Phil O'Keefe Posted March 14, 2013 Share Posted March 14, 2013 I saw a statistic the other day that kind of blew my mind. It said that only about 30-35% of the people in the USA know how to swim, and only 2-5% can "swim well." Maybe it's just me - I grew up around the water - we had pools in most of the homes I lived in when I was young, and as a SoCA kid, I also spent tons of time at the beach surfing, Boogie boarding, body surfing, and at the lake in the local mountains (Big Bear) water skiing in the summer too... but even with my Californiacentric POV, I find those numbers a bit hard to believe. Can you swim? And if you can, would you consider yourself a "good swimmer"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members J-E-M Posted March 14, 2013 Members Share Posted March 14, 2013 I can do the breast stroke and I'm proficient in doggy style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cryptosonic Posted March 14, 2013 Members Share Posted March 14, 2013 I can't remember a time in my life that I did not know how to swim, but my water pedigree is identical to Phils. Edit: Also, Phil to stop flooding the forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Turd Furgison Posted March 14, 2013 Members Share Posted March 14, 2013 i can't swim, i am more of a floater Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted March 14, 2013 Author Share Posted March 14, 2013 Turd Furgison wrote: i can't swim, i am more of a floater In light of your user name, that's about what I expected... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brokenfixed Posted March 14, 2013 Members Share Posted March 14, 2013 Turd Furgison wrote: i can't swim, i am more of a floater haha...too much saltI grew up around water on boats, I own a boat and swim alot but I cant float to save my life. Soon as I stop swiming I'm sinking fast. Treading waters for the birds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PKTrono Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 can swim for sure. don't know what "well" means in this case but i'm gonna say yes, definitely well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nomenclature Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 not really. I can tread water and kind of swim if I really need to, but I've never been a big fan of the water beyond chilling in areas that I can sit or just float in. almost drowning while being trapped under an overturned canoe being swept down river didn't help that feeling either (and being a strong swimmer wouldn't have helped much in that situation anyways). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members V Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 I used to swim very well. Now I'm kind of in poor shape for swimming due to asthma and just generally being in less good shape than before. I know how to swim, though, yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members alien Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 ive swam while tripping it was pretty intense, i think doing that prolly taught me what real athletic swimmers already know about how to streamline themselves etc etc, but while swimming tripping it felt super natural, and i think you kinda start to remember that when inside the womb for nine months? we are kinda swimming underwater and can actually breath water because we are still hooked up with the imbillical sp? cord. plug me in rite? I think Jimi Hendrix even liked to trip out about being able to live underwater and {censored}, my dad a former pool life guard put me in lessons when i was probably four then again more intensive lessons at a really nice YMCA when i was six, I remember the instructors were really hot young highschool girls and it was the 7o's ha ha so you know i had to rub off on dem chicks amirite? wat say you on hcfx aboot six years rubbing off on highschool babes wearing speedos in the 70's at teh ymca outdoor pool? thats actually wear i saw my first electric guitar performance when i was five, dude played a white strat in a cedar building that smelled wonderful, and he played......? yes "SMOKE ON THE WAAAATER"" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PurpleTrails Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 Yeah, I'm a regular seal, though I'm not in the shape I used to be in. My mom didn't know how to swim and nearly drowned when she was 6, so she made sure I knew how to swim by then. I'm also a SoCal guy, started snorkeling at 11, spearfishing when I hit 17 or so, completed an organized mile swim in the ocean when I was 13. I'm proficient in 5-6 different strokes, and can even fake a butterfly. Never did the swim team/water polo thing, though. I'm actually a lot better under the water than on the surface.Also, for those of you who can't float, you can actually last a lot longer in the water doing a survival stroke where you take a breath, raise your arms from your waist to send yourself around 3-4 feet under the water, then pull then down from above your head to pull yourself up to the surface and repeat. It's way less exhausting than trying to tread water. One thing I remembered from my lifeguarding class from 35-40 years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AimmarCair Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 Can swim well. CAN'T ride a bike though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members goodhonk Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 this is going to sound a lot racist but whatever, 99% of whites in the united states know how to swim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PKTrono Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 uh oh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PKTrono Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 :cathonk: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members goodhonk Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 this is going to sound really racist, but whatever. bleeps and bleeps dont know how to swim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PKTrono Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 :catgood: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ItchyFingers Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 Scary statistic indeed, Phil. Globally, 50% of the world's population lives closer than 3 km to a surface freshwater body, and only 10% of the population lives further than 10 km away. Why anyone would NOT want to know how to swim is beyond me. Oh, and PurpleTrails nailed it - treading water sucks the energy right out of you. And attracts teh sharks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cisco Posted March 15, 2013 Members Share Posted March 15, 2013 Native SoCal. Grew up in a house with a pool. Swim like a shark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members reverberlayed Posted March 16, 2013 Members Share Posted March 16, 2013 I can swim I had a pool when I was young so that helps. My girlfriend doesn't really swim and can really only swim in water where she can touch the bottom. Being only 5' tall, she doesn't swim in a lot of places. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sparkfriction Posted March 21, 2013 Members Share Posted March 21, 2013 yes! it was a "must" here in germany at elementary school... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members imbuedblue Posted March 21, 2013 Members Share Posted March 21, 2013 I'm a pretty good swimmer. I used to swim for hours every summer when I was a kid, but now I'm out of shape and don't own a pool. The sidestroke is my go to. My 18-year-old swam competitively until high school--no pool, no swim team--and my three-year-old can doggy-paddle. Living in the Midwest, there isn't a lot of water around so I know loads of people who can't swim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members onyxrhino Posted March 21, 2013 Members Share Posted March 21, 2013 I grew up in a house with a pool. I was really good swimmer and swam competitively as a teenager. These days, I'm not in great shape, but I can still swim pretty well. I joined a gym recently and started swimming laps at night. I am always surprised to see other people in the pool, people in better overall shape than I am, who can't swim more than a few laps without stopping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BrentMpls Posted March 25, 2013 Members Share Posted March 25, 2013 I hate water and don't go in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members riff ie Posted March 25, 2013 Members Share Posted March 25, 2013 i love water and some day expect i'll return to it wholly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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