'Tis The Season for 'Time Trials'

With January coming to a close and Regional's, Festivals, Eastern's/Western's, and Provincials all on our door steps, clubs are scrambling.

This weekend marks the final weekend for WOSA swimmers to qualify for Regional's in Windsor set for February 6-8 at the Windsor International Aquatic and Training Center, and with a handful of final invitational meets offered at various clubs this weekend clubs are taking things to another level.

Time Trials have popped up all over Swimming Canada for sanction as a last minute opportunity to qualify for a meet. I've swam a few Time Trials in my day and trust me they really don't make a difference. My view is if you can't make a qualifying time in a regular meet chances are you won't make it in your warm home pool during a regular scheduled practice. Having said that, there is the odd time where things do work out, BUT don't count on this happening every time your in a last minute crunch to make a new time standard.

When swimmers are racing in a Time Trial there is added pressure for the swimmer to make the qualifying time as the coach and meet management scrambled at the last second to pull something together... When swimmers fail to reach there time, the swimmer will say harsh things about them self and have the feeling of failure last for sometime after the Time Trial.

Is it worth the trouble???

NO!!!! Time Trials aren't the place to be making a time you need. You should be able to make your times you need a regular invitational or championship meet. Time Trials CAN be a great place to TEST your racing and allow for new things to be done. I've done some mock in practice Time Trials where I'm doing a 200 free with fins to build out my cardiovascular endurance and see where the body shuts down and fails. This what a Time Trial should look like, swimmers practicing to RACE while under pressure of practice, not the pressure of a qualifying time. So the next time you think you need a Time Trial to make a time, think twice about it and think is it worth it? and will I reach my goal?

Check out ALL the Time Trials set for this weekend and past Time Trials here