A Sippy Woodhead NAG Record is 45 Years Old; A Look at U.S. Life in 1978 (Hint: $.63 Gas)
In light of the several National Age-Group records that went down over the weekend at Winter Juniors, it seemed like a good time to pay homage to an NAG that has stood the test of time.
How does the cliché go? Records are made to be broken. Well, some standards have expiration dates that far outlast the shelf life of others. Allow us to introduce Cynthia “Sippy” Woodhead, the Hall of Famer and middle-distance ace who rose to stardom as a teenager in the 1970s. Forty-five years ago, Woodhead posted a time in the 400-meter freestyle that remains the NAG record for the 13-14 classification.
Sippy Woodhead Feature: Part I
Sippy Woodhead Feature: Part II
Racing at the 1978 World Championships, Woodhead covered eight laps of freestyle in 4:07.15. That effort was good for the silver medal in Berlin, with Australian Tracey Wickham earning gold in a world record of 4:06.28. Woodhead’s time would have been 10th-fastest during prelims of the 400 free at last summer’s World Champs in Fukuoka.
It’s difficult to comprehend a record enduring for 45 years, especially with the United States’ regular production of teenage stars. The fact that Woodhead continues to own the NAG mark in the 400 freestyle means she has withstood challenges from the likes of Janet Evans and Katie Ledecky, future Olympic champions in the event. It also proves how Woodhead was significantly ahead of her generation – and that is an understatement.
For a little entertainment, here is what the world looked like in 1978, when Woodhead was a 14-year-old superstar.
Cost of New Home: $55,000
Cost of Gas: $.63 per gallon
Cost of New Car: $5,400
U.S. President: Jimmy Carter
Popular Toys: Hungry, Hungry Hippos; Simon
Popular TV Show: Laverne & Shirley
Popular Movie: National Lampoon’s Animal House
Super Bowl Champions: Dallas Cowboys
World Series Champions: New York Yankees
NBA Champions: Washington Bullets
Stanley Cup Champions: Montreal Canadiens
World Cup Champion: Argentina
The memories are so good. Yes, I know….. You look old when you look back to the “good old days”, but in so many ways, they really were. The “Kiddie Corps” back then were fearless and ready to take on the East Germans and win! And by gosh, they did! They blind-sided the East German federation. After Montreal, their confidence level was ridiculously high. This repeated into 1977 at the USA/DDR Dual Meet in East Berlin. The East German women still won, but not by much which led into 1978 and the American ladies were ready for a rematch in West Berlin. And oh boy, it will Iive in the memories of everyone who saw it. For a brief moment, the Americans owned the East Germans. 1978 was a very good year!
I think the 4×100 free relay in 76 gave our Ladies the confidence boost they needed. After that, they rolled!
What a great time to remember!❤️
My humble brag is that I got lapped by 12 yr old Sippy when I qualified for Nationals in the 1650 in 1977.
When Sippy lapped me, she swam considerably faster than the current 11-12 NAG 1650 record of 16:34. Unfortunately they didn’t officially keep 1650 records for 11-12 girls until about 20 years later.
Heard her speak at a coach’s convention in Seattle about ‘79. She was funny, engaging. A real joy.
I swam against Sippy at the Yale 50 meter pool….like 100 years ago! Lol I’m 5 years younger but we had a good race and she was very kind.
The other item to remember about these times from the 70’s is that they were done in nylon suits and many did not wear goggles, because they were kind of unreliable back then. A lot of women swimmers also didn’t wear swim caps! Imagine doing that today!