14 Ways To Tell You Come From a Swimming Family
By J.P. Mortenson
Due to the sport’s all-consuming nature, swimming inevitably becomes a family affair. And once your family becomes a swimming family, the sport will affect your home life in more ways than you could have ever imagined! Here are 15 ways to tell you come from a swimming family.
1. Somewhere In Your House Is A Dedicated Gear Area.
Photo Courtesy: Amelia J. Brackin
This place is full of mesh bags, old see-through swimsuits, goggles, caps, and has a distinct smell of chlorine.
2. There Is Also Probably A Bucket Of Old Medals And Ribbons.
Photo Courtesy: Vaughn Ridley/Swimming Canada
After many years of meets, what was once so precious now just seems to pile up.
3. Chlorine-Fried Hair In Family Photos.
Photo Courtesy: Andrea Staccioli / Insidefoto / Deepbluemedia
No need to pay for haircuts when it just breaks off, and who doesn’t love that nice green tint?
4. Unending Amounts of Moisturizer.
Photo Courtesy: Isabelle Robuck
In swimming families, dry skin becomes a family-wide epidemic due to constant immersion in large bodies of chlorinated water. Moisturizer becomes an intimate family friend, as you probably have bottles of moisturizer in your car, shower, bag, and basically any other place you can think of.
5. Parkas.
Photo Courtesy: Chandler Brandes
For swimmers, parkas are like a warm hug that you get to wear on your way to the pool right up until the horrible moment when you have to take it off and jump into the freezing water for warmup. If you come from a swimming family, there are probably swimming parkas stashed all over your home, and you almost certainly have become either the recipient or donor of a hand-me-down.
6. Early Alarm Clocks.
Beep! Beep! Beep! It is 4:30 a.m. and still dark outside, of course indicating that it is time to go to the pool! If you come from a family of swimmers, it is almost a guaranteed that your family rises earlier than most.
7. Wardrobes That Are Full Of Worn Out Team And Meet Apparel.
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick
After years of being on teams and going to competitions, your family is likely to have large quantities of team shorts, shirts, sweatshirts, hats, and basically any other type of garment. Even parents seem to accumulate quite a bit of gear.
8. Stocked Fridge.
If you come from a swimming family, your fridge is probably overstocked with any type of food you can imagine, and it will shock you how quickly it all seemingly disappears into thin air. Your family’s grocery bill also probably resembles the national debt.
9. Family Vacations Only Being in August.
Anyone who thinks swimming is “seasonal,” think again. December break? Think “training.” Spring break? Think “training.” The good news is that most swimmers get a couple weeks off in August.
10. The Unending Barrage of Wet Towels.
Some swimming families have to have two dryers. And don’t even think about the towels that get forgotten in a swim bag for a few days. The good news is that most towels are new-ish, as many towels get orphaned at swim meets and practices.
11. The Summer Olympics Are a Must-See Family Blockbuster Event.
Photo Courtesy: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
At the Olympics, swimming is shown prime-time, and swimmers are among the leading men and women. Can we do this more often than one week every four years?
12. A Noticeable Lack of Land-Sport Ability and Coordination.
In nature, there are water animals, and there are land animals. For that same reason, if a swimmer is a two-sport athlete, the second sport is usually water polo.
13. Parents Who Are Willing To Wait For Hours To Watch Their Kids Swim For 30 Seconds, And Who Run And Hide At The Sentence “We Need Timers!”
Photo Courtesy: Cathleen Pruden
Parents are champions for enduring swim meet marathons, and Mom and Dad are no fools.
14. Kids Who Have Learned How to Annoy Each Other Because You Spend So Much Time In The Car Driving To Meets.
Photo Courtesy: Swimming World
Do you love singing every verse of “100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall” three times? Do you love hearing it?
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.
This is so us Amanda and Harrison
#13 !!!! So true!
Terry Mac Michelle Arzaga Mikey W Arz Wilfred Arzaga ?
#16 you find things like paddles in the toy box.
Leza O’Donoghue how many of these can you relate to, it’s the endless towels for me and I actually have some of the exact moisturiser they have in the picture!
Brid Browne ??
Amen
Alice O’Leary McClenahan, Sam O’Leary, David Schraven?
Vacations in between short-course and long-course or in August!!??????
Sounds about right… but still the greatest sport ever!!!
And forgotten wet gear in the swim bags?
Swim bag science experiments!
Anahi Schreuders Mikel Schreuders
Jennifer Hallman
Grace Hallman Yup.
Emily Sykes StevenandKim Sykes
Becca Sykes All of it is true, and we wouldn’t change it for anything?
Ashleigh no. 13 definitely ??
This article is somewhat naive. We had a competitive figure skater, a hockey player and finally a swimmer. Most of these points are applicable to other sports,, including the August vacation. The only points that were not applicable were thrones involving chlorine and towels.
Let the man publish his article in peace! Do you just go about hating on random internet lists about swimming that have no impact on your life? Lay off woman.
Someone got up on the wrong side of 2019 today. YOU need to lay off.
Not even brave enough to show your real name huh? John John is standing up against toxicity and if you don’t watch out YOU will be next my friend.
Let him post his list in peace Arlene! Do you just go around hating on random internet lists with no bearing on your life? Lay off woman.
All true after 3 kids who all made it to national level!!!!
People go on vacations other than August???
When you belong to a multi-generational swimming family, you also have that moment in every family gathering, including Thanksgiving dinner, when one or more people start waving their arms around, demonstrating some point about swimming strokes.
Or remember a time from a race 20 years ago but can’t remember to put the milk away….
Mitchell Brustad Lori Brustad James Brustad
Nailed it… and clogged drains from a shaving “party”….
Corey McMeeking Candice Dawson ?
Hey Fosters- looking good on that cover shot!! Reading this list was like TBT – and can’t say that I miss it AT ALL! ? Best of luck to all those dedicated swimmers (and parents!) out there! ??♂️??♀️
Cal we ticked off every one ?
They forgot to mention the dry rack/s in the kitchen as swimsuits nowadays are not allowed to dry in the sun.
No communication matters here. The great thing about swimming is that “anyone” can swim. We remember well training next to some of the “elite” Commonwealth Games swimmers – and teaching “learn to swim” to the kids.
Got to say Les Mills and Ms Timbers – great support – and always the focus on training and lots of practice for the main meets and “event/s”!!
Definitely got a bucket of medals ?
So very true!!
Yep
Mary Richard Helen Tom number 13 ?
Louise Willdridge 1, 2,6, and 10 seem to fit too ?♀️?♂️???
Nice. But…. need 1 more. 1 of the parents begs off work for a Friday swim meet becaused the 3 day meet needs officials.
Wouldn’t have it any other way
Sarah Schultz ??
Erin Braden Goss
Ronald Paul Fun
Omg. This is our life. ??
Julia Moran Ann Moran Bill Moran Liam
Linda Rudzis Kim Brennan Nicky Al ??
Yes! ❤️
This a good article ❤️❤️
Fleur this definitely Team Turner-Parker!! ??♀️ xxxxx
Michelle Matson love it and so true!!! Kept reading going “yep” ??xxxxx
Lara Siebrecht Deborah Siebrecht quite a few are accurate here – ‘designated gear area’ – aka Keller
Emily Siebrecht all are True ?
Deborah Poulson number 14
Caitlin Poulson ???
Kyle Stefanides Isabella Stefanides Angelika Stefanides
Sheean Seyfang Mel Brooks Kerry Evans Aaron Seyfang
Kareena Seyfang number 13 is definitely me
Aaron Seyfang me too
Kareena Seyfang And me! Can’t run to save my life but can easily swim 2 km before the sun comes up! ?
Kerry Evans
Exactly! And wouldn’t change it for anything in the entire world!
Sarah Gallagher
#JusticForNirmala
#14???
# 10
For last nine years!!
Fleur Turner definitely your house!! ??♀️?♂️?♂️?♂️ xxxxx
Michelle Matson ??? think we relate to all of those!! Made me think of the alarms going off in the middle of the night to watch Peaty in Rio! Family affair in our bedroom ?? xxxxx