Tracy Caulkins doesn't know what it's like to be behind.

From the intant she jack-knifed off the starting block last night in the finals of the 400-yard individual medley, the 18-year-old Nashville, Tennessee swimming phenomenon led the field--not stopping until she finished a full 25 yards ahead of everyone else in a new U.S. Open, American, meet and pool record of 4:04.63.

Caulkins' awesome swimming performance was the highlight of the second day of the four-day AAU Swimming Nationals being held at Harvard's Blodgett Pool. While the lanky schoolgirl slowly swam a victory lap on her back, the crowded auditorium rose to its feet, applauding the stellar performance for three long minutes.

Aw Shucks

"I was pretty pleased with my swim--it felt really smooth," Caulkins said in a press conference after the meet. "I don't know what my time would've been in a 50-meter pool, but it might have been close to a world record," she added.

Other record-setting swims last night included former Olympian Jill Sterkel's 1:46.13 in the women's 200-yard freestyle. Swimming against a fast field, Sterkel held off a challenge from American record holder Sippy Woodhead to touch first with a new Blodgett record.

Nineteen-year-old Jesse Vassallo--who set the U.S. Open and American record two weeks ago at the NCAA Championships--won the 400 IM in a relatively slow 4:50.31 to set a new Blodgett standard. Most interesting about the race, however, was the performance by fellow Puerto Rican Ricardo Prado, a 16-year-old, who in his first appearance in the Nationals top eight chased Vassallo to a second-place finish of 3:51.87.

The men's 200 free was won by Florida's David Larson in 1:36.04--just four-tenths shy of Jim Montgomery's 1977 meet record. The race also marked the final 200 free of Harvard co-captain and Olympic silver medalist Bobby Hackett, who is appearing in his last competitive swim meet as a member of Bernal's Gators Swim Club.

Competing in an outside lane, Hackett went out in a fast 47.7 and held on to finish third with a 1:37.1--a time that is within three tenths of a second of his lifetime best. He also led off the Gators' 800 free relay--a team composed of Harvard swimmers Ted Chappell, Larry Countryman and Jack Gauthier--that finished a surprising sixth in the final standings.

Chappell--an Eliot House sophomore--also had an outstanding evening, finishing 11th in the 400 IM with a 3:58.76.

The final events--the men's and women's 800 free relays--provided the most excitement of the evening. Despite Tracy Caulkins' lead-off swim of 1:45.74 for the Nashville Aquatic Club--a time that would have won the 200 free contest earlier in the evening--Nashville fell to third place behind Longhorn Aquatic and the American record-setting time of 7:12.62 by the Mission Viejo Nadadores.

In the men's contest, the lead see-sawed back and forth between Florida Aquatic, Pleasant Hills and Mission Viejo before the Mission squad barely outtouched the others with a 6:31.50.