Comments on: Department of “Well I’ll be damned.” https://habitablezone.com/2012/07/01/department-of-well-ill-be-damned/ Thu, 09 Apr 2026 15:15:13 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2012/07/01/department-of-well-ill-be-damned/#comment-16094 podrock Mon, 02 Jul 2012 01:41:11 +0000 http://www.habitablezone.com/?p=17559#comment-16094 That's one of the things you play with, after swimming hundreds of laps, after you've given thought to every other aspect of how you are using your body to move through the water. And you can actually feel the difference. But it isn't easy to do. I never swam in competition, but I was a lifeguard and spent thousands of laps learning how each little motion makes a difference. That’s one of the things you play with, after swimming hundreds of laps, after you’ve given thought to every other aspect of how you are using your body to move through the water. And you can actually feel the difference. But it isn’t easy to do. I never swam in competition, but I was a lifeguard and spent thousands of laps learning how each little motion makes a difference.

]]> By: ER https://habitablezone.com/2012/07/01/department-of-well-ill-be-damned/#comment-16092 ER Mon, 02 Jul 2012 00:44:54 +0000 http://www.habitablezone.com/?p=17559#comment-16092 Sailors have long known that if you lock the boat's prop so it can't spin, (say, by leaving the engine in gear) it has less drag than if you let it spin freely (say, by putting the transmission in neutral. The boat will sail faster with a locked prop than a free-spinning one. It has something to do with turbulence. I do a lot of swimming and I've found I have the sensation of greater speed with my fingers spread open rather than cupped, but I never knew whether it was real or just a subjective feeling. Maybe people should experiment by drilling holes in oar blades and canoe paddles. Sailors have long known that if you lock the boat’s prop so it can’t spin, (say, by leaving the engine in gear) it has less drag than if you let it spin freely (say, by putting the transmission in neutral. The boat will sail faster with a locked prop than a free-spinning one. It has something to do with turbulence.

I do a lot of swimming and I’ve found I have the sensation of greater speed with my fingers spread open rather than cupped, but I never knew whether it was real or just a subjective feeling.

Maybe people should experiment by drilling holes in oar blades and canoe paddles.

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