Olympic Dreams

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Lap swimming started at noon everyday all Summer at the outdoor pool in the small New England town, ending a morning that included six hours of swim team practices. The pool was older, built in the 1950’s or 60’s, but it had been well maintained and updated several times over the years. Still, it showed its age. Impressive, however, for such a small community. It was a full size Olympic pool when it was built, 50 yards in length, double the size of the indoor pool down the street. It also had a deep dive section that created an L shape, with an impressive three levels of dive platforms. The city recreation had made a serious commitment to swimming, and it paid off with one Olympian who took several gold medals and a couple other swimmers who got darn close to being Olympians. The pool served double duty as the town’s recreation pool and the Summer base for a very strong club program that was the producer of the amazing swim talent. From 6AM to noon, the pool filled with Speedo clad swimmers from all over the east coast, both genders. During the practices, a cadre of early teen girls would eventually line the grassy knoll behind the pool to watch the cute guys in their tiny swimsuits. Rain or shine, except for thunder, the swimmers were there. The pool was always open.

Jimmy grew up on a farm just outside of town. It was the summer just ahead of his 9th grade year, a big deal for a young man his age. He was a skinny kid, with little muscular development, and not very athletic. He was just starting to show an interest in girls, but not many showed an interest in him. He was one of the “poor kids,” the farm hardly made money and both Mom and Dad worked, for a dad a second job besides the farm. Something happened though, the prior Summer that really impacted Jimmy. He watched the Summer Olympics on the family’s old television and was captured by the swimming events. The guys looked amazingly strong, and the girls looked amazingly pretty. Jimmy had never really swam before, in fact he barely knew how. The thought percolated in his mind his whole eighth grade year. He never told anyone, not even his best, and really only, friend. At the local Kmart, his only hint to his mom was when he asked her to buy him a swimsuit, something he never had before. He knew his cut off jeans would not work. She bought him a pair of blue boxer short style trunks, the kind with a mesh liner inside and a drawstring. Not exactly what the real swimmers wore, but it was the best they could do.

The coach of the swim program sat at a table at the far end of the pool, eating lunch and finishing up his notes on the day. Often would meet one to one with his swimmers, and sometimes they would take one lane for some individual work. He didn’t pay much attention to the skinny young swimmer in the blue shorts who had arrived just as the open lap swimming started. Jimmy struggled swimming the length of the pool, clinging to the wall after each attempt. Fifty yards seemed like an eternity, he’d catch his breath and start again. He had no form, no skill, and no goggles. His arms fought the water, looking like he was on the brink of drowning. Despite all the reasons to just quit, Jimmy kept going, his mind focused on his desire to be a real swimmer. Oh sure, it would be easier to just sign up for lessons, but that took money, something his family didn’t really have.

The tall lean swimmer sat with the coach for a few minutes. The coach was giving him some feedback on his practice and his need to build more pull strength. Having just finished four hours of practice, he was still in the red and blue custom dyed team practice suit, a very brief cut swimsuit from Agon Swim. The suit looked so small and tight on his tall and muscular body, his long legs spread open as he sat in the chair, listening intently. Finally, he rose from the chair, grabbed his goggles and cap, and walked back toward the remaining open lane in the pool. The teen girls didn’t know what to look at first, his cute smile, his powerful and well defined upper body, his muscular legs, or the way the suit left nothing to imagine as it created a well outlined bulge in front. No matter what, they all were mesmerized by his handsome good looks. Cap on, he jumped back in the water, taking the lane right next to Jimmy.

“Let’s do some serious pulls,” the coach said as he rigged up the pull balloon and handed Greg the belt to wrap around his waist. Greg clasped the belt, made a few adjustments. “I want a solid set of five 100’s, ten second break between,” the coach said.

“You really know how to make a guy have fun, coach,” Greg said with a smile.

“All for your own good,” coach replied.

Greg pushed hard off the wall, but the balloon pulled back as it inflated with water. He felt the tug of the belt on his waistline, and he came to nearly a complete stop. He pulled hard with his arms, no kick as his legs wrapped around the pull buoy nestled almost up to his crotch. “This sucks,” Greg thought as he struggled to pull through the water. Greg was a swimmer from Connecticut, entering his senior year, and really hoping to swim in college. He spent the past two Summer breaks up in the small town known for its amazing swim program and working with the Olympic caliber coach. The impact on his swimming was obvious, just as the impact on his body was. He was a much better and stronger swimmer, but it came with work. His girlfriend, however, liked how all the extra workouts made him look in his Speedo suits, even though he never wore them at the beach. He did, however, wear them if the two of them hung out at her backyard pool.

Jimmy watched as the tall, lean swimmer next to his pushed off the wall and seemed to effortlessly pull the balloon down the pool. It just looked like hard work. It was a sight of contrast, Jimmy in his blue swim shorts fighting to make his way one length, while Greg seemed to glide down the pool and back, a serious swimmer look with his cap, shaded goggles, and the form fitting swimsuit. Greg was doing two full laps to each one of Jimmy’s lengths. Jimmy was in awe, that was exactly how he wanted to swim, and despite being outclassed by Greg, he took a great deal of motivation from watching his zoom by. Once the balloon was gone, Greg’s full form was inspiring. The strong, well timed kicks, the far reaching pulls, and the way he seemed to swim almost on his side, as if he was merely slicing the water. Oh sure, there was the fact that his body was amazing and he was built like a swimmer, which Jimmy also noted, but he was more taking in the skill. The coach paid Jimmy no attention, hardly a glance.

Coach wrapped up with Greg after about 45 minutes. Nearly five hours in the pool was good enough for now. Another workout at 6 and then Greg would call it a day and get some sleep. As the coach walked away, Greg hung out at the end of the pool, just enjoying the sunshine and the attention of the young girls. They were well under his age, but he got a kick out of the way they carried on over all the guys on the team. They reminded him of his kid sister back home. Boy crazy at that age. Greg turned and watched as Jimmy churned out another length of the pool.

“His swimming is a mess,” Greg thought to himself. “But he seems to just keep going,” Jimmy’s endurance came from all the work on the farm. Certainly not the same as swimming, but he had the ability to just plug away for hours on end. Jimmy made the wall and stood, the 4 feet of water up to the middle of his abdomen. He gulped air as much as he gulped water.

“Hi,” Greg said.

“Hi,” Jimmy replied. “You’re a really good swimmer,”

“Thanks,” Greg replied. As much as he was an amazing athlete, Greg was also a really kind hearted guy. Down to earth, no arrogance. “How long have you been coming here,” Greg asked.

“First time,” Jimmy replied.

“I’ve been watching you, you got lots of endurance,” Greg replied. “Want a few tips on the swimming?”

“That would be awesome,” Jimmy replied.

“Well, first we got to get you to keep your head down in the water. Every time you raise your head it stops all your momentum,” Greg explained. “Let me show you.” Greg showed Jimmy what he needed to do. Despite his advanced skill, he was a very patient teacher.

Jimmy absorbed very word and every demo. Certainly he was never going to get it right the first day, but Greg spent a solid half hour working with Jimmy. Once it looked like Jimmy had the right idea, Greg backed off.

“well, I’ve been in here for over five hours now,” Greg said. “Time to get out for me. You keep working on that.”

“Thanks, man,” Jimmy said. They never exchanged names. Jimmy hoped they would meet again.

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Greg leaped out of the pool and stood in the warm sun, partly to watch Greg and partly to tease his cadre of groupies. He slipped his fingers into his waist and pulled the strings out and untied them, his swimmer signal that he was done. The loose strings hung down the front of his suit. He admired Jimmy’s determination, even if he was a textbook picture of bad form. But, his breathing looked way better. Greg turned and went to the locker room.

Jimmy was still swimming when Greg was all changed. He had easily been in the water almost ninety minutes and was showing no signs of stopping. Greg came out of the locker room and walked back over to Jimmy’s lane. Greg had on plaid board shorts, a tank top and sandals, much to the disappointment of the girls, who were all starting to head elsewhere. Greg bent over as Jimmy approached the wall.

“Hey, I thought you could use these,” Greg said as he handed Jimmy a pair of swim goggles. “It will be way easier on your eyes.”

Jimmy beamed a huge smile. “Thanks, you are really nice. Where should I put them after I am done.?”

“Keep them. I got plenty.” Greg replied. “See ya sometime.” Greg turned and walked away.

Jimmy slipped the goggles on and began his next length. The improvement was immediate. He could see everything. “Now, I am a real swimmer,” Jimmy thought. Jimmy had a long way to go, but on this afternoon he was on cloud nine.

[Byron]

Interesting relationship to develop here? ("to watch Jimmy")

The raised head is a common mistake and I always think I know a good from a bad
swimmer when I enter on to the pool deck (the lanes reserved for club training night are a different matter however and the displays of good form are impressive and appear effortless).
It occurs to me that those constant head movements will induce early exhaustion as well as loss of momentum.

[Dooley67]

STS,

Once again, you've created an introduction that raises questions in my mind about how things will go in the relationship. Already, the characters of Jimmy and Greg are well developed so that we have a strong sense of what kind of people they are, Jimmy a hard worker with a dream, and Greg, a strong, popular swimmer with a big heart. I'm eager to see what happens. Thanks for starting a new story so soon after the conclusion of the last one.

D67

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Author's note: I meant to post this at the first chapter. This is a short story about swimming. Some of the characters are teenage. There will be no graphic content or inappropriate activity. For those of you who swim or did at one time, I hope you enjoy the swimming theme of this short story...STS
____________


Typical New England weather, the heat wave of the last week broke with a cold front that took the temps overnight to the low 50’s. The day opened grey and cloudy, quickly becoming an even more delightful grey and rainy. The high was only going to 64. As usual, the pool was open, with the swim team practice in full swing, despite the bursts of rain. No thunder, but looming grey clouds buried the sun away. The usual grouping of girls did not show, making for a more boring day for the guys on the team, who all seemed to enjoy the attention. Too bad for the young girls, today was focused on starts, so the team made a constant rotation off the blocks, swam to the mid point ladder, then climbed out and waited to start again. It would have been a good show of the boys on the team. The cold air was a big contrast from the 78 degree pool, both the guys and girls on the team wrapped their arms around themselves and shivered as they waited their turns.

Jimmy had not missed a day of swimming. Ten in a row so far, and a little rain was not going to stop him. He slipped on his blue swimsuit, tied the strings, pulled on a windbreaker jacket and headed out on is bike to the pool. His towel and goggles secure in a plastic bag on the small rack that sat over the back tire on his old, single speed Schwinn bicycle. By the time Jimmy reached the pool, the rain was coming down in buckets, which was actually a good thing. Not only did it help the farm, but it also meant most of his chores could not be done. Sort of a Summer snow day.

“Wow, I am impressed, you’re the only one here for laps,” Molly said as Jimmy walked through the gate.

“Just a little rain,” Jimmy said. “I’m gonna get wet anyway.”

“Good point,” Molly replied. She never asked Jimmy for the $2 entry fee. While it wasn’t much money, she knew that Jimmy’s family was of modest means, so she just ignored it. She told the rest of the crew to do the same. “Have a good swim,” Molly added.

The swim team was huddled under a picnic covering, still in their swimsuits, but most had towels wrapped around them. Jimmy jumped in the second lane of the now empty pool. He stood at the top end of the lane checking out the cute swimmer girls, a brief distraction from what he was there to do, but he couldn’t just ignore them. He also saw Greg standing amongst the guys. He had not seen Greg since that first day, he wondered if Greg would see him. Jimmy finally put on his goggles and started his first lap.

While Jimmy didn’t fully appreciate it, he had come a long way in his first ten days. Foremost, he no longer stopped after each length, in fact he now was swimming down and back several times before he had to stop. His breathing also looked so much better, and he was picking up speed. His form and technique still needed lots of work, but the progress was clearly evident. Hard work was paying off. Jimmy stopped for a break, looking over at the swim team again. Most of the girls had left, but a few remained along with a bunch of the guys, including Greg. Greg was busy flirting with one of the girls, having wrapped them both together in his towel. They were laughing. Jimmy smiled, with a hint of jealousy at Greg’s luck with such a cute girl. He resumed his laps.

“Hey, you are looking great,” Jimmy heard a voice as he approached he wall. He stopped and stood. Greg was standing at the edge of the pool looking at Jimmy.

“Thanks, trying,” Jimmy replied. Greg had a towel still wrapped around him, the rain had picked up some more, Greg’s wet hair dripping with the rain flowing off his head.

“Let me see,” Greg asked. He watched as Jimmy pushed off and swam. He had much improved, but was still somewhat pulling his head up. Greg watched as Jimmy swam down and then back. When Jimmy reached the wall, Greg had jumped in and was already standing in the water. Up close, Jimmy marveled at how strong and muscular Greg looked. Not in a sexual way, there were no such desires in Jimmy, except when it came to girls. Rather he was envious of Greg’s impressive display of the male body. No wonder he caught all the girls attention, thought Jimmy.

“You are doing great,” Greg said. “Hey, by the way, my name is Greg,” he extended his hand.

“Oh yeah, Jimmy.”

“So, two tips for today. First, when you breath you want to keep your head down.”

“I thought I was,” said Jimmy, somewhat deflated.

“You really are, but just as you start to breath you pull it up a bit. So, as you breath, I want you to pretend you are going to look at your chest, then as you breath act like you want to look slightly behind you,” Greg explained. He demonstrated standing up. “See what I mean?”

“I think so,” Jimmy replied. “This swimming really is hard.”

Greg laughed. “Yeah, harder than most think. Let me show you.”

Once Greg was convinced Jimmy understood, Greg went to point number two. He explained to Jimmy the need to try to keep his arm strokes closer to his body and follow all the way through. “You lose half the stroke by pulling out early like you are.” Greg explained. This took much longer to get Jimmy to understand. Greg, the patient teacher, stayed with it. He watched Jimmy swim, walking along side as Jimmy went, stopping and starting him to give him more tips. Jimmy was somewhat overwhelmed by all the things he had to think about. His frustration level was creeping up.

“I am not sure I will ever get this,” Jimmy said in exasperation.

“Hey, you are doing awesome,” Greg replied. “It just takes practice. Now, you work on that. Meanwhile I need to get out of this tight swimsuit and get something to eat.”

“Thanks, Greg,” Jimmy replied as he watched Greg effortlessly leap out of the pool, the muscles in his arms flexing with the lift. “By the way, you have a cool swimsuit,” Jimmy added.

“See ya sometime,” Greg closed out the second impromptu lesson just as he had the last time. He did not respond to Jimmy about the suit, but he did like the particular suit he was wearing, an Arena brand brief with a black background and the Arena emblem emblazoned against a contrasting swirl of orange colors that wrapped from his left side seam and faded into the black background about mid way in front. It was one of Greg’s favorite swimsuits.

Jimmy spent the next 90 minutes trying to practice everything Greg had told him. He was now the only person in the whole pool, the rest of the regulars scared away by the rain and colder temps. The sole lifeguard was under an umbrella and wrapped in a blanket. It was a guy about Greg’s age, and he seemed none to pleased that Jimmy was making him sit out in the rain. By the time Jimmy was done, he had gulped a gallon of pool water in his effort to coordinate the breathing and the improved stroke technique. The rain had picked up again, and the wind was now blowing hard enough to make small waves on the long pool. Jimmy called it a day, more frustrated than he had ever been. He hoisted himself out of the pool, wanting to be able to one day leap out like Greg does. The pouring rain felt cold and raw. He grabbed his soaked towel and wrapped it around his shoulders. It was going to be a crummy ride home.

The swim coach, Frank, was sitting working on his laptop inside the small office. He looked up and watched as the skinny teenager in blue shorts climbed out of the pool. While he hadn’t really paid much attention to Jimmy, far too busy with the swimmers he had to worry about, he was impressed that the kid actually came and swam on such an awful weather day. Frank had also watched as Greg gave Jimmy swim tips. “Well, what he lacks in skill he makes up for in determination,” Frank said aloud to nobody, as he resumed entering his coaching notes into his laptop.

Jimmy went into the small locker room, for no reason than it got him out of the rain. He stood in front of the mirror looking at himself. While he didn’t see it, the ten days of swimming was already creating definition in his underweight body. He tugged at his swim shorts, which were clinging to him. He slipped on his windbreaker and readied for his ride home. “Maybe I should just give this up,” Jimmy quietly thought to himself, still frustrated at how awful he was after Greg tried to help him. “I’m just not as good as those guys,” he deflating thoughts continued.

“Hey, Jimmy,” called Molly as he passed by the gate. Jimmy stopped and turned.

“You are really getting to be strong in the water,” she complimented him.

A huge smile beamed across Jimmy’s face. His pride swelled. All the frustration suddenly left his mind. He stood taller. “Thanks,” he replied. A spring in his step, it turned out to be not such a crummy ride home. Jimmy hardly noticed the rain.

[Dooley67]

STS,

I'm really liking this story because again, it has characters who are very good and decent people. I loved that a little comment from Molly made Jimmy's day and the little help for Greg pushed Jimmy to keep on trying. I'm still wondering how Jimmy's and Greg's relationship will develop - mentor/mentee? or big brother/little brother?

I especially liked your very clear disclaimer about age and content and that this story was going to be just about swimming.

D67