Many Ways to Win
by Mariah Burton Nelson  

Mom didn't dive in after all. She started in the water, pushing off the wall. She doesn't like feeling "wimpy" but also doesn't like how her shoulder throbs, the pain keeping her awake, if she pushes too hard.

This is an update on last month's story about the Arizona State Championships. Mom had just aged up in the 80-84 group. I decided to swim a half-mile myself. You asked: Did you win?

Mom won all three of her events. No other women over 80 showed up. That was disappointing -- if you're competitive, you want to compete, not just win -- but she racked up points for her team and felt good about learning to pace herself, adjusting to her body's changing abilities and limitations.

There was only one other 45-49-year-old woman who swam the 800-meter race, and I beat her easily. So what? If you're competitive, you want to compete.

The thrill came from my impromptu race with Theresa, 43, in the next lane. I guess she has a better dive, because when I surfaced, she was already a half-body- length ahead. I spent the first two laps assessing whether I could stay with her. I could.

Over the next twelve laps, I surged repeatedly, trying to pass. She sped up too. Ah! So she could see me too! Finally, with two laps to go, I sprinted. But so did Theresa. I never did catch her. But I swam much faster than I expected (12:32.)

"Thanks!" I said afterward.

"Oh, thank YOU," she said. (Women are so polite.) "That was the whole race for me, trying to stay ahead of you." She succeeded. But so did I. I swam fast, had a blast, made a friend.

Billie Jean King once said, "You have to win. If you don't win, nobody pays attention." True. At the Olympics, the winners are going to get a lot of attention. Let's hope the "losers" remember that there are many ways to succeed.

Point #1: Competing is usually even more fun than winning.

Point #2: There are many ways to win.

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