{"id":356223,"date":"2019-03-07T08:00:31","date_gmt":"2019-03-07T15:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=356223"},"modified":"2019-03-06T18:32:42","modified_gmt":"2019-03-07T01:32:42","slug":"the-struggles-of-southern-swimmers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/the-struggles-of-southern-swimmers\/","title":{"rendered":"The Struggles of Southern Swimmers"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Ryan Gibbons, Swimming World College Intern.<\/em><\/p>\n

In a sport popularly known for its summer vibes, the Southern swimmer is generally regarded as living a swimming life of luxury \u2013 splashing into the warm, outdoor pools with gorgeous skies and a mild swimming winter. But despite how unpopular the opinion might be, there\u2019s little denial of the challenges faced by Southern swimmers.<\/p>\n

They might not be driving through the snow to train indoors, but the Southern swim life isn\u2019t one of poolside lounge chairs and workouts under the sunrise. The unique setting may not be as obviously difficult as their Northern counterparts, but the Southern swimmer\u2019s career is riddled by challenges at every turn. Here\u2019s why Southerners actually tend to have the short end of the stick in the swimming community.<\/p>\n

They can\u2019t breathe in indoor pools.<\/h2>\n
\"Hartwick

Photo Courtesy: Hartwick College<\/p><\/div>\n

By far, one of the greatest struggles faced by Southerners is transitioning to indoor pool air quality. The vast majority of facilities in the South are outdoors, and the small handful which are indoors tend to be more open and of decent air quality. These outdoor facilities have virtually zero air quality concerns and tend to be easily used by Southerners.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s with indoor pools, however, that this becomes an issue. As soon as a Southern swimmer is dropped into an indoor facility, their throat itches, lungs tighten and face begins to burn. This tends to be especially problematic for those who swim nearly exclusively outdoors, as their experiences with indoor facilities tends to lie solely at national meets \u2013 leaving the group of Southern swimmers on the side of the pool deck, leaning out of windows, and vying for hallway space to gain some clear, clean, unchlorinated air.<\/p>\n

It actually gets freezing cold in the winter.<\/h2>\n
\"pool-steam-cold-morning-practice\"

Photo Courtesy: Annie Grevers<\/p><\/div>\n

Sure, it\u2019s not the upper-Midwest\u2019s negative 50 windchill, but when winter comes for outdoor Southern swimmers, it hits hard<\/em>. While they might not have to encounter the raw temperatures of the North, they don\u2019t get the luxury of a heated building. Every stroke leaves an arm freezing out of the water, every kick sets brings the blustery wind to the face, and every start leaves a swimmer shaking on the blocks.<\/p>\n

But by far the most brutal part of the cold is getting out after practice. Nothing compares to the fear of the sprint to grab a towel and parka, as the freezing air turns the warm water into steam. During this mad dash, all bets are off \u2013 people become obstacles, and motivations become primitive. At the very least, any Northern swimmer gets the luxury of only being in the snowy air once dry and clothed while enjoying the tropical pool deck inside.<\/p>\n

But it also gets unbearably hot in the summer.<\/h2>\n
\"Summer-Sanders-Sunset-In-Spain\"

Photo Courtesy: Summer Sanders<\/p><\/div>\n

An outdoor pool might mean the occasional colorful sunrise or getting to see the sky swirl with clouds and patterns. But it also comes with a much more sinister effect: in the summer, with the Southern sun beating down on the exposed water, a practice can quickly become hot, sweaty, and swampy, even while in the water.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s little worse than trudging through the midpoint of a distance workout with an already-pounding heart, heated face and the water temperature climbing past eighty-five in the ninety-five-degree-plus air providing absolutely oppressive heat. Worse yet, there\u2019s no relief \u2013 no cold shower or dry towel afterwards can make this more bearable, especially when even the most insulated water bottles give in to the blistering heat.<\/p>\n

There’s pollen, leaves, and bugs\u00a0everywhere<\/em>.<\/h2>\n
\"1767715738_2a6472086e_z\"

Photo Courtesy:<\/p><\/div>\n

Especially for those who train at facilities unfortunately situated near patches of trees or wildlife, foliage, insects, and other nature-based material can quickly turn a pristine pool into a stew of disgusting textures and objects. Diving into a pool only to swallow a bug, get a leaf stuck in your goggles, and feel pollen and seeds clinging to your legs is truly an out-of-body experience only those so fortunate to swim in the South get to feel so regularly.<\/p>\n

No amount of sweeping, skimming, or maintenance can deny this simple yet aggravating aspect of existence. Especially in the spring and summer months, this simply becomes an accepted fact of life for Southerners \u2013 regardless of it ever being comfortable.<\/p>\n

Sure, we don\u2019t face ice or snow, and we do get to see the great outdoors while churning through workouts. However, the alternative isn\u2019t necessarily better. Southern swimmers undoubtedly face a multitude of difficulties every day, and while they might not be obvious ones, they\u2019re unfortunate aspects of life that must be traded for the experience of our wonderful \u2013 albeit sometimes uncomfortable \u2013 sport.<\/p>\n

-All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.<\/span><\/i><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ryan Gibbons, Swimming World College Intern. In a sport popularly known for its summer vibes, the Southern swimmer is generally regarded as living a swimming life of luxury \u2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6852,"featured_media":356452,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[17],"tags":[74808,56793,70856,74807,22477,51622,74809],"class_list":["post-356223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary","tag-hot","tag-outdoor","tag-ryan-gibbons","tag-south","tag-southern","tag-summer","tag-warm"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nThe Struggles of Southern Swimmers - Swimming World<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"While they might not be in the blustery snow this winter, the Southern swimmer faces a long list of struggles. 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