't mind. Racing (either running or triathlons) is not the central piece of my life, and finishing last won't make me feel that bad, so I don't mind taking that role (especially if it makes others feel better!!). I'm not really slow compared to your average pack but when I train with friends I live with who have been accomplished athletes all their life, I'm certainly not first! That's okay by me. Now I would be seriously annoyed if I came last in a grant competition because I wouldn't get the money I need to make the research I want to do, so that's another story! I am choosing my battles...

Anyway, all this to say that if you do come in last, it doesn't matter. Just smile through it, you will be an inspiration for many, unlike what you might imagine... So go for it!!

[KSH]

Anyway, all this to say that if you do come in last, it doesn't matter. Just smile through it, you will be an inspiration for many, unlike what you might imagine... So go for it!!

Might I add... that I have noticed that the LAST person typically gets more cheers than anyone else... other than first.

[Offthegrid]

I finished a 5K last once -- my first 5K actually. They were taking down the finish line when I was done, were halfway through the awards ceremony and were out of water. I was scarred for life.

In all seriousness, there's just some small victory about not being last -- it's really the only measure I can compete against at this point. Some people compete to be first; others compete for good age group placings; I compete not to be last. After all, if you're in a race, don't you ultimately try to pass those near you? In my case, my competitors are at the back of the pack and I try to beat them.

But from the times, I think I'm about double those times -- about where I expected to be given my recent 5K time.