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Connor Kalisz
Professor Bruce Bowles Jr.
ENC 1101
9 July 2014
Mini-ethnography
Growing up everyone dreams of being the best they can be at one thing or another. Being
a swimmer, everyone has different goals and aspirations within the sport. Glory is not solely
defined as a winning a gold medal and has an extremely diverse ideology depending on each
person’s quest for greatness. Built on a strict personal level, ideas of goals set the bar for the
desired results. Whether it is going a best time or making it all the way to Olympic credibility,
the idea of reaching the “next level” stands strong. Beginning in summer-league swimming, love
for the sport is something all swimmers developed at that stage. With the devotion comes the
catalyst for greatness, and every swimmer knows what it is like to be enveloped in success when
they reach their goals. While the goals may be minimal, the idea travels on in the sport;
swimmers are extremely competitive athletes that possess the work ethic to make obtaining goals
a very real possibility. The competitive drive we all have makes accomplishing goals that much
sweeter and in that sense we keep wanting more – like an addiction to success.
After the petty summer-league swimming years, focused swimmers like you transitioned
into high school and club based swimming. It was nothing like you have ever done; the training
was a lot more intense and the free time you once had slowly but surely depleted. It seemed that
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all you did was swim, and that was okay because you knew that this was the sacrifice you needed
to make to one day, reach a level that most swimmers dream about, Division I College
swimming. You wanted to continue to grow as a person and an athlete, searching for the best
places to further your education and swimming career at the same time. With the internal drive
you possess for greatness, your dream for swimming at a collegiate level is more than possible if
you are willing to work for it. It is a much different atmosphere than anything you have been
accustomed to, but that is a good thing. After stepping back and observing how the Florida State
Swimming and Diving Team functions I have formed a mini-ethnography, shedding some light
on what to expect swimming at a college level at Florida State.
Growing up I had access to the best training situation possible. Practicing
everyday with Olympians like Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt, I was motivated to be like
them. I viewed this as an opportunity to not only look up to them and say, “That’s where I want
to be someday,” but an opportunity to train with them and learn how to compete at that level as
well. So I did, and I did it effectively as I am now living my life swimming at my dream school
with one of the best teams in the country. Through their support and teachings I was able to learn
a lot more than most people could ever imagine. I learned the value of hard work and desire at a
younger age than most kids, which prompted my desire to compete collegiately on the highest
levels possible. Looking up to them as not only role models but friends allows me to write this
ethnography effectively because I understand how everything must come together if something
great is to happen. Take Michael Phelps for example, watching him come in everyday,
motivated, never missing a practice to eventually win 8 gold medals in Beijing taught me more
about the little things making a big difference more than any other example ever could.
Swimmers maintain a desire to be the best that no other humans can relate to. Continuing the
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quest for success at collegiate level is an important transition for young athletes to make for
themselves. That is why I felt it necessary to cover this topic to put into words what has been
living in my mind since I started my swimming career several years ago.
Transitioning from high school level swimming is a big change for everyone no matter
what your level of swimming. At the collegiate level, especially Division I, everyone has a deep
admiration for the sport and strives to excel with the resources provided. Observing the Florida
State swimming and diving team, I was witness to a connection between the team as a whole that
no other organization I have been apart of had. The mutual understanding of commitment and
success really rubs off as the strongest aspect of the team. Everyone is always all in; there is no
time for excuses. Show up, throw down, and get better. Collegiate swimming is not like most
sports; you do not get an offseason to hangout and do whatever you want. Most Florida State
Swimmers practice from August to August, grinding multiple times a day with weights in
between. Yet, at the same time the joking, playful banter makes a run in at every practice and
stays. Something about swimmers being the only ones up on campus at 5:30 in the morning
using the time for something productive and not a “walk of shame” keeps us rather jubilant.
The sense of unity between all aspects of the team is really the backbone of the
organization. From the men’s team, the women’s team, the divers and swimmers, the Sprinters
and the Distance groups you can split it up several ways. Within each group is a lifelong
connection that fuels the intensity of a family. The lasting brotherhood or sisterhood is built on
the foundation of hours spent in the pool and out of the pool. It seems that the swimmers, the
ones who spend every morning in the pool killing themselves with each other, develop a bond
unlike any other. The idea of working out to the point of extreme exhaustion every day seems
crazy to the normal person. I guess that is why it is so appealing to the swimmers – the idea of
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extreme work for improvement is alluring to them and having someone next to them equally as
crazy molds a connection. The relationships based off that alone are arguably going to be
stronger than most marriages ever will be. Their friendships are much more than casual
acquaintances and after watching each sub-group interact and perform it showed. The Sprinters
stick together during the grueling high-intensity workouts while the Distance group bonds lap
after lap and the mutual hatred towards the Sprinter’s low-yardage workouts.
Typically the Sprinters deal a variety of fast pace workouts through out the week.
Dealing with a lot less yardage than the rest of the team, the sprint group makes up for it with the
amount of race pace quality. In a normal week morning practice starts off with a light warm-up,
3x200’s on an easy interval alternate backstroke and freestyle just to loosen up the muscles.
After the warm-up, a brief preset such as fast 50s or 100s does the job of getting the heart rate
prepared for a main set. Transitioning from the pre-set to main set happens pretty fast to keep the
fast twitch fibers in the muscles alert and ready to work. The main set is an all aerobic based
workout, dealing out some continual fast 50s, 100s and every yardage in between on low rest,
high intensity intervals. Switching over to the Distance groups workout, a lot changes in terms of
workout yardage. The warm-up is mainly the same, following the generic routine of 3x200s.
Leading into the pre-set and main set the yardage gets amped up heavily. The pre-set focuses on
a range of 50s to longer distances like 400s depending on the day. Their goal is the opposite of
the sprint groups: maintaining an effective pace and heart rate to prepare for the main set.
Usually a block set of distance over 200 yards or meters, the main set deals multiple rounds
within, each focusing on endurance based racing. The Distance workouts nearly tripled the
yardage amounts of Sprinters on a daily basis in order to train for their races. Understandably
though, endurance base racing and race pace racing are two completely different spectrums.
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With distance swimming the muscle groups use a slow-twitch function as opposed to sprint
based swimming, which uses fast-twitch muscle contractions to effectively navigate through the
water. In the quote below, Azcentral explains the significance and difference between the muscle
twitches while showing how they operate under workout stress.
“Slow-twitch fibers use oxygen to create energy. Because they
create and store energy efficiently, these muscle fibers are slow to
fatigue and can work for long periods of time. The opposite of
aerobic is anaerobic -- without oxygen. Fast-twitch muscles fibers
engage quickly and release energy rapidly through anaerobic
metabolism.” (Killip)
With this information, the coaches develop detailed workouts to match each of the
Florida State athlete’s muscle details. If an athlete has slow twitch muscle fibers, their workout
would be based around more endurance and distance based training. For Sprinters with fast
twitch, the workout plan will be a lot more energized and fast base to help strengthen those
muscles more effectively. The training program is extremely specialized and not everyone in the
same training groups is completing the same workouts. Everyone has a plan on what works best
for him or her to train efficiently and it is executed to ensure peak performance.
The diversity of workout banter initially seemed intimidating to a third party presence
such as myself but after further evaluation, one can determine it was all in good fun. The
“hatred” so to speak is, just like stated above, joking around to get through the workouts and
days a little easier. The Distance group will rag on the sprinters about only doing 50’s every day
as opposed to the distance group’s repetitious set of 1,000’s. The Sprinters get by with a little
dish back, calling their distance counterpart’s workouts “garbage yardage” and that usual keeps
things heated enough to pump out an effective, mutually exerting workout for both parties.
Outside of the pool is no different either. Everyone is included in post practice activities –
that’s just how it is. The program is extremely team orientated not a single person was excluded
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from attending any event hosted by anyone on the team. Whether it was a casual breakfast after
practice or the big 4th of July party, everyone was invited and everyone was comfortable. The
party I observed during Independence Day was a really team oriented event that celebrated in the
most American and FSU ways possible. Hosted at the West 10 apartment complex pool,
everyone on the team was present along with several hundred other college students. Things got
pretty crazy outside of the team’s circle but overall the party was a successful day. The team got
to hangout with each other, celebrate and do something not related to swimming laps up and
down a pool all day. This is a big factor is a lot of young swimmer’s choices of college when
looking at where they want to spend the next four years of their life. The best thing I noticed was
how Seminoles take pride in being a healthy but actively engaged community in and out of the
sport of swimming.
The Coaching staff also plays a huge role in the team atmosphere while we are topic of
team unity. Head coaches, the overseers of all things team, swimming, and then some, are often
viewed at as a threat. The head coach at FSU is the opposite, coaching and yelling when required
while contributing to the unity as the leader of the pack, inspiring, motivating, and teaching.
Assistants and trainers, next on the inspirational hierarchy, helped contribute to the mold of
family that the team is so centered around. Not necessarily present in team festivities 24/7, the
message they sent via their influence was beneficial to the overall team function.
Swimming might be an individual sport for the most part, but at FSU it is a closely-knit
family. Everyone operates together because unlike club or high school swimming, the sport is a
lot more team oriented. Scoring points individually transitions to team wins. The main reason the
Seminoles are so effective as a team is the deep admiration for not only everyone on the team
with them, but the colors and logo they represent as well. The whole team possesses a burning
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passion to compete for Florida State University and is willing to give it everything they have day
in and day out to bring home some titles. A strong sense of pride shows with each athlete,
showing they would not want to be anywhere else, or compete for anyone else. Their love is for
the university and they wouldn’t have it any other way.
Every group or organization has some sort of traditions that they partake in every so
often. The FSU swim team has a couple traditions for different aspects of the team. Observing
the men’s team I had learned about a few that really stood to me as an incoming athlete for the
team. Attending College Game Day hosted by ESPN for home football games is an exciting
event for the guys. They all gathered around the cameras and thousands of anxious Nole fans in
nothing but speedos and maybe a pair of sunglasses. The next couple of hours out front the
stadium the boys take pictures with fans, flex, and maybe take some more pictures. After
interviewing Harrison Brogden, a rising senior on the team, he said, “The College Game Day
tradition is a great aspect of the team. It is really cool to see all the people who actually are
interested in the swim team even if it is just for the next hour or so.” He went on to explain about
the team connection because of the tradition and how it relates back to the pool. “It is a really
great bonding experience, it lets the whole men’s team connect in a strange but effective way
that helps everyone get into when we get back in the pool.”
For the freshman on the men’s side, they have quite the first bonding experience to kickstart their traditions and team involvement. During sorority Rush Week, when there are
thousands of girls prancing around on sorority row, the initiation tradition involves some
freshman, speedos, and a bow tie or two. Starting from the stadium, the rookies jog their way all
the way down sorority row, finishing at the Westcott building. Hopefully winning the hearts of
every girl who set their eyes on the prize, the boys will have completed their first tradition as a
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collegiate athlete on one of the best college campus in the world. Serving no real purpose, the
run helps the team get oriented with each other in a fun, non-harmful experience. Differing from
typical hazing rituals unlike fraternities and other teams, no real danger is put upon the freshman,
only a little bit on fun and maybe embarrassment for some. The bonds will develop from that
point and only will continue as the next four years fly by as the roles change from freshman to
seniors and mentors.
Another interesting tradition Harrison brought up during our talk was the annual Beard
harvest. Taking place from November to the conference meets, the (capable) guys on the team
have a contest to see who can grow the best beard or facial hair combos. Several reasons cause
the tradition to make a comeback each year. Obviously the support for cancer research is a big
reason for the facial haired explosion, as the team does everything they can to help studies and
contribute their time to organizations to support other causes as well. Charitable work is a big
team supported goal – making a difference, no matter how big or small the cause, supporting is
something the team takes pride in. A big selling point for recruitment and parents who wish to
get involved in the community using the role as a student athlete, FSU is the perfect place for
philanthropic goals to be executed. The friendly competitiveness also makes its way outside of
the pool for the hairy occasion as the end result separates the men from the boys. Though, Some
Rogaine accusations had been introduced as the beard season started to come to a close last year
and competitive drives for the championship seasons were about to bust. Not singling anyone out
though… Once championship season comes around the hard training stops and so does the hair.
Shaving facial hair for a meet helps a college swimmer a lot more than shaving any other part of
the body does. The guys who have extreme amounts of facial growth have been used to the
everyday drag and getting rid of that drag is extremely beneficial to swimming effectively.
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On the topic of championship meets, it is extremely challenging to make the cut for
National championships and even the ACC conference meet. Not everyone is chosen to go or
even make the qualifying time standards. According to the NCCA and USA Swimming, out of
the entire country, only 235 males and 322 females reached the national championship meets this
past year (NCAA; USA Swimming). To reach the championships like the select few FSU
swimmers who made the cut, a lot must come into play. All the things listed above like
teamwork, unity, hard work all come into play and only then is a quest for a title possible. Each
aspect is a fundamental building block in the ladder of success. With the program here at Florida
State, I observed model athletes who posses every aspect of a champion in their body, working
everyday to make their dreams a reality. Stopping at nothing, these athletes make up the whole
swimming and diving team and make it something truly special to witness.
There is no standard of a person that is a part of the FSU swimming community. There is
no “ideal member” or “Model Athlete” on the team – everyone makes their own legacy within
the program and is not held to the standards of other athletes. No matter what anyone else has
done, it is up for the swimmer to establish themselves as a prominent role on the team with their
own actions. It is not based around what other people have done but rather what the individual
themselves is capable of doing and leaving their legacy behind at the university. After observing
the team for a couple days it was fascinating to witness and attempt to digest all the aspects of
the team tie together into one closely-knit organization. But the thing is, there was so much more
that I was incapable of putting into words about the team that really makes me grateful to be
apart of such an amazing program here at Florida State.
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Works Cited
“DI qualifying swimmers announced.” NCAA. Web. 5 Mar. 2014
12 July 2014.
“2014 NCAA Division I Men's Championships.” USA Swimming. Web.
12 July 2014.
Killip, Cindy. “Slow-Twitch vs. Fast-Twitch in Swimming.” AzCentral. Web.
12 July 2014.
Brogden, Harrison. Personal Interview. 12 July. 2014.
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Reflection:
For my mini-ethnography I feel that my connection with the swim team made collecting
information a lot easier to put down on paper. That being said, the strongest piece of my paper is
the backing to each point of study in the sense that I was able to explain the topic in an efficient
manor. The weakness of my piece would be lack of topics to expand upon. I felt that I could do a
really great job explaining each topic once I had them in my mind but figuring out what to write
about was a problem when drafting my paper. Some topics or points I had thought of including
became to similar to each other and I had to take them out or combine them in order to
effectively explain my points. For my portfolio I will spend more time thinking about other
aspects and measures of the team atmosphere to touch on in my paper. Topics that are not as
similar to the ones already explained previously. When responding I would like you to focus on
the information explained to the target audience of high school level swimmers who are looking
to continue on in the sport. My information might not be understandable in some ways to the
inexperienced, but keep in mind that my topics are to intrigue a possible recruit to understand
what goes on at FSU swimming and Diving. I wanted my readers to be knowledgeable about the
great relationships, traditions, and goals for excellence that take place everyday on the Florida
State campus. I emphasized this by vividly explaining all the exciting teambuilding atmospheres,
training styles, and involvement that each member on the team is so passionate about. I feel that
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I was successful in explaining my cause effectively to my target audience that in a couple years
will hopefully be in the same situation I am currently.
Interview with Harrison Brogden:
Why did choose to swim at FSU?
“Everything about the Florida State atmosphere was incredible for me. I loved the school, the
academics, the swimming, the other people – it was just such a nice fit for me.”
Is Florida State what you expected?
“Actually, some things were a little different in some aspects but overall it was more than what I
expected in terms of enjoyment, etc.”
Why do you guys keep doing the College Game Day Tradition?
“The College Game Day tradition is a great aspect of the team. It is really cool to see all the
people who actually are interested in the swim team even if it is just for the next hour or so. It is
a really great bonding experience, it lets the whole men’s team connect in a strange but effective
way that helps everyone get into when we get back in the pool.”
How was your transition from Club/Highschool to College?
“It was a lot easier than I had expected. Everyone coming in is in the same situation so it’s easy
to get to know people. The team is really accepting of everyone and does a good job making sure
everyone transitions easy.”
Notes:
Traditions: Wescott run, beards, community service
Strive for excellence
Involvement – everyone is united
Training between distance and sprinters
Coaching Styles tied back into training/team setting
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Time spent with team Conclusion, tie self back in