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Vince Herring has been a competitive swimmer for years, but the most emotional swim he has experienced so far was not his own. “I was in Australia during the World Masters Games and saw the oldest racer I’ve ever seen,” recalls Herring, who lives in Rochester. “Her 80-year old son was walking along the edge of the pool, following her while she swam the 50 free. The crowd was chanting and it was very powerful.” The swimmer’s age? 101 years old. While he has quite a ways to go before reaching a similar milestone swim, Herring, who turns 67 this month, is definitely an inspiration in his own right when it comes to commitment, determination and devotion to the sport of swimming. Six days a week, Herring makes the 11 minute drive from his home to the Rochester-Olmsted Recreation Center for his 5:30 a.m. swim. A typical 90 minute workout will cover anywhere from 3000 to 5000 yards, which ends up being somewhere in the neighborhood of three miles. A longtime member of the Rochester Swim Club Orcas Masters team, he frequently shares the pool with several of his teammates. “I have a friend who sells pools and he’s always telling me I should put one in my yard,” says Herring. “I don’t want to swim alone because I like the social aspect of my daily swims. I also enjoy challenging myself against other people – maybe try to go a little faster or do a few more laps. I’m always aware of what other swimmers are doing.” When it comes to swimming challenges, Vince Herring has definitely gone deep. In addition to competitive swimming in both indoor and outdoor pools across the country, he has also participated in several amazing open water swims, including an attempt to cross the English Channel in 2008. “The first seven hours of the day were calm, but then a storm blew up and I ended up fighting against that storm for more than five hours,” Herring says. Battling illness and extreme fatigue during the swim – he lost 16 pounds while in the water – Herring ultimately made the decision to climb into the accompanying boat. I went strong into that swim, but I became too tired to finish. There’s just no way to swim faster than the tide and during that period of time, the tide changed,” he says, adding he is “doubtful” that he will make another Channel swim. Over the years, Herring has traveled extensively for swimming to places like New Zealand, Hawaii, Italy and Canada. He has participated in a multitude of endurance swims including crossing Minnesota’s Lake Mille Lacs (the first man to do so), through the Straits of Gibraltar (the 22nd American to complete the swim), in the waters off Key West, a swim to Alcatraz (using one arm, as he was nursing a shoulder injury) and an entire loop around the island of Manhattan, an experience for which he has particularly fond memories. “During the swim, you’re passing under the Brooklyn Bridge, which is cool,” Herring says. “I also saw the UN and Yankee Stadium from the water. It was a great experience.” Before undertaking these types of strenuous swims, Herring accelerates his training regimen, often logging between 8 and 11 workouts in a week. He’ll complete his usual 5:30 a.m. swim, then head over to the Java Depot in Rochester for his favorite mocha (“I tell them I should be their national spokesman, “he jokes) and back to either the Rochester-Olmsted pool or to the Rochester Athletic Club pool, where he also swims regularly. “If I miss two days in a row in the pool, I just don’t feel right,” says Herring, who has been swimming competitively since 1990. “On the days I swim, I just feel so good.” It’s the consistency of his routine that has caused swimming to be such an important part of Herring’s life, and while not everyone can aspire to that kind of commitment to a particular sport, improving fitness at any age is definitely an attainable goal, he says. “The Masters program is a good example. We have swimmers of all abilities. At one time, we had a woman in her 90’s who started swimming in her 60’s,” says Herring. Even moderate exercise – a half-hour walk per day—can really make a difference, he says. Logging how much time you spend at whatever sport you’re involved in is another way to strengthen your commitment to the activity and to help you see the progress you are making. While posting his times and distances for the Masters program recently, Herring made a very unique discovery. “I’ve never competed against him head to head, but based on both of our recent Masters times, I’m swimming faster than Mark Spitz right now, “says Herring. Lifting weights is another part of his exercise regimen. “‘Train, don’t strain’ has always been my motto,” says Herring. “Some of the exercises I do I enjoy and others I don’t, but I keep doing them and adjust my routine depending on how I’m feeling that day.” He has a very specific goal in mind when it comes to the motivation for his weight training. “If I live to be 100, I’ll need to be able to lift two 50 lb. bags of feed for the chickens and other animals we have here at home,” says Herring, who has been retired for four years. In April, 2006, he and his wife Mary sold their Rochester business, Herring Art and Frame, which had been in the family for 34 years. “That’s why I got into the habit of swimming so early every morning – so I could get in a workout before I went to the store,” says Herring. When asked what his next big swimming challenge might be, Herring demurred. He’s struggling a bit with a shoulder injury right now, but will likely have something planned soon. “I usually don’t like talking about it much,” he says. “Instead, I just put the work in to achieve the goal I’m shooting for and like they say, I just do it.” For information about the Rochester Orcas Masters program, visit www. swimorcas.com. New members are always welcome. There are several Masters teams that practice throughout Minnesota- visit www.minnesotamasters.com for more information. By Julie Pfitzinger Vince’s Tips
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Vince Herring