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BY HOLLY BENNETT

ONE PLUS ONE

A test in patience when arithmetic stumps my Masters lane mates

Obviously triathletes need to be mentally tough; as is often said, the mental game is half the battle. But Ill argue that being smart is also advantageous. Im not talking Nobel-prizewinning smarts, but a certain level of basic brain functioning is critical. For example, a triathlete should master simple equations such as one plus one equaling twoor to get slightly more advanced, the fact that there are exactly eight lengths of 25 meters in a 200-meter swim.

HUNTER KING

38 TRIATHLE TE SEPTEMBER 2013

something we all probably learned by Thats right, eight. Not six. Not 10. If thats too complex a calculation, how rst grade. about breaking that down into parts: two Recently there was a study suggesttimes 100, with four of those 25-meter ing that mild electroshock therapy may metrics in each hundred. Any way you potentially prove benecial to people slice it, the sum total equals eight. who struggle with math. Immediately You might sense that Im slightly upon hearing of this my heart skipped frustrated with my Masters swima beat. What if a shock-producing gadming lane mates. Welcome to what I get could be installed in the swim caps call the curse of the slow lane. Im simof my lane mates? I Googled the study ply too damn slow to swim with people andBINGO!there it was: a photo of who actually know how to follow a set. one of the subjects, his head encased For some reason, on the far side of the in tight-tting silicone. Imagine my pool, people cannot count. Sure, some excitement. I mean, I dont want to of these folks are Masters newbies who hurt anyone, but the study did say that dont yet underthe shocks were stand the concepts mild. Barely noticeable, even. Im sure behind a coached they hurt a lot less, workout. They And then there for example, than can be forgiven, are the worst when I bang my head for over time they offenders: the ones against the pool wall can be trained. But in a state of atrothe ones that show who act like they arithmeticup regularly yet know what theyre cious induced angst. require reminders doing and are Im sure some in between every of you experience single effort as to eager to lead the similar frustrations. when they should lane, but are most There must be times push offthey try certainly adhering when youre heading my patience. And into the nal 50 of a then there are the to some internal 400-meter swim, worst offenders: the clock totally out excited to accelerones who act like of sync with the ate those nal two they know what lengths, and sudtheyre doing and actual timepiece denly your lane are eager to lead the on the pool deck. leader stops short at lane, but are most the 350-meter mark. certainly adhering That guy just shortto some internal changed you 50 clock totally out of cents! Tell me you wouldnt like to have sync with the actual timepiece on the that zapper now. Or what if the woman pool deck. setting the pace in your pull set cant Im the rst to admit that I may be seem to understand the 30-second cora math snob. Due to my fathers career relation to leaving on the bottom? Give working in private schools, I enjoyed a her a little BZZZT in the bonnet. Its pretty privileged education. While math mostly painless, I promise. was far from my favorite subject, I won Ill admitmaybe Im exaggerating the school-wide geometry award over just a bit. I dont really want to elechundreds of other high achievers by trocute my training partners. But I do earning the only perfect score on a nearget bent out of shape when they F-up impossible exam. I know Ive got skills. the best laid workout plans. And the But were not talking advanced turmoil I feel totally detracts from the placement calculus here. Were talking easy math, akin to the U.S. curtranquility I normally bask in while rency values we all use every day. If a working my way up and down the black 25-meter length is like a quarter, swim line. I have to catch myself and try to a dollar and youve got your 100, a buck return to a relaxing rhythm. I remind fty for 150, two dollars for 200 and so myself to breathe (every third stroke) on. Its just not that hard to keep track, and try to make the most of the truncated or elongated sets and incorrect yet the way some swimmers agonize intervals. Because the end sum is this: over arithmetic youd think counting Until my body can keep pace with my correctly were a heroic act. The 60-second clock presents a slightly more chalbrain, until I can condently lead the lenging set of gures, but keeping time lane, Ill need to suffer through the is really not rocket sciencerather, its chaos, counting quietly in my head.
40 TRIATHLE TE SEPTEMBER 2013