Well, after all the debate, I've revised a paragraph in my intro (which
I admit was badly phrased) to try and more accurately convey what I was
trying to say.

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Ranma looked down to realize that another was about to happen.  The
force of the water's blast was carrying her out of the ring - and to
defeat.  She tried to swim against the force of the water, but it was a
useless gesture - she had less than a second to accelerate herself to a
speed that could overcome both the force of the water and the pull of
gravity.  If she could even have reached such a speed without her arms
falling off.  She wasn't given the time to find out.

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Does this satisfy the physicists among you?  :)

-Richard