Uncategorized
Swimmer faints due to extended breath holding
On June 23, 2022, this video was posted. It involves Anita Alvarez, a U.S. swimmer who fainted underwater at the end of her World Championships event. She was performing solo in “artistic swimming”. This competitive event seems to require extreme breath-holding (up to 2 min. or more!) for success. When breath-holding is necessary, you should … Continue reading
Orcas of Puget Sound, Washington
On June 7th, 2002, we had the good fortune to see a pod of orcas, close-up, in the wild, from a kayak! Here is our group of paddlers–everyone did quite well on a beautiful day (not too much wind and sunny). The orcas were in the area to the northwest. We left Snug Harbor around … Continue reading
Shark Repelling Bracelet !
Sometimes, “a little bit of science” can be a dangerous thing. Here is a product that claims to ward off sharks–a shark repellent. The Sharkbanz doesn’t use chemicals, sound, light, or electricity. No, this one uses a permanent magnet (no battery required) to discourage the sharks from biting a swimmer wearing it as a wrist … Continue reading
How Fast Can Humans Swim??
The TV broadcasts of the 2015 World Championships sparked me to do some analysis of the swimmers’ speeds in the various events. The goal was to eliminate the advantages of the racing start and push-off from the wall. By using the on-screen race-time or adding a timer frame with my video editor, I could determine … Continue reading
Joey Cabell — a true “waterman”
In the 1960s, one of the premier surfers was Joey Cabell. He didn’t become that well-known outside of surfing, but he is one of the most interesting characters of that era. He did not fit the stereotype surfer image. Besides winning surfing contests, he was also a successful skier, mountain climber, and a businessman. He … Continue reading