Open Water Spots quietly turns your swims into progress — a yearly target, points, levels, and badges. None of it takes effort beyond logging your swims, but knowing how the pieces fit together makes the season more motivating.
A yearly goal gives the season a number. Set a target distance from your profile and a progress bar tracks you against it — on your public profile too — with an honest "on track" or "behind pace" read based on how far into the year you are. Setting a goal is a Pro feature; once it's set, the progress bar stays put. Pick something that's a stretch but realistic — the "Building Your Distance" article has a sensible way to choose.
Points and levels run underneath everything. Distance scores (a point for every 10 metres), and so do likes received, comments, followers, photos, reviews, conditions reports — and especially adding a new spot, worth 100 each. Points roll up into named levels that climb from "First Splash" all the way to "Mythic Swimmer," shown on the level bar on your profile.
Badges mark the milestones. The /badges page shows the whole catalogue; you earn them automatically by hitting thresholds — distance, streaks, contributions, and more — and the locked ones stay visible so you can see what's next. There's nothing to claim; they appear as your activity earns them.
The leaderboard at /leaderboard ranks swimmers by distance, with tabs for the week, month, year, and all time. The honest secret to climbing all of it is the same: log every swim and contribute to the spots you visit. Set a goal first, then let the points, badges, and ranking follow on their own.