Comment by onlypassingthru
Comment by onlypassingthru 2 days ago
>you can use the energy from the swimmer in front of you to 'spring' yourself forward
This bears out in the real world. Much like a peloton in cycling, swimming directly behind another swimmer can be far more energy efficient than swimming by yourself and feel like you are getting pulled along for the ride.
Even swimming slightly offset another swimmer saves significant energy. It also reduces the chance of getting kicked in the face. We do this when possible during triathlon open water swims.