Olympic Dreams

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Randy and Jimmy joined the rest of the swimmers on the bleachers, a collection of wet guys, suits clinging to them like cellophane wrap. Randy was on Jimmy’s right, their bodies almost touching as they sat on the tightly packed first row of bleachers. Randy’s hand was nestled right up against Jimmy’s leg. Jimmy felt it there, but with the tight seating, he gave it no attention. For Randy, the placement was more strategic. The guys all watched as the second and third waves of the free took place. Randy felt himself getting worked up. It happened fast, so fast Randy couldn’t stop it. Within a few seconds, he was rock hard inside his swimsuit.. He wiggled his legs a bit, hoping to ease the sensation between his legs. It didn’t help.

“I can’t believe this,” Randy thought to himself. He had found guys at swimming cute, but never to the point the got like this. His swimsuit was bulging tremendously. Randy bent over, trying desperately to calm himself down. He had heard some guys talk about getting boners in their swimsuits, but this was new to him. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do. Despite all his efforts, he was getting harder and more aroused. Jimmy was driving him wild.

“Watch the guy in lane three,” Randy said to Jimmy, trying to divert his mind, and hopefully his arousal.

“The guy in the blue and green swimsuit?” Jimmy questioned.

“Yeah, he’s probably the fastest guy here,” Randy answered. “His name is Kent.” Randy squeezed his legs together, trying to stop the urges he was feeling between his legs, but the more his body touched Jimmy’s in the close seating, the worse the urges got.

The whistle blew and the race was on. Kent quickly established his dominance and was well ahead of the rest of the swimmers, easily a full body out by the end of the first 50. His turn was fast and tight, a solid push and he was on his way back before some of the other swimmers had hit the wall.

“Wow, he is good,” Jimmy turned and said to Randy. Randy’s hand was on his own suit trying to adjust himself, he had positioned up and was about to pop out of the suit. He pushed his rock solid anatomy to the side. He quickly grew into the extra room, no longer held back by the tight drawstring.

“Told you,” Randy said.

Kent had pushed out a great time. He was solidly in the top spot, and it was unlikely anyone would beat him. In fact, his time rivaled some of the juniors and seniors. If he kept up, he would be the best swimmer the program had ever seen by the time he was a senior. He was clearly varsity team bound.
When it was all over, Randy was in the top five at fourth place. Jimmy missed the top ten by one slot, coming in at 11th.

“Time for breast stroke,” the coach called out. Everyone line up along the wall.

“Oh man,” Randy said to himself. “I can’t stand up like this,” he added to his thoughts as he contemplated his situation. He was franticly trying to make himself relax, but he was staying rock hard and the urges were getting stronger. It was all new territory for Randy, being trapped in public this way. His anatomy now looked like a steel rod inside his tight and tiny swimsuit, barely contained within the lycra material.

As he stood, Jimmy could not help but notice that Randy was having a problem. It was that obvious. “Hate when that happens,” Jimmy said. “At least there are not girls around,” he added. Jimmy felt bad for Randy, having been there with Abby. He knew how awkward it was.

“Yeah, I guess, but there sure are a lot of cute guys,” Randy answered without thinking. Jimmy never gave the comment a thought, at least not then. Randy finally stood, his erect anatomy showing. He walked close behind Jimmy, hoping to hide his situation, his left hand held in front of his swimsuit. Jimmy went ahead of him. As they stood on along the all, Randy wiggled his legs. He knew he was not only erect, but he was feeling himself close to the next level. He tugged at the front of his swimsuit, which was probably not the best choice, the sensation only acted to prolong the situation. If anyone other than Jimmy noticed, no one said anything. It was not the first time a guy had ever gotten aroused in his swimsuit at an inopportune time, and it would certainly not be the last. Luckily, Randy’s body finally retreated.

------


The tryouts consisted of sets of 100 in each of the four core strokes to start out, followed by some other events. Every swimmer had to do the four sets, then it was by option for the rest. Free was Jimmy’s strongest stroke, so his out of top ten finish did not bode well for his chances. Despite Randy’s assurance that Jimmy had done well, Jimmy knew otherwise. Both Greg and he hoped for a finish in the top quarter, maybe top third.

“Don’t give up, even if it is not going well,” Greg had advised Jimmy in their last text session. “Show you got heart!” Greg had also advised.

The breast stroke was next. Same order as before, Aiden and Randy flanked Jimmy. Jimmy got on the block, positioning himself for a great start. Randy was to his left, Aiden to his right. This was Aiden’s top stroke, so Aiden had high expectations. Randy untied his suit, and put his hand down to readjust, now that he was back to normal. For swimmers, every detail has to be right, right down to the placement of parts inside the suit. Satisfied, Randy tied himself back up.

The whistle blew and Jimmy got a great start, off the blocks exactly as in line with the rest of the field. His dive was long and graceful, he hit the water slightly ahead of the rest of the field. “Great launch,” wrote one of the coaches. On her pad Jimmy was known as New Guy/Blue Nike Print, reflecting that most of the other swimmers the coaches knew from their rise through other swim teams.

Aiden was way ahead at 25 meters. He was powerful, but with amazing grace. His body flowed with the water, hardly making a splash. Jimmy was in last place and struggling, but staying close to the swimmer in lane one. By the turn, Aiden had commanded to the top spot. Randy was second. As they turned, Jimmy was still almost two bodies out from the wall. The swim was not going well.

“Damn it,” Jimmy thought to himself. “Swim your race,” Greg’s mantra entered his mind. Jimmy pushed hard.

“Way too slow,” wrote the coach, right under the great launch comment. Jimmy was several seconds late at the turn, but he nailed the flip. Tight, fast and a great push, which lead to another positive comment. The female coach watched as Jimmy swam back, checking his technique. Jimmy felt great off the wall, knowing he nailed the turn. He was determined to not be last. He pushed hard.

At 25 to go, Jimmy was solidly past the swimmer in lane one, a guy in Nike shorts. But then a stunning turn of events. Jimmy caught the guy in lane six, also, at ten meters to go. Jimmy pushed harder. It was not a fast swim, but somehow he pulled out a fifth place finish. Really not bad for a guy who was dead last at the turn. “Great comeback, technique is solid,” wrote the coach.

Randy waited for Jimmy to finish. He saw the last ten meters, and the conquer of fifth. “Great job,” Randy said to Jimmy. “You were swimming really hard those last ten,” he added.

“Thanks, how did you do?” Jimmy asked.

“Second, Aiden was first, always is,” Randy replied.

_____


The final set of the required four was the fly. Being Greg’s favorite, the guys had worked really hard on the fly over the Summer. “It’s a race of technique, power and speed,” Greg had always said to Jimmy. “If you can nail fly, the rest are easy,” Greg also used to say, a little bias in his opinion, he was, after all, a fly guy. Fly was Randy’s weakest stroke, and Aiden admitted he was average in it. By this point, Randy and Jimmy were fast friends, and Aiden had really warmed up to Jimmy, who absorbed everything either of them said. If they all made the team, they were clearly going to be a trio.

Jimmy had no idea how he would do. He blew the back stroke, coming in last in his heat and 15th overall. That race was Randy’s breakout swim, which he solidly won, both heat and overall. No surprise there. Despite the bad back stroke set, Jimmy forced himself to rebound, Greg’s other advice. “Don’t let a bad race ruin the meet,” he would be telling Jimmy right now, if he were there.

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Jimmy was fast off the blocks, and like his breast event, he landed farther up the pool than anyone. He hit the water and immediately got into his rhythm. It took all his concentration to swim the fly, the timing of arms and kick, the physical demands on the body absorbing every ounce of his concentration. His arm strokes were powerful. His technique was not merely good, it was fantastic, and quickly noted by the coach who had been watching him.

“Hey, come watch this swimmer,” she called to the head coach. “He’s really strong at this.”

“I am not surprised,” said the head coach, a reference to his mentorship by Greg. They both watched as Jimmy finished the first 25. His flip this time was a bit off, but not horrible. He was slightly ahead heading into the turn, and despite the muddled turn, his strong off the wall push held his place. On the way back, Jimmy pulled out all the stops. He accelerated down the last 50, pushing an even greater lead. A power came over Jimmy like he had never felt before. He was one with the water, his arm strokes in exact timing, almost as graceful as a synchronized swimmer. His kicks were powerful, his feet molded together to create a thrust that was well above his experience level. Randy was two spots back, eating Jimmy’s wake. Aiden was behind Randy. No one was in front.

“Amazing fly,” wrote the coach with three lines under it. “Solid.”

Jimmy hit the wall and pushed backward. He floated on his back for about ten meters, breathless. He stood and watched as Randy, then Aiden finished. It had not hit Jimmy what he had just done. He won the heat!

Randy dunked under the lane line and grabbed Jimmy. “You kicked butt,” he said as he gave Jimmy a tight hug. Their bodies touched at all points, including the middle bulges. “You were amazing!” Jimmy was in total disbelief on what he had just swam He could not have dreamed he’d swim that well. The swimmers around him were shocked, some mad, some jealous. Everyone was amazed. Jimmy was too whipped to do his usual leap from the pool, instead opting for the two handed lift.

“What got into you?” Randy asked. “I mean you swam like a mad man.”

“I just felt good,” Jimmy replied. The guys sat again, side by side, watching the guys in heat two line up.

Randy put his hand on Jimmy’s knee. “I think you might have secured a spot on the team with that swim,” he added to the conversation. He looked at Jimmy, admiring his handsome face and smile. His eyes wandered to check out Jimmy’s swimsuit. “Wow, is he ever cute,” Randy thought to himself. If he wasn’t so tired from the swims, Randy’s body would long have responded to the interest. Randy was glad it didn’t.

When all of it was over, Jimmy ended up in third place. A solid finish and only half a second between the top finisher and him. What Jimmy did not see was the coach’s comments. It was clear that Jimmy had the best technique and the most promise. Had he not bungled to flip turn, he easily would have been the top swimmer of the fly. It was just the break Jimmy needed, if he had any hope of making the team.

[shaulis]

STS,

Another great chapter. Jimmys tryout wasn't going well until they got to the fly where he finished third overall in the fly portion. I hope the coach will choose Jimmy to be on the swim team. Please continue the story.

Shaulis

[shaulis]

STS,

Another great chapter. Jimmys tryout wasn't going well until they got to the fly where he finished third overall in the fly portion. I hope the coach will choose Jimmy to be on the swim team. Please continue the story.

Shaulis

[Dooley67]

STS,

I continue to be so impressed with your knack for normal adolescent dialogue and for your keeping the suspense of the races high like a play-by-play announcer would. You really were very explicit about Randy's boner but once again, without being graphic. And the fact that Jimmy had not idea what this meant to Randy was a pretty clear indication of Jimmy's naïveté (a good thing for Randy).A wonderful chapter. I sense that the next chapter will be the last.

[Swimmboy]

His excellent fly swim should certainly guarantee Jimmy a spot on the team. Fly is the most difficult stroke to master, and physically the most difficult to swim, so I think Jimmy will make the team. He has already made two new friends, so I think a few more chapters are in the works!

[50 Free]

Once Jimmy makes the team the coaches will work on his turns. Cuz meet officials don't see the humor in doing a flipturn during breaststroke and butterfly events, huh? Great story, quite realistic!

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Hey 50Free, not sure if others picked up on the two botched turns, but good catch. The error was intentional. It will become clearer in the next chapter... can't expect Jimmy to remember everything with such short experience and under pressure.

STS

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

Jimmy’s last event of the tryout was the optional 500 free. It was the event that Greg thought Jimmy had the greatest chance at, given his endurance. The 500 free was a race of strategy, Greg had explained to Jimmy. Start out too fast and you will burn up, too slow and you will never catch up. “Always know where you are in the distance,” Greg had explained. “Hold some in reserve for the final 100, that is where the power moves take place,” Greg also explained to Jimmy during their practice sessions. It turned out to be sage advice.

Five swimmers entered the 500 free, neither Aiden or Randy included. Jimmy was in lane 2, lane one was empty, as were lanes seven and eight. The odds on favorite was a tall and lean swimmer in lane 3. His actual name was Ralph, but he went by the nickname “Bo.” No one was sure why or where he got that name, but it was the name he was known by. He wore a tight and sleek yellow and red Agon swimsuit that had his AAU team logo on it. He looked every bit the swimmer he was, tight abs, broad shoulders, amazing pecs, and muscular legs. He also looked hot in his colorful swimsuit, which when wet was not transparent, but at close observation did show through his frontal parts ever so slightly. Randy zeroed right in on all of that.

“Other than Bo, the rest of the field is pretty much wide open,” Randy advised Jimmy. Randy was done for the night, having finished up the optional IM set. Randy did well, second out of ten. Aiden also swam IM, coming in one spot behind Randy. “Go get them, hot stuff,” said Randy. He smiled at Jimmy’s tight butt as he walked away.

“Stay solid, keep pace, and watch for the big move,” Jimmy repeated in his mind. Greg’s long distance mantra. “Swim your race,” also rang through his mind. Greg wished Greg was there to watch, to coach him. Once again, Jimmy was nervous. Not sure why, but he was even shaking a little. Part of him just wanted to step off the block and go home. The coward part. Jimmy quickly pushed those thoughts from his mind.

Two hundred meters in, Jimmy was in third place. Bo was out front, as expected. Jimmy was a body behind the guy in lane four. The swimmer in lane two was behind Jimmy, the tips of his hands almost lined up with Jimmy’s peripheral sight. Jimmy flipped at the 250 mark and pushed strong off the wall. “Stay under as long as you can,” raced through his mind, just as it had every other turn. “You go faster under water,” Greg had pounded into his mind. His push was strong, he was now solidly ahead of the fourth place swimmer and nipping the knees of the second place guy, who seemed to be slowing. Jimmy felt his surge rise up, he wanted to take the guy. He could feel himself getting a rush of adrenalin. “Too early,” he told himself. “Easy until 150,” Jimmy strategized in his mind. “Get close, tease him,” his thoughts expanded. Jimmy pushed hard until he was a mere should behind him.

Flip! Two hundred to go. A solid turn and the two swimmers, Jimmy in two and the guy in lane four were now neck and neck. The lane four swimmer was wearing a really colorful Tyr swimsuit with a wild print. It was a new swimsuit, one of the emerging bolder, more colorful briefs coming on the market. Out of the water, the swimsuit looked hot on him. In the water, it was a bright beacon that Jimmy could now see clearly as they swam in a dead lock for second. Bo was so far out front, the race for second was the real race. The coaches watched closely, eyeing the strategy being played out in lanes two and four.

At the final 100, Jimmy had a slight lead, so slight Jimmy actually thought he was behind. He pushed hard off the wall. He had energy to burn left in reserve. One turn left, two lengths to go in the 50 meter pool. The swimmer in four saw Jimmy, too. He was swimming as hard as he could, hoping Jimmy was also at his breaking point. “Reach,” Jimmy told himself as he powered through his strokes. His body was slicing through the water.

“His technique is really good,” said the lady assistant coach.

“Good arm reach, nice rotation,” replied the lead coach. They were both watching Jimmy.

“Let’s see if he makes a move,” the lady coach added.

Jimmy was now a quarter of the way off the wall for his last turn. To his left he could see he was locked with the lane four swimmer, both had stayed in the exact position, both swimming hard. Bo, the lead swimmer had just flipped and was on his way back. Bo was easily three or four seconds ahead, maybe more. The swimmer behind Jimmy and the Tyr guy was two seconds back and not a threat. “This is it,” Jimmy thought. He opted to make his break heading into the turn, he was sure that the other swimmer was planning a break after the turn, Jimmy wanted an edge. Jimmy’s brain sent a signal out to open all reserves. Jimmy felt the surge as he turned on the speed. Suddenly, Jimmy was pulling ahead, catching his competitor by surprise. Jimmy hit the wall a half second ahead, not much of a lead, but enough to push out of the turn in front.

“We have out move,” the coaches said to each other. “Let’s see how they respond to each other,”

“F---,” the Tyr guy thought to himself. He had little left to give. He pushed as hard as he could off the wall. His form started to collapse as he tried to burst speed into his tired body. Jimmy was pulling away. Aiden and Randy watched from the bleacher. It was quite a race. They could see the interest of the coaches. It was clear Jimmy was making a solid winning move.

At 25 meters to go, Jimmy had increased his lead. He was now three quarters of a body ahead and gaining. Jimmy was in a zone. He saw nothing, heard nothing, he was one with the water. His form had suffered a little, but nothing a good coach couldn’t fix. Jimmy had endurance, and he was proving it right now.

Bo hit the wall first, as expected. Jimmy was four seconds back when his outstretched arm made contact. Jeffrey, the guy in the Tyr swimsuit hit the wall slightly less than a second after Jimmy. The rest of the field came in behind. Bo did not respond to Jimmy’s congratulations, as a swimmer he was a bit arrogant and not like the rest. Jimmy reached across to lane four, shaking hands with Jeff. “Nice swim,” Jimmy said.

“Hey, you too. You out kicked me in the end,” Jeff replied. Jimmy had seen Jeff in school, but they never really knew each other. “I didn’t know you swam,” Jeff added.
“Lot’s of potential!” the coach had written next to Jimmy’s name. “Great end move.” she added.

The guys got out of the pool. Jimmy pulled his clinging suit from the front of him. Randy came right over and put his arm around Jimmy. “You kicked butt!” Randy said.

“Thanks,” Jimmy replied. The guys lined up along the bleachers as the coaches finished their notes. They were not sure what was going to happen next or whether they would find out right there.

“Okay guys, great session today. You are all good swimmers, so our job is going to be tough.” The head coach started off. Jimmy had seen him many times at the pool over the Summer. For the first time, Jimmy was part of a post swim team meeting. Jimmy listened intently. “A few bad starts, and a few wrong turns for the strokes you were swimming, but overall a great display of swimming talent.” Coach added. Coach Lisa will go over the next steps. Thanks for coming out and I hope to see you at practice next week.”

“We look at three things when we decide,” Coach Lisa explained. Jimmy thought she was cute. Lisa was the only female swim coach for a guys team in the whole state, a rising star swimmer who just missed the Olympic trials. She was young, not much older than the guys themselves. She was married to her high school sweetheart, who was also a pretty good swimmer himself. “We look at your speed, of course, but that is only part of it. We also look at your technique, how well you do your strokes, and how much potential you have for improvement. Finally, we try to see how much heart you have for the sport. You won’t swim on my team if you don’t love the sport.”

“Well, one out of three isn’t bad,” Jimmy thought to himself.

“We will post the final list on Friday at lunch period. It will be on the coach’s office door. Good luck.”

As the guys all headed to the locker room, Jimmy broke away. He walked over to the coaches and extended his hand. “Thank you for letting me try out,” Jimmy told each of them. “I hope I make the team.” Coach Lisa smiled back at him.

“Thank you , Jimmy, nice job today,” Coach Lisa replied.

[SwimTeamSpeedo]

“So walk me through every step,” Greg asked as Jimmy told him about the try outs.

Jimmy replayed each event. He told Greg how he was awful in the breast stroke. “I even messed up the turn.” Jimmy explained. “I started to do a flip turn, the realized I wasn't suppose to so I tried to stop it, but it was too late and I really blew it.” Jimmy said.

"You know those turns, Jimmy," Greg replied. "We practiced all of them."

"Yeah, I know," Jimmy replied. "I guess I just forgot or something."

“So what did you do?” Greg asked.

“I just pushed off the wall and kept going. I did better the second half.”

“Good, Jimmy.” Greg said. “Don’t worry that you screwed up the turn, Happens to all of us once in a while. That you did not give up. Coach saw that. I know he did.” Greg explained.

“I killed the fly!” Jimmy explained. He was all animated telling Greg about his swim. It was his breakout swim.

“You know, Jimmy, I think you did good,” Greg assured him. He did not dwell on the fact that Jimmy missed the breast turn and did the wrong turn on his fly. Both of those were easy fixes. For a guy who had three months of swimming under his belt, and really only a few weeks of serious coaching on swim team skills, he couldn’t expect to remember everything.

“I hope so,” Jimmy replied. He was so excited, he had not even taken his swimsuit off. He rode home from the pool in it and stayed in it all night, now laying on his bed talking to his mentor, big brother, and coach. Greg also modeled to himself in front of the mirror. At least for the day, he could pretend he was a real swimmer. He felt cool in the blue print swimsuit. He'd end up sleeping in it.

“I am really proud of you, Jimmy,” Greg replied. “You said you were going to try out, and you did. Best of all you did awesome, too. No matter what happens.”

Jimmy felt tears well up in his eyes. Greg's compliment meant the world to him.

----

“Hey coach, It’s Greg,” Greg opened the call with. “How did Jimmy do at tryouts?”

“He has lots of potential, Greg,” Coach explained. “He swam some stuff really well, but he also made some errors that were sort of basic,”

“I don’t want to influence your decision, I mean if Jimmy gets on the team, it has to be because he did it.” Greg replied. “But keep in mind this kid has swam for only the Summer.”

“Yeah, I know, Greg,” Coach replied. “I remember the skinny kid in baggy blue shorts.” There was a pause. “You know what I really liked was he never gave up. He swam as hard as he could even when he was losing.” Coach added.

“So, Coach, has he got a shot?” Greg asked.

“Greg, you know I can’t say right now, but let me put it this way, did you ever think you had a shot at the Gamecocks? Anything is possible."

“Thanks, Coach.” Greg replied.