Miami Dade Invite

Fast swimming for the club swimmers in Miami! Most people probably think that club swimming stops during high school season but we are in full swing. Kids are trying to get best times, JO cuts, score points for top 16. We most definitely haven't stopped. Kids are setting goals and achieving them! When I look at them one thought crosses my mind: The future is secure.

These kids have been working just as hard as the HS team. They have goals in the sport that include, but also transcend the HS season. These are the kids that are with me ALL YEAR long. I respect these kids and the commitment they continue to give me.

Well, that being said I hope they don't mind that we go on a bit of a grind while we have a break in meets. Swimmers times have advanced themselves so practice will advance itself to follow suit. Keep moving things ahead!

Champs WED check for updates!

La Salle & St. Brendan

Yesterday we became a team. I say that because yesterday I used a unusual lineup. I put every swimmer in at least one unusual event for them or in one event in which they felt uncomfortable. I asked them to sacrifice a little bit of personal comfort to win a meet and they did just that. Every person on this team swam a event that made them feel uncomfortable. Every person swam off events and we won. We defined what it means to be a team, and what it means to act like a team. The meet was probably closer than I would have liked to see it but we rallied and won at the end. After that meet I am confident in our team going into County Championships. We have a couple of more practices to tighten all the loose ends before we compete.

I will be asking the Capts. to hold workout this weekend as I will be attending a club meet. Please Check for updates and announcements!

Miami Country Day/ Ransom/ Gulliver

So we had a pretty exciting/stressful weekend. We swam two meets against really tough opponents in a row. The first meet was a tri meet v.s Country Day and Ransom. We won fairly handily against Country Day, and lost by less than 10 to Ransom on both the girls and the boys side. The boys only lost by one. On Saturday we raced Gulliver. The boys lost fairly handily but the girls only lost by 4.

I was very proud of our win v.s. Country Day but I do have to say I REALLY wanted to beat one of the upper echelon schools. I think that everyone expects them to win because they have tradition. They have always beat us. They have always been better teams. But I cant say that everyone still believes these things. Me least of all. I think that we have the talent, spirit, competitiveness, skill, and team to get the job done. All we lack is pre/post season consistency. The only real difference between these "better" teams and us is the fact that their swimmers swim all year or at least all summer. The do a better job of preparing.

We aren't there yet but we are on the right track. I think that although we did lose these meets it was also something that we will use to slingshot us into the County Championship and Districts. Our team is focused and ready which makes my job easy for the next week. So back to the pool and back to the road ahead of us.

Keep checking for updates.

St. Andrews

In the first meet of the season our team felt the sweet taste of victory. In the second meet we felt the bitter taste of defeat. A mentor of mine Mike Bottom told me, however, that each race, each meet should be swum as a learning experience. There is never really any finality in any sport. Even when a athlete achieves a specific goal they still aspire to achieve more. It is a innate human characteristics of a athlete. A unsettled nature and a desire to always be better.

So Hopefully we will learn from this experience. We did a lot of things right. We had good starts and turns. We swam with a lot of heart. We cheered for each other. But we still need to get into better shape. Ike put a damper on our training a bit. When we get in better shape we will stop getting passed when we hold the lead. We will finish our races etc. etc. etc.

After the meet we had a great Pot Luck/ BBQ with the St. Andrews Team. It was nice because events like that reinforce the true nature of competition. Its always nice to just see kids acting like kids. Thanks to Rich Russel for helping me fund the event, and thanks to all the parents for all their work in the meet and with the Pot Luck. You are very appreciated.

So back to the pool and back to work. Keep checking for updates

Carrolton & Marathon

So back to High School duel meets! We started out with a pair of wins on the girls side and one win for the boys as Carrolton only has girls. I was really proud of our team today because although we were not in the best shape I still saw kids relying on their competitive spirit to get them thought the race. And I will take a win on a off day any time.I think the thing that really was the best was that this team relied on each other to win races. We are one machine! The races that we did not win we picked up second and third. That is a textbook way to win a meet. Everyone takes a role in the win.

I have to admit that I love how fast these meets run. Its so much more competitive and I can feel the enthusiasm and intensity in the air. We have another meet on Sat. Some bigger competition so I hope we can step it up.

Keep checking for updates.