Swimming blind
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (381760)
Rockingham, Australia
March 3, 2021 3:38am CST
The collage is of swimmers doing backstroke at the SunSmart Country Pennants competition held recently in Mt Barker, Western Australia. It’s interesting how some tilt their heads right back while others seem to looking more towards their feet. In the top left, you might be able to see the stream of water from her arm back to the pool.
I watched some early swimmers and thought my best chance to get a photo without the face being hidden by water droplets was to take the shot while the arm was on its way up. You can see, lower left, how the water has almost hidden the face.
There was one blind competitor in these heats. There was a row of flags above the pool a couple of metres from the end. When the swimmer saw those, they knew the wall was imminent. For the blind boy, they touched him on the head with a tennis ball on a stick so he’d know he was almost at the finish.
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27 responses
@DaddyEvil (174208)
• United States
3 Mar 21
The spray of water coming off their arms is fascinating. The patterns the water makes is just... *shake my head* I have no words to describe it.
I'm sure the blind young man loved being in the competition, though. How did he do in the competition?
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@DaddyEvil (174208)
• United States
3 Mar 21
@JudyEv I'm glad he wasn't too far behind the others... and yes, I find it difficult to hold to a straight course while swimming, too.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
3 Mar 21
@DaddyEvil Especially swimming on your back I would think.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
3 Mar 21
I'm glad you like the water patterns. They intrigued me too but it's hard to make them show up. When Vince processes the photos he is able to make them stand out a bit more.
The young lad was last in the heat I noticed but only by inches The six of them all came in more or less together. He had a bit of trouble keeping in the middle of the lane but they were all very young and he wasn't the only one to find it a bit difficult to keep straight.
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@wolfgirl569 (135583)
• Marion, Ohio
3 Mar 21
Glad they had a way for the blond boy to know
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@wolfgirl569 (135583)
• Marion, Ohio
4 Mar 21
@JudyEv I have seen things like that before. Dont know how it got started. But glad they are willing to allow for that
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
4 Mar 21
@wolfgirl569 I'm sure he had a wonderful time with his mates.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
3 Mar 21
He would have had a great time I'm sure. The whole event was very 'encompassing' (can't think of the word I want). If someone was struggling, the whole place, not just his mates, would start to cheer for him and keep it up till he got to the end. It was very heart-warming.
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@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
3 Mar 21
Nice photos! It's so nice that they came up with such idea to help the blind boy to be a part of competition and stay safe from the finishing wall.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Mar 21
@arunima25 It was extremely well organised. I was very impressed.
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@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
7 Mar 21
@JudyEv 700.. that's quite a huge participation.
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@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
3 Mar 21
i never really swam backstroke, interesting pictures!
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
4 Mar 21
@DocAndersen Some of the littlies kept hitting the lane markers. I guess many would be stronger on one side than the other.
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@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
4 Mar 21
@JudyEv it is a hard stroke to swim. you have to have what my coach called pool sense.
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@youfiq (2564)
• United States
3 Mar 21
wow is this the photo you took? this photo is very clear, great, the swimmer in the photo also seems to be enjoying what he is doing, it looks like it is a special technique he has and he has been training for years so he is an expert at it.
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@jobelbojel (36791)
• Philippines
4 Mar 21
I like the swimming as my sport but never had the chance to join such. Kudos though to the blind swimmer.
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@jobelbojel (36791)
• Philippines
5 Mar 21
@JudyEv I lived near river. When I so skinny and little, I used to do backstroke and other styles like what I see on TV. Haha. Such a wonderful memory.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
5 Mar 21
@jobelbojel I'm sure you would have had a lot of fun in the river as a child.
@Chellezhere (6421)
• United States
4 Mar 21
There are so many things that disabled people can still do. Most of us who are blind are not totally blind (i.e.: can only see dark). Blindness is a spectrum, and not a "you're either blind (i.e.: can only see dark), or you're not." Most of us can still see somethings - shadows, certain colors, certain shapes, etc. I am legally blind. So, I can see a bit more than those things. But, I would need help finding the wall as well. The goggles and water blind me even more. I'm glad they have people at the swim meets to guide him.
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@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
4 Mar 21
@Chellezhere He had very bad sight all his life but eventually sent totally blind. Here he is with a half-restored tractor. My husband and other friends would do any welding or painting but otherwise he did everything himself.
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@Chellezhere (6421)
• United States
4 Mar 21
@JudyEv That is so cool! I did not know that your brother was blind.
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