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Do you know how to Swim?

Do you know How to Swim?

  • Yes - Describe

    Votes: 63 100.0%

  • No - Describe

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Learning - Describe

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Hot Tubs Only

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    63
PirateMk1 said:
I haven't done much ocean swimming, ever. I aint about to start till after I am dead. You can thank the Jaws movie for that. Thank you Mr. Spielberg for that informative documentary. I never knew about what lived in the ocean near me till then. Now I do. The dolphins can have it. Its a good thing I didn't see the movie Lake Placid till after I was an adult, otherwise I wouldnt swim in a lake.
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Just imagine all of the giant creatures that could be lurking under you. I remember being on a friend's sailboat and diving off while it was anchored off shore. One of the scariest things ever! The deeper I went the darker and colder it became. I didn't even want to THINK about what could be down there. :shock:
 
Jango said:
Nope.

I was traumatized as a young child with water. My uncle threw me in the deep end of a Holiday Inn pool and I nearly died.

And when I went into the Marines, the swim qualification Marine atop the diving board told me to learn on the way down after I told him I couldn't swim. You're supposed to land feet first (crossed at the ankles) but I belly-flopped it because the swim qual instructor pushed me really hard off the diving board. The end result? I nearly died again.
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I used to go swimming at the local town pool and there was a high dive, and I belly flopped, back flopped, all kinds of flopped off that thing. I got the wind knocked out of me I don't know how many times. I started diving off that board when I was just 7 years old.
 
MrVicchio said:
I offered swimming lessons in Cameron (that's Cameron Texas) and my class had one way to pass, go off the diving board and swim to the side.

The pool was an old one, built by the army corp of engineers back in the 30's, and it was 15' deep. None of the kids was over 12, most were 6-9.

So the first couple of lessons went poorly. I had never taught kids, and the moms were all hanging around, the kids kept looking to mum to make life better. Finally I told the moms "Go... get coffee, go shopping, go away." All did but one grandma, who would stay at the side of the pool and hold her grandsons hand. She WOULD NOT LEAVE. Whining little momma's boy that one was. I finally gave her the money back and said "sorry, can't help you".

So towards the last 3-4 lessons, I still couldn't get the kids into the deep end, it was "scary". I finally figured it out.

I got the bravest kid there, she was a real trooper to hang on my back, I took her all the way down to the bottom, touched her hand to the bottom and shot back up.

The look, when we came up of the other kids said "I'm sure you were both gonna DIE!" Well, that broke the fear, and pretty soon each kid went down, and came back up.

The big day came and every mom was there, and a few dads. When they went off the diving board it was a great moment. The parents were a little scared, the kids were having a blast.

Good times, good times.
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That was cool trick. I think I am going to steal that little trick of yours, for myself if I have the chance to teach swimming to some kids.
 
MMC said:
Most of the Chicago Park Districts taught swimming.....so did the YMCA and YWCA. I ran on both North and South Sides. But was more on the South.

Then we would head over into Indiana.....they have an Oak Street Beach up headed towards the Dunes there too. We would hang out at Beer can Alley down in around Hammond and East Chicago. Although not for swimming much. Might have thrown some people in fully clothed and all. Just the usual kids having fun, ya knows..
f_whistle.gif


On the weekends head up to Warren Dunes. Not nearly as swamped as the Chicago and Illinois Side of the City.[/
QUOTE]



Never went to any beaches in Indiana, just the drag races and later in life a biker club in Gary....lol
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Jango said:
Nope.

I was traumatized as a young child with water. My uncle threw me in the deep end of a Holiday Inn pool and I nearly died.

And when I went into the Marines, the swim qualification Marine atop the diving board told me to learn on the way down after I told him I couldn't swim. You're supposed to land feet first (crossed at the ankles) but I belly-flopped it because the swim qual instructor pushed me really hard off the diving board. The end result? I nearly died again.
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Dam, I hope you are steering clear of water these days..
 
ChrisL said:
I learned to swim when I was 5 years old. I think it's like riding a bike. Most people catch on quickly and once you learn, you never forget. Everyone probably SHOULD know how just in case.
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I don't remember ever not knowing how to swim. According to my parents I could swim before I could walk.

I remember how weird it was when a friend in the first grade at school came over and said he didn't know how to swim. I thought all people swam.
 
Juanita said:
Dam, I hope you are steering clear of water these days..
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I married a woman from a lake community. So, I invested in a life jacket.
 
ChrisL said:
I used to go swimming at the local town pool and there was a high dive, and I belly flopped, back flopped, all kinds of flopped off that thing. I got the wind knocked out of me I don't know how many times. I started diving off that board when I was just 7 years old.
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I don't no which is worse the belly flop or the back flop. They each have their own unique humiliation and pain. Of course those could be multiplied by having water drive right up your nose. Definitely an incentive to improve ones diving technique, is water that feels and acts suspiciously like concrete and has a unnatural love of your nostrils.
 
Muhammed said:
I don't remember ever not knowing how to swim. According to my parents I could swim before I could walk.

I remember how weird it was when a friend in the first grade at school came over and said he didn't know how to swim. I thought all people swam.
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I remember learning to swim, but I also remember being surprised when meeting people who couldn't. I've seen some people TRY to swim as adults who never learned as children, and I think it's one of those things you might have to learn when you're young. :lol: They look so funny flopping around in the water!
 
Jango said:
I married a woman from a lake community. So, I invested in a life jacket.
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I guess it beats drowning. Wise investment, just make sure not to take out a large insurance policy though, especially if you live by a small body, like say a pool.
 
PirateMk1 said:
I don't no which is worse the belly flop or the back flop. They each have their own unique humiliation and pain. Of course those could be multiplied by having water drive right up your nose. Definitely an incentive to improve ones diving technique, is water that feels and acts suspiciously like concrete and has a unnatural love of your nostrils.
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Ever do a back flop and then go back into the chlorinated water. OMG! :shock:

I was an awesome diver. I could killed the jack knife dive. ;)
 
PirateMk1 said:
I haven't done much ocean swimming, ever. I aint about to start till after I am dead. You can thank the Jaws movie for that. Thank you Mr. Spielberg for that informative documentary. I never knew about what lived in the ocean near me till then. Now I do. The dolphins can have it. Its a good thing I didn't see the movie Lake Placid till after I was an adult, otherwise I wouldnt swim in a lake.
Click to expand...

Yeah and its not just Sharks.....when I was in Florida. Had to watch out for Jellyfish. I was like WTF.....Jellyfish. :shock:

Then when I was out west coast. I got tricked into going to a Naked beach. But I was all up for it you might say. It was my first time out in California.....and all I could think of is all the California Women......Naked.....and on a beach. Little did I know. :shock:


See a couple of my bruthas lived out there and got us to go. I was all gung ho about it. Then they get me out on the beach. At first everything was great. Beautiful weather.....women.....women coming out of water and the sun glistening off them.....it was like Paradise. :confused:

Well then these guys decide to have some fun. So they start calling over chicks they knew. Lets introduce them to the New guy from Chicago.....Right.

So they call over a couple and they are just sitting there. Legs wide open and all our conversatin' no big deal Right......hey its great and now its introduce me. Which Now they touch me.....well.....all of a Sudden. Lil MMC decides he is going to stand up and be counted.
shocked.gif
Anyhow the girls take off. But these jamokes.....decide they gonna play on this. So now they call more girls over.

Well.....as this one come over water is just dripping down her body and I mean she is absolutely gorgeous and my weakness. Blonde. Real Blonde. Lil MMC notices this. So Now I have to roll over and bury lil MMC . Because he just wont go back to sleep.

After what seemed like an hour.....I finally get him under control. So I break for the water. Which I went out into the Ocean and was standing there about chest level in the water.

So I look around.....and now I think. Oh **** this California.....and Catalina is over that way. Home of sharks. Great Whites.. Upon this revelation.....I decided I would do my bit of helping warm the Ocean.....and I promptly headed straight out to get my clothes and left the beach. Those guys were busting up all day and night with that one. I'll tell ya.
 
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I learned to swim in the Boy Scouts. Also life saving. I saved a guy who was going down for the last time when I was in the Army. He grabbed ahold of me and tried to climb out of the water, but I expected that and I had a deep breath and he was out of breath and panicked. We both went under and after a few seconds he let go and tried to get to the top again and I had him. He was OK. When I was in high school, I was a lifeguard here: It was a private club then.
 

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When I was a kid, my parents took me and my sister to a private swim school. After I joined the U.S. Coast Guard, I had to pass a swim test. I failed and had to take a remedial class. :doh Eventually, though, I went into Coast Guard aviation. Each year as an aircrew member I'd have to go for survival training, normally by donning a survival suit and playing with radios, signal flares, and dye marker in the ocean. I also had to go through dunker school at Pensacola Naval Air Station. That sucked more, I think, than just about anything I've ever done, because you were tested four times, twice blindfolded, at each crew position. If you failed during any of the four positions, you were given one more opportunity at that position. If you didn't get it right that time, you were done. The pressure to pass was immense, because if you failed you'd be pulled off of flight status because the Coast Guard was tired of having crewmen hit the water alive only to drown because they couldn't exit the aircraft before it sank.

Anyway, we were strapped into each crew position in a simulated helicopter that looked like a giant drum and then submerged, with the "helicopter" rotated underwater. I recall that on the last shot I was was strapped into the avionicsman's seat blindfolded and told to exit out of the pilot's window forward and right of that position, which required passing through a bulkhead. I became disoriented trying to find the exit and had to pull the blindfold off. (The divers, for their own safety, were instructed not to assist a student unless he became unconscious. I decided that running out of breath was not an option, so I chose to remove the mask and fail.) In 60 degree water you lose your breath quickly, and this is after holding it for eight seconds after your head is completely submerged. (Unbuckle your safety harness early and you also fail.) Fortunately, on my fifth and final try I got it right and passed. :)
 
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Jango said:
Nope.

I was traumatized as a young child with water. My uncle threw me in the deep end of a Holiday Inn pool and I nearly died.
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My son is nearly 4 and is a scaredy cat and I think it would just be too cruel to teach him to swim that way, Ive bought beachfront property (in his name) and saving up to build a house so he can play by the beach growing up and learn to swim on his own, thats pretty much how I learned.
 
ChrisL said:
Just imagine all of the giant creatures that could be lurking under you. I remember being on a friend's sailboat and diving off while it was anchored off shore. One of the scariest things ever! The deeper I went the darker and colder it became. I didn't even want to THINK about what could be down there. :shock:
Click to expand...
I remember when the movie Jaws first came out. Me and my brothers used to scream "SHARK! SHARK!" when we rode our bikes past a nearby YMCA swimming pool. Everyone would panic, swim for the sides and jump out.
 
MMC said:
Yeah and its not just Sharks.....when I was in Florida. Had to watch out for Jellyfish. I was like WTF.....Jellyfish. :shock:

Then when I was out west coast. I got tricked into going to a Naked beach. But I was all up for it you might say. It was my first time out in California.....and all I could think of is all the California Women......Naked.....and on a beach. Little did I know. :shock:


See a couple of my bruthas lived out there and got us to go. I was all gung ho about it. Then they get me out on the beach. At first everything was great. Beautiful weather.....women.....women coming out of water and the sun glistening off them.....it was like Paradise. :confused:

Well then these guys decide to have some fun. So they start calling over chicks they knew. Lets introduce them to the New guy from Chicago.....Right.

So they call over a couple and they are just sitting there. Legs wide open and all our conversatin' no big deal Right......hey its great and now its introduce me. Which Now they touch me.....well.....all of a Sudden. Lil MMC decides he is going to stand up and be counted.
shocked.gif
Anyhow the girls take off. But these jamokes.....decide they gonna play on this. So now they call more girls over.

Well.....as this one come over water is just dripping down her body and I mean she is absolutely gorgeous and my weakness. Blonde. Real Blonde. Lil MMC notices this. So Now I have to roll over and bury lil MMC . Because he just wont go back to sleep.

After what seemed like an hour.....I finally get him under control. So I break for the water. Which I went out into the Ocean and was standing there about chest level in the water.

So I look around.....and now I think. Oh **** this California.....and Catalina is over that way. Home of sharks. Great Whites.. Upon this revelation.....I decided I would do my bit of helping warm the Ocean.....and I promptly headed straight out to get my clothes and left the beach. Those guys were busting up all day and night with that one. I'll tell ya.
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Ha! Life is so tough, MMC!
 
ChrisL said:
Ever do a back flop and then go back into the chlorinated water. OMG! :shock:

I was an awesome diver. I could killed the jack knife dive. ;)
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Lots. Call me a glutton for punishment. The worst is when it gets in your nose though. Oiy Veh!!!!!!

I was pretty good myself off the spring board. I did a and can still do a nice reverse and normal straight swan dive with really clean entry. One of the things I want to do is some cliff diving. I have to get past the Jaws thing first though.
 
PirateMk1 said:
Lots. Call me a glutton for punishment. The worst is when it gets in your nose though. Oiy Veh!!!!!!

I was pretty good myself off the spring board. I did a and can still do a nice reverse and normal straight swan dive with really clean entry. One of the things I want to do is some cliff diving. I have to get past the Jaws thing first though.
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I can still do a back dive off the side of a pool, but I haven't used a diving board in so long, I might chicken out, or at least on a high dive like we used to have at the local pool. :2razz:
 
ChrisL said:
I can still do a back dive off the side of a pool, but I haven't used a diving board in so long, I might chicken out, or at least on a high dive like we used to have at the local pool. :2razz:
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If I were to try even a tenth of the crazy **** we used to do off the spring board when we were kids, I would end up killing myself. Looking back, I honestly wonder how we made out alive let alone relatively uninjured.
 
Ray410 said:
Ha! Life is so tough, MMC!
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Yeah.....well those guys were use to it bro. They could sit there and stare at women all day long and it wouldn't phase them. I was like WTF you guys aren't human. :lol:

But now take one of them girls and throw on one of those skin tight Snow skiing outfits. Payback is a.....yeah well. :mrgreen:

You will never get me to go back to an naked beach......Eva!!!!! :lamo
 
PirateMk1 said:
If I were to try even a tenth of the crazy **** we used to do off the spring board when we were kids, I would end up killing myself. Looking back, I honestly wonder how we made out alive let alone relatively uninjured.
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I know! I could never do flips well. I could do one, but I never could untuck myself in time when trying to do more than one and would always land on my back or some other odd position. :lol:
 
The German said:
-- But since I spent half of my childhood in Cardiff I learnd how to swim pritty early at the beach --
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The waters in Cardiff bay and surrounding were appalling quality when I grew up there in the early 70's. The redevelopment and regeneration have been brilliant and I hear the water is now very clean.

As for me, I learned to swim when I went to secondary school in Cardiff. Neither of my parents pushed importance of the ability to swim and I tend to be heavy in the water (I sink - more so as a younger military man with less body fat) and I can only do the front crawl. I used to swim a mile a day when I competed in international military pentathlon but I was and am a low competency swimmer. The one thing that always threatened my place on the team was that I was the poorest swimmer.

I dreaded the 50 metre fully clothed swim in full combat gear, it included an underwater swim under a platform which always nearly drowned me.

As a consequence, I've made sure all 3 of my kids started swimming as early as possible.
 
ChrisL said:
I know! I could never do flips well. I could do one, but I never could untuck myself in time when trying to do more than one and would always land on my back or some other odd position. :lol:
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Ohhh I have felt your pain quite literally, its all coming back to me now. Ouuuch.:stars:
 
PirateMk1 said:
Ohhh I have felt your pain quite literally, its all coming back to me now. Ouuuch.:stars:
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It's funny because I was a gymnast and a cheerleader, and I could do flips without any problems on land, but for some reason off a diving board I sucked at it. :lol:
 
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