Mermaid Swimming

I had an interesting hiccup come up with a booking I'm doing next week. I found out that the recreation center that we had booked to do a child's birthday party recently banned the use of mermaid tails. What I found was interesting that this happened in landlocked Utah! Which probably means there was an accident at that particular pool. Needless to say, we will still be there, but are having to jump several hoops to get special permission to swim.

This leads me into a blog about the importance of practice in a mermaid tail. Even with over 300 hours of training under my fin, and very regular training habits, I still occasionally have problems. Lets be honest, you're tying your legs together, and jumping into 9 feet of water (or deeper at some pools). There are bound to be problems sometimes. Even in shallow water, accidents can happen. I can't tell you how many times I've "missed" and bonked my head. Luckily, with all of my training (and the fact that I NEVER swim alone) I have plenty to rely on in a fishy situation. So here's what I recommend for those that would like to start mermaid swimming.

1. NEVER EVER swim alone. Always bring a friend, another mermaid, a mertender, or someone to swim with you. If you are going to be alone, make sure the facility you are using has lifeguards and plenty of people around to help you if you get in a bind.  This will ensure your safety, the safety of others (your friend could make sure there isn't anyone near your fin when you dive, so no one gets hit!), and make it possible for other mermaids to use the pool if we are all swimming responsibly.

2. I highly suggest you practice with a lightweight fin first. Even better, practice your dolphin kick (or make sure you are a strong swimmer) without a fin. Then use a fabric tail, and move up to neoprene, silicone, latex, etc. The heavier the tail the harder it is to learn to swim. Even though a tail is water neutral (it doesn't sink or float) it still has weight that you are pulling. Plus, the professional grade tails (silicone especially) will suction your legs together and it's a much different feeling in silicone than fabric.

3. Did I mention practice? Practice practice practice! Practice does make perfect. The better skilled you are in your fin, the more comfortable the "pool authorities" will be with you being at their facility.

4.  Know your limits! And seriously follow them. This applies to breath holding, diving, currents, etc. There is always room for improvement, but don't get yourself in trouble.

5. Be careful with children (and adults!) in the pool. If you have a large fluke (like me) make sure you have room to dive and swim safely without knocking someone out with your tail. Better yet, have a friend or mertender spot you. I have been smacked with a tail (and I have smacked friends with my tail too on accident) while swimming with some of my girls. It's not a pleasant feeling. Although it's not a huge deal because we're friends, another pool patron might have a problem with it.

6. I also recommend being careful with children. Not just while swimming, but while talking and working with them too. Some kids may have autism, learning disabilities, or even just fears that make them uncomfortable with you. You don't want to cause a problem or scene, so just be careful. Generally speaking, I try not to interact with children beyond waving (or beckoning them to come visit you) until they approach me, or their parents or guardians approach me. I am also very careful with letting children ride on my back (I make sure their parents are okay with it, and they feel safe putting their head underwater, OR I'm in very shallow water), or sit in my lap without the parents close by (or without their permission). You never know what allergies a child has (especially with latex), what insecurities they have, or what their history is like. I work for a center for autism as a teacher now, and this is some of the training I was given to ensure the safety of the kids. This applies to photography too. Make sure the parents are okay with you posting and taking pictures with their kids. Generally speaking, unless I'm doing a party and the parents have posted pictures, I will not even post pictures of the kids to avoid problems. Release forms are great for this. Privacy is a huge issue with some people these days, and its better safe than sorry!

Phew! Okay, I think that about covers what I do. It may seem restrictive, but it really isn't all that bad. And because of these guidelines that I have put in place for myself (and for the other mermaids that work under me) we don't usually have any problems with parents, recreation centers, or anyone else for that matter. And now I will swim off my soap box!