Swimmers, more specifically moms of swimmers....

[taffy]

We are at the state YMCA swim meet, yesterday was the first day of events and DS had a rather bad day. His 2nd event, the 50 fly his goggles came off when he dove in. They wrapped around his mouth and he couldn't breathe. The chlorine was so bad he couldn't see so he kept running into the lane ropes.  It was really, really bad. He looked like a pinball bouncing between the ropes....the timer had to call his name to get him going in the right direction. He finished crying...but finished. (I eventually got him to laugh later by telling him they were going to invent a new stroke called The Marco Polo Fly in his honor). 

Then, during the 200 free, his best event, the goggles filled with water after he dove in and he couldn't see so he didn't flip turn and had a not so good time. 

One of the teammates let him borrow goggles for his last event but he said water was still getting in. I know how to get goggles to fit me...but at a loss as how to make sure his fit properly. It doesn't help that this is the only meet he's had to dive in, the rest they start in the water. We tried putting them on under his cap but that didn't help with the water getting in. BTW he is 9. 

Also,
he ended up getting dq'd from that 50 fly because he pulled the goggles off of his mouth to breathe. I understand he broke the plane of his arm stroke but he couldn't breathe! 

Any suggestions on making sure they are on tight enough?

[joenali]

Well, this kind of thing happens all the time to kids at meets. It's how they learn. He's going to need to tighten the goggles and dive over and over again, until he finds the right fit for diving( make sure the head is tucked in the dive, then the goggles might not fall off), he also can wear a cap over the goggle straps to keep them secured.

Other than that, you can try the vanquishers for kids and try different nose pieces. But have him continue to work on diving.

[taffy]

The problem is finding places for him to dive. Most of the places where we live require you to be members of that program to practice. However, it seems our Y is cutting its swim team so we will be joining one of those programs in the fall so he will hopefully be better next year. I was hoping for a quick fix for today's meet....it was heartbreaking to watch.

[joenali]

Just think how much tougher he's going to be the next time this happens, because it will happen again. It happens to all of us.

[taffy]

Very true! He's a tough kid, it was probably harder on Dh and I watching than for him.......then again ....! I'm not sure I would have been tough enough to have finished at his age. I probably would have stopped at the other end and crawled under the bleachers. He did make the finals in his 100 IM and he's at the bottom of his age group so we were very proud. And he's got a full sched today. They do get some diving practice before the meet so we will take full advantage of that.

[Susie]

Every single swimmer kid goes through a phase of that. I'm sure it's hard to watch as a parent, but there's no other way to learn. It even happens occasionally to older kids. It's not always just about tightness of the goggle strap, there's also fit on his face relative to his facial bones, and the bridge of the nose being small enough. Try a couple different shaped styles. Also try tightening them, and the 2nd cap thing that was already suggested. When I was a kid I had separate race goggles that I just kept at a tighter size.

And he absolutely has to practice diving with the goggles. Doesn't he go to swim practice now? Maybe before practices, maybe after practices... you can't just try on and tighten down and hope this problem goes away.

As for the DQ, the fact that he got DQ'ed was obviously not a value judgment that he should not have taken his goggles off his mouth. It's just the reality that he didn't complete the race within the specific technical rules for fly. Dem's da breaks. They can't sit there with the rule book and say "oh, but we'll let it slide for this reason..." Super slippery slope.

[joenali]

Jul 26, 2014 19:38:52 GMT -5 Susie said:

Every single swimmer kid goes through a phase of that. I'm sure it's hard to watch as a parent, but there's no other way to learn. It even happens occasionally to older kids. It's not always just about tightness of the goggle strap, there's also fit on his face relative to his facial bones, and the bridge of the nose being small enough. Try a couple different shaped styles. Also try tightening them, and the 2nd cap thing that was already suggested. When I was a kid I had separate race goggles that I just kept at a tighter size.

And he absolutely has to practice diving with the goggles. Doesn't he go to swim practice now? Maybe before practices, maybe after practices... you can't just try on and tighten down and hope this problem goes away.

As for the DQ, the fact that he got DQ'ed was obviously not a value judgment that he should not have taken his goggles off his mouth. It's just the reality that he didn't complete the race within the specific technical rules for fly. Dem's da breaks. They can't sit there with the rule book and say "oh, but we'll let it slide for this reason..." Super slippery slope.

This is why I love swimming for kids. The rules are the same for everyone, whether you are 6 or 18, or even 95! If you don't do the stroke correctly you are dq'd. Then you take what went wrong and you fix it and hopefully never do it again. There is no wiggle room and no excuses!

[bina]

I really do think it happens to everyone who swims. One meet i had my goggles break, then that same race with the leaky goggles i couldn't see, hit the lane line which was ridiculously course rope and ripped the back of my suit wide open. I hope with your support he keeps going for it, because when he surpasses personal best or wins a race there's like almost no better feeling.

[taffy]

Thanks all for the advice. He made it through today with no goggle malfunctions! He even made it to the finals in a couple of events. His medley relay team got 2nd overall with him doing the fly! He added time in most of his events but I think he had fun with his friends.

[lovelyshoes]

I am glad that day 2 went better. I agree with trying different goggles. My son loves tyr brand ones and we try on several before he settles on a pair. He keeps them super tight too, to the point that they leave an indent on his face. I would also suggest having a few pairs so he has an extra one at meets.
Good job to your son for pushing through and finishing.

[arch01]

Try different goggles and/or check the placement of the straps. Split straps are typically best-and if you imagine a ponytail mid-head, a strap should be above and below that.