Aggressive Swimmers

How do I get a number when I'm in the water?  My theory is if you make contact you back off or go around.  The fast people just pass with no problem.  This person. once she made contact, kept trying to push me out of the way.  I didn't want to be rude, but I felt like I needed to show her that she couldn't push me around.  Is there a swin technique to handle this?

It's not that they're aggressive. It's that it's REALLY hard to see a much slower swimmer in the water if you're a faster swimmer and already dealing with sighting for buoys and the scrum.

I'm not even a fast swimmer, and I've accidentally swum right into the legs of 3-4 people from slower waves that I had no idea were in the way, and I make every effort to avoid contact in the water, including letting guys near me have the right of way even I have to stop momentarily. 

You would actually find the same exact situation if you had a similar speed differential to other swimmers - you'd swim right into the slow people's feet a few times.

Nobody's trying to run you down - it's just that it can be very hard to see people in the water. Just relax, let them pass, and continue.

I agree, there is nothing you can do, but waste energy.  If it was a wave start, and she was continually running into you, she might not have even known it was the same person every time.  She might have just been swimming and unaware of it.  In my races, I have no idea who is touching me or for what reason.  All I can do is go as fast as I can to find open space and keep going.  

I have been literally swam over, kicked in the face, grabbed from behind, etc.  It is just a part of racing.  

I'm a slow swimmer and was in contact off and on with someone for about 200 yards today at an Oly. If I were to guess I'd say neither of us wanted this, but for whatever reason it happened. I wasn't trying to be aggressive and I doubt they were either. We just couldn't seem to get out of each other's way.

Believe me, if they were faster than you and it was intentional (or not) this would have been over in 15 seconds. They would have swam over you and been gone. That's the way it is.

Holy hell. You teach that? So much to say here that I won't. 

Whatever happened to picking the right starting spot, finding some open water, and adjusting as you go? 

To the OP, AdventureBear got it right: swim your race, adjust as you need to, and don't burn a lot of energy trying to deal with goofy swimmers. You'll save energy and get 'em on the bike and run. Just stay cool. 

I despise this mentality.  It implies that a slow swimmer isn't going as hard as he/she can...just because you are a strong swimmer doesn't mean that the rest of the field will be...

To the OP:  I'm a slow swimmer too & have experienced what you describe a number of times.  Initially, I just accepted it as part of the race & dealt with it; after a few races, I realized that when I was passing somebody that I found a way to go around the person I was passing without grabbing their legs, hitting their torso, etc.  When I came to this realization, I also decided that people who wish to pass me could do the same thing.

Today, if somebody passes me, they get a 10-second pass of making excess contact--after that, I'm kicking...HARD.  I've found that one solid kick generally dissuades those 'aggressive' swimmers from swimming 'over' you and they take the extra few seconds to go around you.

I don't quite get that either.  You can spend your time pushing people, or you can spend your time swimming.  Swimming will get you to the finish line.  People touch toes.  If they are drafting off of you, they will touch your toes sometimes.  People bump into each other.  People get disoriented and swim at a funny angle.  It happens.  I ignore it and keep swimming.  Why get worked up over that, it's just an OWS with lots of bodies in the water.  The better and faster you are, the less you will have to contend with.

This happened to me. This guy and I were side by side for some time, constantly crashing into each other, kicking and smacking one other trying get some space between us. Not intentional, but we both knew we're on the right line to the buoy so no way were either of us going to go wide to give space. We each tried to just get ahead of each other. Then, as usual, I drifted off course. Sigh.

The pushing could be to get a little space too by someone nervous about being close in the water.

x10 to whatever AB was trying to say.  

Seriously, moving left or right a meter costs you basically nothing.  If it gets you out of the way of someone who is causing problems, it is by far a net gain.

I eventually do move over. Faaaar over. Like swimming to the next island over, haha! I need help sighting. I dunno. I lose sight of the packed of feet and I'm all sorts of disorientated.

I do enjoy the swim while I'm at though!

+1 to just swimming your race - move over a few feet and get on with it.

I'd be willing to bet that the other swimmer was thinking the same thing as you - that you were being aggressive with her and intentionally pushing her out of the way.

I'm one of those fast swimmers. Nobody is intentionally aggressive, everyone just want to do their thing. It can be really hard to see somebody in time to go around, it happens to me regularly that I touch some slower swimmer and by the next stroke I'm half way over while trying to get around. 

In OWS you'll likely meet the faster swimmer only once, even if you have to do multiple loops, by the second loop people have been spread out and it's not a problem. In the beginning it's a big chaos and either may have a problem giving room because other swimmers have taken that space. 

If you find yourself swimming next to someone who want to pass the easiest it to let him slip by, slow down slightly while he pass and you'll have one less to mess with.

Better yet, avoid the problem entirely: The trick is to learn to place yourself in the pack, if you know you're a slow swimmer, no point rushing to be the first in the water. Also, you can place yourself away from the centre out to the side, it's only slightly longer to the first buoy and much easier swim.

Last thing, could be it's not really a faster swimmer but one of you is off course? Do your sighting to check you're on the right course, if not adjust, else keep going, let the other slip around and get off track. 

Touching your toes is the fast swimmer's way of "honking". If somebody intentionally touches your toes it's a gentle way to let you know that you will be passed. Don't fight it, just keep at your thing, he'll slip around.

If somebody unintentionally touches your toes, by the next stroke they may be half way over your legs trying to figure out which way to go around you. Kicking vigorously you can kick him in the face and cause injury, that's not defensive swimming, it's aggressive swimming.

If I find myself trying to pass somebody who's trying to fight the inevitable, swimming "defensively" kicking hard and getting in the way or kicking me in the face, that might just be the time that I grab them by ankle and pull. No ... it's not something I resort to on a regular basis. 

Cheers, Erik