Evening star., 1922-07-30

L swimming and they all have
their particular advantages.
Among them are the breast, the side
arm. the overarm. the double over
arm.. the backstroke. the Australian
crawl and the American crawl.
OF these various strokes. the Ameri
can crawl is undoubtedly the most
popular and practical for sprints. as
well as long distances.
For years the first stroke taught
has been the breast, but recently
some instructors start their pupils
with the crawl. Most persons regard
the crawl as the most difficult. but l
have seen the crawl learned as readily
as the breast stroke.
The knack Of swimming comes with
practice. Some pupils will grasp their
instructors ideas in short time and
others will paddle around for some
time before learning. Sooner or later,
however. they get the feel" of the
stroke and keep on going.
7 WAS taught to swim the breast
l stroke in six lessons when l was
nine years old. 1t was difficult for me
at first, but suddenly it came to me,
and the other strokes proved easy.
Olga Dorfner Slow to Learn.
0LGA DoRFNER, who was one OF
- the greatest swimmers in Amer
ica, winning several national
championships and breaking many
records. was a slow pupil. To Olga
it seemed that it took ages for her
to learn, but she found herself all at
once and developed into a marvel.
On the other hand, Ethelda Bleib-
trey learned in no time. it seemed
She used to paddle around in pool
in New York city in which Charlotte
Boyle, who has held many national
records, trained. Charlotte became
interested in Thel and helped her lit
tie pupil all she could in her spare
time.
In a few weeks Thel could swim al
most as well as Charlotte, and then
she stepped on a par with her in
structress. Finally she passed every
swimmer and record in the world.
OLGA Dorfner started on the breast
stroke, as most of US have, but Thel
was taught the crawl. Now they both
swim every stroke perfectly.
After the breast stroke. which diff
fers from every other stroke in that
no part of the head touches the water
except the chin, comes the side stroke
which is said to be the next difficult
stroke. 1t is similar to the breast
stroke, but is executed on the side.
In this, though. the side of the head
rests in the water and the whole body
is more relaxed than in the breast.
X ** X
THE single overarm is similar to the
i sidearm except that one arm is
brought out Of the water. Beginners
delight in the difference between this
stroke and the first one taught because
Of the extra speed it gives.
Keep Your Eyes Open.
NEXT comes the double overarm or
~ trudgeon. In this. at certain in
tervals both arms pass through
the air. The leg stroke Is like the
drive used in the other strokes. but
the whole face 10 put in the water.
This is why so many persons hedge
and become discouraged and say they
cannot open their eyes unoer the
water.
method. Fill a basin with water ana
drop in some coins. Take a deep
breath. plunge your face in the water
and open your eyes long enough to
count the coins. withdraw. exhaie and
verify your count. After you nave
repeated this performance rev
times you will find that you can
readily open your eyes under water,
and they must be kept OPEN no mat
ter what stroke you use.
The trudgeon was used for years as
an endurance stroke. At one time all
long distance swimmers USED the
trudgeon, but now the American
crawl is universally in practice in
ten-mile swims. as we'll as hfty-yard
sprints. T.. a..
most graceful of all strokes. II Is
easy. smooth, steady and speedy. Inc
arms are used in the same way as IN
the trudgeon. but the action IS un 1uien1 snd
ened. The feet are propelled up an9
down and keep your body moving and
on straight line all the time. The
legs keep you from rolling around ON
your side, and every bit OF energy
used helps to keep you going ahead
- x X
THE American crawl is derived from
! the Australian crawl. which dli-
fers from our stroke in the leg drive.
There are only two leg beats to arm
pulls in the Australian, but in the
American there are six kicks to each
arm pull.
Maintain Same Pace.
TN A fifty-yard dash. the feet churn
the water at terrific pace; IN
400 the pace. of course, Is lessened,
and in the ten-mile swim It is stiil
slower. but the same pace Is main
tanned throughout the entire race.
The last three years the Delaware
Yacht Club has held the ten -mtie na-
tional swim. and 1t has been most IN
teresting to watch this race. Ine