Meet Cheryl...
1. Name: Cheryl Braunstein
2. Zodiac sign: Aquarius
3. Hometown: Sacramento, CA
4. Your favorite stroke: FREESTYLE!!! (Are there other strokes that I don't know about?)
5. Lane you swim in and why your lane is better than the other lanes on the team:
Because on Saturdays, Mike Pletke is perfect at keeping pace. And I can swim in the rear without too many people lapping me on long sets. And because Sandy and Suzanne are the ONLY people in the lane who HAVE slept with someone in the lane (I think!).
6. Tell us a little bit about your aquatics/sports background?
I'm from Sacramento, the home of Mark Spitz, so swimming was always something that I enjoyed and did to "stay in shape" but never pursued competitively (I'll never forgive my parents for not letting me swim age group! - Years of therapy to get over...Kidding!). I was always intimidated by UCLA's masters team as they all looked so fast and I didn't even know how to do a flip turn. I finally taught myself, and then when I was in grad school and working out at the pool, some guys invited me to swim with the master's team and I did - my first organized practice! The one set I remember - 10 X 50s on the 1:00 and I thought I would die. Now, that's a recovery set to me. I've been swimming with master's groups ever since...But of course this one is the best! (And footnote - my biggest swimming thrill? When Sherm Chavoor - Mark Spitz's coach and a former Olympic coach - saw me swimming at a gym once and told me I had a good kick. He died a few months later so I'm not sure how good his mind or eyes were when he said it, but it was great to hear.)
7. When and why did you join DCAC (any interesting stories associated)?
Fall 2005 and Geoff Heuchling! I'd met Geoff when we both swam with the Smelts in Chicago and because we both knew Alan Godfrey (who used to swim with both DCAC and with my master's team in North Carolina). And stranger coincidence...Alan is the one who introduced me to the Smelts and LGBT swimming when he heard I was having trouble finding a group to swim with in Chicago. How strange that I now swim on his old team in DC!
8. What is your favorite kind of swim set/workout and why?
Short and (somewhat) fast (only in the pool!!! Get your minds out of the gutter). I like a good set that mixes up 50s and 100s with maybe some 150s or 200s thrown in there as recovery. Something that packs in a lot of yardage but feels like it went by in 20 minutes.
9. Do you have any swimming/sports goals for the coming year? If so, what are they?
I'd like to swim more meets this year. I aged up last year and only swam one meet, so now I have to see if I can tear down some of those DCAC 40-44 records. (Sorry, Becky.) I also want to bike to more practices (especially at Hains Point) and get back into running after a year-long hiatus.
10. What do you love most about swimming?
The fitness benefits of course. But over the last 10-plus years of masters swimming, I find that I love the friendship, companionship, and support of swimming with a team. It keeps me motivated. (How nice to get grief about where you've been if you miss practice for a few weeks!) And of the four masters teams I've swum with, I've developed life-long friendships from each of them. I mean c'mon, I met the guy I live with (the other one, not my actual husband) from swimming masters together more than ten years ago!
11. What do you dislike most about swimming?
I think my shoulders look too broad...for a girl! And I am cursed with bad enough hair as it is. (The chlorine can't be helping.)
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12. What is one of your favorite things to do out of the pool?
I LOVE to cook, to find new and interesting places to eat, and to share food and wine with friends. And of course to travel. Was pretty rough that I "had" to go to London a few times to visit my husband while he was working there.
13. What is something that most other people on the team don't know about you?
I'm straight and am not a top! Okay, seriously, when I was in high school, my favorite type of music was heavy metal and the first concert I ever saw was the Scorpions (and I think Bon Jovi was the opening band). Fortunately, I am living proof of evolution.
14. Ok, a couple silly questions. Rumor has it that some people on the team are intimidated by you. Should they be? ;-)
NO!!!!!! Alright, I have a bark, but not really a bite (except to Tim). I'm outspoken and opinionated, but I'm also harmless. I'm passionate about things, but also get excited to hear what other people think. I actually can (yes, Jonathan, I really can) respect the views of other people. As long as people can respect a difference of opinion, I love a healthy disagreement. I just get frustrated when people feel like their beliefs and opinions are the only valid ones. (Well, mine are, but that's different ;-)
15. Have you ever peed in the pool?
Seriously - no. I'm too grossed out by it. I get grossed out peeing in the ocean or other open water spaces. And, really, the fish do it so why I have trouble with it is a mystery.
16. Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, or Ricky Berens and why?
Pablo Morales!!!! Remember, I'm old! What a hottie that one was. And smart too - Columbia Law. Who wouldn't be turned on by that? But admittedly, watching Michael Phelps grow into his ears hasn't been too painful on the eyes.
Um, he actually went to Cornell Law, and is now a swim coach!
17. Latex or Silicone?
Silicone. Can't you tell that my boobs are fake - and I don't have to practice safe sex since I'm married. (Wish plastic surgery could explain why my boobs were so frickin' big cause they really just get in the way...And running with them - OUCH!)
Um, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was talking about swim caps!
18. If you could choose one person on the team to be MetroWeekly Cover Boy of the Year, who would it be and why?
Everyone on the team knows who I have a crush on...but I'm not telling! So how can I give an answer and not get into trouble with someone? I think there are a lot of great bodies on the team and a lot of great smiles, and few people who have both! Can I leave my answer at that?
Cheryl, we all know you love bears!
19. Please describe DCAC in three words of less:
Well I can't be cliche enough to say "fun, competitive and close" so let's see...I'm going to cheat and use three words that are all synonyms of "thrilling"...because they're all different enough in meaning to answer the question: (awe-inspiring - after all how awesome are the Vails!; gripping - can we ever get enough of team drama and sexual exploits?; and exciting - kind of a catch-all for everything else!)
20. Are you outraged yet?
No - this was a lot of fun!
