The Making of a Sea Hawk

When my husband and I first moved in together, I was throwing out some letters and pictures. I threw out two little pictures in gold frames of me in my Sea Hawk's swim team suit when I was six. My husband got really upset and dug the pictures out of the trash. He said it was one of his favorite pictures of me when I was young. Ten years ago, I didn't think I'd ever swim again so they didn't mean anything to me. When I saw that picture this morning, sitting in the desk drawer, I was glad my husband made me save it. Because it means something to me today as a triathlete.

Today, I'm thankful to my parents for signing me up for swim lessons when I was four. It means I am thankful for my swim team coach for teaching me how to do free style when I was five. It was really the only sport my sister and I did during the cold, snowy, winters in Germany. I don't remember too much about learning to swim. I do remember the first race I did when I was six, 25 meter free-style. Coach told me I could win if I didn't stop and hold on to the lane line. I swam my little heart out, without stopping and got my first blue ribbon. I smiled real big but was missing my two front teeth.

When we moved to Spain when I was nine, there was no swim team. I'd ride "Sweet Thunder", my pink dirt bike to the pool every summer day. I'd entertain myself by throwing coins in the bottom of the pool and pretending I found secret treasures. For lunch, I'd spend my coins on a Snicker's Bar and Coke. The best summer day at that pool was when I found a $20.00 bill floating at the bottom. I thought I was a millionaire! I was so proud when I brought it home. My mom made me take it back and give it to the lifeguards to put in the lost and found. Nobody claimed the $20.00 after three days so I got to keep it. I bought trivial Pursuit with that money because I wanted my sister to play games with me. I never won that game, it was way over my head. My sister enjoyed playing it with my oldest sister though.

We came home to the US when I was eleven. My parents signed me up for the summer swim team in Virginia. I learned to do flip-turns and butterfly. The kids were really good in Fairfax, most of them were on winter swim leagues. I still would place in my two main events, 50-meter fly and free. In relay's I was always the fly girl. Maybe I was the only kid that didn't look like they were drowning while doing butterfly. Once I turned 14, swimming wasn't interesting or cool anymore. I never swam on a team again.

I was thinking a lot about it while I was doing my 1800 swim last night. I started doing flip-turns again this week. It seems more tiring to do flip turns, maybe from holding your breath. Next year at MAP, the first triathlon I did this year, I want to swim the 500 doing flip-turns. It's been over 15 years since I've raced that way, scary!

Most of all, I am thankful for my parents for making me learn how to swim when I was so young. I truly feel for the triathletes that are just learning how to swim as adults. I'm sure it's very scary to look at a lake and not feel comfortable with your swim skills. Swimming isn't like running or biking. If you don't run or bike well, you won't choke to death. I think swimming is probably the most difficult leg to master. I'm thankful it's been my strongest discipline but I started out as a toofless, baby Sea Hawk many years ago.