When Did You Learn To Swim?

[arwalden]

Poll question: When Did You Learn To Swim?

... assuming you did learn at all, I mean.

[HereSince1628]

1. Add to poll--just after going down the second time?

,

[Padraig18]

2. My mam taught us

She taught us how to hold our breaths and so on as toddlers, and how to dog paddle as tykes. As our farm bordered a river, she thought it a sensible thing to teach us as early as possible. :)

[arwalden]

3. We lived not far from a lake in south Georgia...

... I can barely recall NOT being able to swim.

-- Allen

[Cush]

4. I was 7 or 8

[proud patriot]

5. I was 5

:hi:

[markses]

6. I was 3 - Dad threw me in the deep end

Said, "Swim!"

I did.

Of all the population subgroups that mystify me, adult non-swimmers mystifies me the most. How can you NOT know how to swim? I simply don't understand it. You move your arms and swim! It ain't friggin' rocket science.

I secretly think that adults who are scared of swimming are just stupid. I know that's wrong, but oh well, I been wrong before! ;-)

[arwalden]

11. Fear grips some folks... lack of opportunity prevents others...

My Huck-Finn childhood sometimes makes me forget that some folks grew up in aptartment complexes with no pools or small towns that had no public pool.

-- Allen

[RuB]

7. As a child when my sister pushed me in the deep end of the pool.

nt

[trof]

8. YMCA

Around 7 or 8.
I started as a "Minnow" and graduated as a "Shark".
I was sooooo proud.
And you have inspired another thread.
Look for it coming to a forum near you soon.

[kayleybeth]

9. YWCA when I was 5

My mother never learned to swim so she made sure my sister and I got lessons at a very early age.

[Nay]

10. I don't remember ever 'learning' to swim.

We lived on the Fla. coast and were in the water before we could walk, so we swam and walked without learning per se. My brother and I are like fish now -- totally at home in the water.

[La_Serpiente]

12. I was 4 years old

Hawaii has its perks

[Cheswick2.0]

13. I was four also, but I learned in a cold mountain lake in NY State

Having lake property in your family for over 100 years also has it's perks!

[Noordam]

16. Spent 5 years in Rome NY

cold lakesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss.

[Nikia]

14. My parents took me to infant classes

I think that the minimum age at the Y was 6 months for those classes. I took progressive lessons. I think that I could have took them for one more level but I joined the swim team when I was 8 instead.

[Meshuga]

15. I was five...

n/t

[Lydia Leftcoast]

17. Neither of my parents had ever learned to swim

and my mother was pretty nervous about us kids doing anything she couldn't do, so in spite of growing up surrounded by lakes, we were never allowed to go into water above our waists.

Finally, during my freshman year in college, I took beginning swimming for one of my required gym classes.

[MaineDem]

18. I don't remember

It seems I've always been able to swim. I never could finish the WSI course, though.

[baldguy]

19. 4 yrs old

My parents had a pool. My dad threw me in and let my survival insticts take over.

I'm still here 36 yrs later, so I guess it worked.

[Skittles]

20. University of Wisconsin students

taught me, at Lake Mendota in Madison. I was eight years old.

[Lady Freedom]

21. There is no way on earth I am going to!

NO No NO! Can't Make me either! Never never NEVER!!!!!

[Piperay]

22. Never learned inspite of

living by the ocean and having cousins with pools, I floated around on inner tubes just never learned swim and to old to now. :-( :shrug:

[flama]

23. Took one lesson when I was 7

The instructor was our next-door neighbor. When a little boy balked at getting in the pool, she picked me up and threw me in. (What are neighbors for? Heeheehee.)

My legs buckled and wouldn't straighten up so I could stick my nose above water. I crouched at the bottom of the pool for what seemed like an hour. All the while, I just knew I was going to die down there because my stupid neighbor wouldn't pull me out in time.

Obviously, she did pull me out or I wouldn't be writing this. The experience left me with an overwhelming fear of water so I never learned to swim.

I drown pretty good, though. ;-)

[northzax]

24. knowing how to swim

simply implies that you are a bad sailor, so why bother?

[GOPisEvil]

25. I learned at about age 8 or 9...bad ears kept me from learning sooner.

I had the dreaded tube implants in my ears as a small child (Twice!!). So, I was unable to learn to swim until my ear problems cleared up. Eventually, I became a lifeguard and swim instructor myself. :-)