OK, so we know there are opportunities for wind-tunnel testing. What about "flume" testing?

Triathlon Forum
1

So, are there any places where you can do flume testing (for swimming)? I know there is one in Colorado Springs at the USOTC that can simulate altitudes and has all kinds of computer and digital imaging technology attached to it, but I don’t know if that one is open to the public. Anybody know if there are any public opportunities to do this type of testing and cost?

2

There is a guy in Tallahassee, FL who does that kind of thing. He puts sensors on your hands so he can tell what kind of forces you are exerting throughout your stroke. He does this in addition to underwater and above water filming. The system gives you a computer printout and he prescribes drills and fixes to help you get optimum power. Cost is reasonable.

3

Here’s a link. What the system is called is “Aquanex.”

http://swimmingtechnology.com/camp2007.htm

4

thanks
.

5

The Riekes Center in Menlo Park, CA has a swim flume. No idea of the cost or who helps to analyze your stroke though. Riekes Center

6

Marc Evans ( www.evanscoaching.com )used to have his office at the Riekes Center and did video taping in the flume for swim technique analysis. He has since moved his office to the Burgess Pool Center, so I don’t know if he can still use the flume at Riekes. To the best of my knowledge Marc never did anything more sophisticated than swim technique analysis in the flume. There was no instrumentation to measure drag, for example, as there is in a wind tunnel.

FWIW, I always found swimming in the flume to feel quite different from swimming in a pool/open water.

Haim

7

Marc Evans has been by my store and Tim Sheeper is supposed to come by at some point to chat. Marc has been using the teaching pool at Burgess Pool to help out his athletes since the move.

I’ve never swum in a flume before but would guess that it would probably be best for an Olympic swimmer where conditions are can be controlled more than in an open water swim.

Just curious as to what you found different? Was is the flow of water or something else? I remember that Dan wrote an article about swimming in an Endless Pool and the differences he felt between that and a normal pool.