Back "in the day" so to speak, we used to have to touch the wall with a hand prior to completing a
backstroke turn. Sometime during when I stopped swimming (1988) and started again (1996) that rule
changed so that we do what is done today, flip on our stomach and do a regular type flip turn.
Obviously this is a much quicker way (if done properly) of turning.
On average, how much of a time reduction would this give for a 100 short course race. This sort of
ties into the "older competitive swimmers" thread going on. I'm trying to compare my performances to
what they were at different ages as a youth and want to take into account this rule difference to
get a better "apples to apples" comparison.
Granted, there may also be an increase in time due to the fact that the "standup" backstroke start
is no longer allowed (where all you had to have was part of your foot in the water) rather than the
entire foot as is now. Man I used to be able to get some great starts that way. Now it's not so much
fun, and much harder to practice on slippery tile walls without the touch pads in training.
thanks
Art