Diving Videos and Predictions for Today's Meet

So if I've timed this post correctly, it should be auto-publishing right around the time I should be taking the water for my first swim meet. Keep an eye on my twitter page for up-to-date details.

I showed some nasty battle wounds from learning to dive earlier this week, and I'm hoping things go better at the meet! As I noted in the post where I learned to dive, I had looked at some YouTube videos before meeting with Andrea at the Y. Here's 4 quick videos I'd looked at:


ONE: Good pointers in this one - he breaks it into 3 main areas: starting position, in the air, and the entry. One of his final points about keeping your legs straight as you enter the water is something I CAN'T do.

http://youtu.be/OCsQyU4Zops


TWO: This one REALLY breaks it down step-by-step: foot placement, where your hips should be, where to be looking, etc. This is the video where I learned not to point my arms down as you leave the blocks, but to point STRAIGHT OUT instead. This one really shows all little details from different angles. I think this was the best video full of "newbie pointers" for me.


http://youtu.be/Hl6qlTblj4I


THREE: This video is a little funnier / less professional (made by some high-school kids as part of a video class), but it DOES show some "do this" and "don't think this" pointers. AND I liked seeing another newbie going through all the same issues that I knew I was about to go through as I was learning to dive for the first time.


http://youtu.be/FlDfEgS7Ifc


FOUR: Finally, this video is NO HELP to a beginner, but it's nice to see another good looking dive (her back leg is too far back in this video according to the points made in the 2nd video above, but she found a way to make it work). This one REALLY over-simplifies things, and there's a sarcastic comment on this video that points that out... someone said "and to swim all you do is move your arms and legs in water."


http://youtu.be/zg-ssuz9Ais


PREDICTIONS FOR TODAY'S MEET:

• I'll be the last one off the blocks. When Andrea would shout GO as we were practicing diving, I always hesitated for a half second until I felt ready. My reaction time off the blocks will be horrible.

• You won't see a single dolphin kick from me. I first tried dolphin kicking a week ago before my diving lesson, and it felt like I was trying to hump the lane line. I tried it a few more times and got a little better at it, but being it's still new to me and I don't know if it's faster or not, I won't be doing it at the meet.

• I won't be doing flip turns. I don't do flip turns - I've just really never learned. The good thing is that Andrea said it's less of a big deal when I'm only hitting the wall 1 or 3 times (in a 50 or 100). If I were doing the 1000 or 1650, THEN it'd be important to have a good flip turn because I'd be hitting the wall so many times. I'd never really thought about it like that before.

• OK.... here they are: when I registered, I put down my predicted times as 0:38 for the 50 free and 1:17 for the 100 free. I really have NO idea what I can do, so these times are total shots in the dark. The 50 is SOOO much about the start, so a horrible start could easily push me over 0:40. At the same time, a good start could get me around 0:35 or 0:36. Maybe. Who knows. I really think I can get under 1:17 for the 100 free, but again, I have no clue. (I told Andrea and Julia that I'd love to be around 1:14!) I don't want to be the guy who puts down slower times just to "win" his heat, but I also don't want to be the guy who puts down super fast times and then can't live up to them. It's a "lose / lose" situation. I think 0:38 and 1:17 are safe guesses.

I guess we'll find out shortly!!!!!!.......