i've got to record our obama set
Nov. 5th, 2008 09:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mouse_rantsi swim with a group of other people 3 days a week. tonight there were 3 of us, and we decided we needed to come up with an obama set, in honor of the election.
now, i am the slowest of the three, F. is the fastest and L. is in the middle. we started with a graduated fast tax. as the lowest-speed individual, i started first. the high speed individual, F., had to give up 10 seconds/50 yards, while the middle speed gave up 5 seconds/50 yards. so in a 100 yard set, i started first, L. had to wait 10 seconds to start and F. waited 20 seconds. the intent was that we would all finish up about the same time. however, incentivized by the time provided to me by the higher speed groups, i was able to produce a greater turn of speed, thus stimulating the others to a similar increase in speed production, resulting in better times for us all. it is true that my history of lower speed still limited me; i suffered differentially from long-term oxygen deficits, and was slowed in one set by decaying infrastructure (my cap started to come off). still, it is clear that leveling the playing field in this way produced improved times for all, whereas the existing free-market speed regime brought the greatest speed benefits to the fastest while discouraging and thus actually further slowing the slowest (me), resulting in ever-increasing speed disparities.
after this set, L. had to leave and F. and i tried a different spread-the-speed program (he swam sets of 200 yds while i swam 150 in the same time); again, this produced a more even speed benefit to all swimmers. we ended with an im (celebrating stroke diversity).
i must say, i find this change in swim regimes inspires me to hope for the future. i must review obama's policies with an eye to further exercise benefits.
now, i am the slowest of the three, F. is the fastest and L. is in the middle. we started with a graduated fast tax. as the lowest-speed individual, i started first. the high speed individual, F., had to give up 10 seconds/50 yards, while the middle speed gave up 5 seconds/50 yards. so in a 100 yard set, i started first, L. had to wait 10 seconds to start and F. waited 20 seconds. the intent was that we would all finish up about the same time. however, incentivized by the time provided to me by the higher speed groups, i was able to produce a greater turn of speed, thus stimulating the others to a similar increase in speed production, resulting in better times for us all. it is true that my history of lower speed still limited me; i suffered differentially from long-term oxygen deficits, and was slowed in one set by decaying infrastructure (my cap started to come off). still, it is clear that leveling the playing field in this way produced improved times for all, whereas the existing free-market speed regime brought the greatest speed benefits to the fastest while discouraging and thus actually further slowing the slowest (me), resulting in ever-increasing speed disparities.
after this set, L. had to leave and F. and i tried a different spread-the-speed program (he swam sets of 200 yds while i swam 150 in the same time); again, this produced a more even speed benefit to all swimmers. we ended with an im (celebrating stroke diversity).
i must say, i find this change in swim regimes inspires me to hope for the future. i must review obama's policies with an eye to further exercise benefits.
