High Speed! Volume 2

Chapter 8: Light

Their practice task on the day following the competition was the dolphin kick.

"Everyone, do you understand what the role of the dolphin kick is? You don't, do you. It's poor. Too poor."

When they climbed out of the pool after the five minutes of free practice ended, Nao abruptly told them that.

"Makoto. You're not an orca, so what're you doing, making such big swings. Asahi, you use your knees too much. By trying to kick strongly, it breaks your balance. Ikuya, your upkick is weak.  The propulsion force is used during the upkick, too. Haruka, you swim too gracefully. Work the pace for the dolphin."

He's impressed by how closely he looks at their individual details.

"Everyone, do you know what 'wave-making resistance' is? The thing where the resistance increases when you make waves on the water's surface."

When they take a breather, it's due to that that they perform it in as small movements as possible. He knows that much.

"Where's the place that receives that wave-making resistance the least? Haruka."

"Sky."

"Right. It means it's at the moment of the dive that you accelerate the most. But, humans can't fly, so you land in the water at some point. What do you do then? Asahi."

"Uissu. Swim."*

"The problem's where you swim. But wave-making resistance is born on the water's surface. What do you do in that case? Ikuya."

"You submerge. Can't breathe, though."

He answers in a displeased manner. He's been like that all day today. Could he still be dwelling on the competition?

"That's how it is. Like I had said just now, since you accelerate the most at the moment of the dive, you have no choice but to decelerate afterwards. Suppressing that deceleration as much as possible, it's the dolphin's or the Vassallo's role to maintain the initial velocity's momentum. Then, when should you surface? Makoto."

"Eh, that's a hard one. There are three answers."

"That's fine, say them all."

"Well, first, when it became faster to swim normally after the momentum from the dive is used up."

"That's right. Not limited to the dive, it's the same for the turn, too."

"Also, when you've gotten to 15m."

"Because there's the rule that you can only do the dolphin or the Vassallo for 15m."

"And when you can't breathe anymore."

"In short, consulting your lungs. It'll change depending on whether it's the short or the long."

Makoto lays his hands on his chest and nods. Could he be consulting his lungs without delay or something?

"Also, as for the breast's dolphin, you should think of it as support for the sake of changing over to the stroke. Because if you unskillfully try to gain propulsive force, on the contrary, your balance breaks and the resistance will end up getting bigger."

In the breaststroke, just one dolphin kick is allowed after the start and the turn. Indeed, you can't expect propulsive force from just a single kick, and in the breaststroke's case, it's easier to gain propulsive force by doing the kicks normally.

"So, how do you kick for the dolphin? Asahi."

"Uissu. Like this, bata-bata-bata."*

"You understand...... the feel of it. Small and swift, huh."