New Cap

In the 80s, when I swam on a summer swim team, the only caps available were made out of latex.  They were hard to get on by yourself because the latex would pull your hair. Putting them on involved two people.  I would hold the edge of the cap to my forehead and someone else would stretch the cap backward over my head.  They would hold it while I shoved my hair into the cap.  Then they could let the cap go.

The caps were prone to ripping, which meant you never bought just one, because you had to always have one on hand.  The best part about them was that they would stretch a lot in the water.  Sometimes at the end of a swim meet we would jump in the pool and carefully stretch the cap out in the water until we could put one of the younger swim team members inside.

Now they have invited silicone swim caps.  Which are much better in every way but stretching to small-child size.  They don’t stick to your hair and they last forever.  My cap that just broke lasted for years.  (Granted, not all of those were swimming years, but it didn’t even break down like the latex ones would.)

So welcome to the new cap.  And thank you, new cap, for showing me how to properly treat you through graphics and Engrish.

4 thoughts on “New Cap”

  1. 1) I love that you swim in a cap.
    2) The memory of you co-sharing a cap with another kiddo is fun.
    3) Funny instructions!

    1. It feels very weird to swim without a cap. I had to do it for a week before I got this new one. It’s not the slick swimming experience of norm. The only people who don’t wear caps at my pool are the men who have short/no hair. Everyone else: cap.

  2. Since my almost paralyzing fear of water (more specifically, watery death) typically keeps me from doing much swimming, I never thought much about swim caps or what they’re made out of. So I found this post rather informative!

    Also, I chuckled at the visual instructions as soon as I saw them.

    1. I find it interesting that you went on that canoe trip with this almost paralyzing fear of water.

Leave a Reply to stenaros Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *