Last weekend a group of our swimmers competed in the Division II Championships. It is a JO qualifying meet so some of our swimmers who are still chasing JO cuts got a chance to taper and rest for the meet. They knew they had to perform at the top of their game and I can happily say that they did just that. The heat, the several technical malfunctions, and meet delays couldn't stop them either. These kids knew they had a job to do and they went out and performed. We had several new JO cuts and several best times. We also had 80% of swims make it back to the finals and in the finals we had several top 3 finishers. And when I tell you these kids raced, they really released their competitive spirit and challenged all competitors. Needless to say I was fired up!
Aside from the swimming the meet was a great weekend for the kids. The camaraderie on this team is great. One night it was someones birthday so we all went out to Pizza Hut. We monopolized about 10 tables and had a great time. It was so nice to see that although this meet is a serious one that kids had the opportunity to chow on pizza, tell jokes, get in food fights, play games and just flat out be kids. More than anything that is what this is all about. In the daily grind it is easy to forget about that.
Thank you again to all parents for you patience, help, commitment to your children. Without you nothing is possible.
Sectionals this weekend, and JO's in two weeks! Check for updates.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
FLA International Meet
I thought I knew what hot was but that was before I went to the Fort Lauderdale International meet last weekend. More than anything I give props to every swimmer who stayed mentally and physically on top of their game although the elements sought to break them down.
This was a great meet. It is one of the biggest meets that we go to with more than 1500 kids in attendance. These kids came from all over the country and they all had A times or above so I consider it a elite meet. For us is was a practice in elevating our performance at the more elite level.
I believe that we did that. Many swimmers placed in the top twenty and we had one swimmer place top ten. What I always have to remember is that these are the fastest kids in the Florida Keys and every time they go out to compete they prove that. I saw lots of confidence exuding out of all of the kids and most importantly they had fun.
What I was most impressed with was our swimmers abilities to warm themselves up and mentally prep for a race. If you look at any other team they are all running group warm ups. I do not. I want to believe that I produce self sufficient athletes that can warm up on their own and swim fast on their own. I think that if they learn how to get themselves ready that any success is theirs more than anyone elses.
I give lots of props to all the kids and I hope we can carry the momentum through the summer and continue to grow and prosper as a elite level club.
This was a great meet. It is one of the biggest meets that we go to with more than 1500 kids in attendance. These kids came from all over the country and they all had A times or above so I consider it a elite meet. For us is was a practice in elevating our performance at the more elite level.
I believe that we did that. Many swimmers placed in the top twenty and we had one swimmer place top ten. What I always have to remember is that these are the fastest kids in the Florida Keys and every time they go out to compete they prove that. I saw lots of confidence exuding out of all of the kids and most importantly they had fun.
What I was most impressed with was our swimmers abilities to warm themselves up and mentally prep for a race. If you look at any other team they are all running group warm ups. I do not. I want to believe that I produce self sufficient athletes that can warm up on their own and swim fast on their own. I think that if they learn how to get themselves ready that any success is theirs more than anyone elses.
I give lots of props to all the kids and I hope we can carry the momentum through the summer and continue to grow and prosper as a elite level club.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Tamiami LC Meet
Finally back to long course season. I do have to say that I love swimming yards because of the speed, but lets be realistic for a second. No other country in the world swims 25yds except the United States. I would say that in order to be a successful meters swimmer, one has to be a good swimmer as opposed to someone who is just good at starts and turns. This meet gave me a chance to see what kind of swimmers we were with minimal meter training.
When I first opened the heat sheet I immediately relaxed. The times that I saw next to my swimmers names were going to get crushed. I had extreme confidence on that. Some of the best times that were on the heat sheet were intervals that we have been training in workout. Of course I really didn't let on too much. I wanted them to be confident, but not over confident.
This team has come such a long way in a year. Kids are so far in front of their former selves. Lets put it like this. Every swimmer at the meet swam 4 events each day. On each day only one or two kids didn't get a best time in one of those four events, but did best times in all their other events. EVERY OTHER kid did a best times in EVERY EVENT they swam on BOTH days. WOW! I hope they were please with themselves because I know I was pleased with them.
But the word that describes our team is EVOLUTION. I know that at the next meet it will be hard to get best times. The faster you get the harder it becomes. This meet was only the start. It has now motivated me to make sure our team keeps moving in a positive direction. If they are focused then so am I...and that is a dangerous combination for anyone swimming against us!
When I first opened the heat sheet I immediately relaxed. The times that I saw next to my swimmers names were going to get crushed. I had extreme confidence on that. Some of the best times that were on the heat sheet were intervals that we have been training in workout. Of course I really didn't let on too much. I wanted them to be confident, but not over confident.
This team has come such a long way in a year. Kids are so far in front of their former selves. Lets put it like this. Every swimmer at the meet swam 4 events each day. On each day only one or two kids didn't get a best time in one of those four events, but did best times in all their other events. EVERY OTHER kid did a best times in EVERY EVENT they swam on BOTH days. WOW! I hope they were please with themselves because I know I was pleased with them.
But the word that describes our team is EVOLUTION. I know that at the next meet it will be hard to get best times. The faster you get the harder it becomes. This meet was only the start. It has now motivated me to make sure our team keeps moving in a positive direction. If they are focused then so am I...and that is a dangerous combination for anyone swimming against us!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Meet At Ransom...Among other things
The hardest part of coaching is showing them something new after you've already showed them everything you know. I knew that kids improved when I first got here and that was good, but at that point everything was still too new to tell if it was signifigant. I only say this becasue I am wrapping up my first year down here, and I am still seeing improvement. I think we swam great at the meet. More than anything I like kids that are swimming with confidence. The younger swimmers knew thier heats and lanes. They got themselves up and they raced. Real veterans now! My older groups swam great as well! A few new JO cuts, a lot of new best times, and we are still having fun doing it.
Now its longcourse season. I personally am tired of short course and cant wait to swim a real distance. We have LOTS of work in front of us. Again I would like to thank the parents for doing all the driving and cheering! Your constant support allows us to achieve.
Keep checking for updates
Now its longcourse season. I personally am tired of short course and cant wait to swim a real distance. We have LOTS of work in front of us. Again I would like to thank the parents for doing all the driving and cheering! Your constant support allows us to achieve.
Keep checking for updates
Monday, April 21, 2008
8 and Under Meet in Miami
This past weekend the youngest Key Fish traveled to Miami to compete in a 8 and under meet. These meets are a great way for these younger swimmers to get excited about going to meets, and to discover themselves as swimmers.
The month of March was pretty slow in terms of going to meets, but with that "off" time we spent a lot of time trying to develop. My swimmers have been giving me great mental and physical focus over the last month and I would say that this was one of the key contributors to our success as a group. Many of the kids did a best time in every event they swam, while others were only off in one event. Many of the swimmers scored top eight in at least one event while others scored top 3 in every event. We had many heat winners, and for the first time in a long time we had a relay which finished third.
I would say that the best part, however, was watching these young swimmers become more adept at dealing with the chaos that swim meets can sometimes present. They all knew their heats and lanes, and were getting themselves prepared to swim fast. I also saw kids trying new strokes techniques that they have been using in workout and it is always nice to know that my voice is not falling on deaf ears.
Best part of all was that smiles after a race, and the excitement to swim in another race. These young kids remind me to just relax sometimes and have a little fun. I am glad that my swimmers wont be burnt out at the age of 10 and still appreciate the fun, the camaraderie, and the personal achievement that this sport offers.
The month of March was pretty slow in terms of going to meets, but with that "off" time we spent a lot of time trying to develop. My swimmers have been giving me great mental and physical focus over the last month and I would say that this was one of the key contributors to our success as a group. Many of the kids did a best time in every event they swam, while others were only off in one event. Many of the swimmers scored top eight in at least one event while others scored top 3 in every event. We had many heat winners, and for the first time in a long time we had a relay which finished third.
I would say that the best part, however, was watching these young swimmers become more adept at dealing with the chaos that swim meets can sometimes present. They all knew their heats and lanes, and were getting themselves prepared to swim fast. I also saw kids trying new strokes techniques that they have been using in workout and it is always nice to know that my voice is not falling on deaf ears.
Best part of all was that smiles after a race, and the excitement to swim in another race. These young kids remind me to just relax sometimes and have a little fun. I am glad that my swimmers wont be burnt out at the age of 10 and still appreciate the fun, the camaraderie, and the personal achievement that this sport offers.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
New Faces In Tamiami
A little late with this post but I did not forget about it. In fact I left this meet feeling pretty good about the future of our team. For a while I had been relying on a small core group of swimmers on my team to attend all the meets, and really get involved with the team. Now, however, I am seeing lots of new faces at the swim meets; parents and kids alike. Hopefully this is jsut the beggining.
To this meet I took a a lot of newer swimmers, and with a new swimmer it is so easy to make small corrections and go a best time. Kids are just learning what events they like, what kind of swimmer they are, and what kind of a competitor they are. I think we had a terrific showing. Even without many of my "regulars" we still took a bigger group. And these kids ripped it up. We left with lots of ribbons, medals,best times, and most importantly the desire to come to another meet to try our talents again.
Keep checking for updates as I will be trying to get more and more of you out to some more meets!
To this meet I took a a lot of newer swimmers, and with a new swimmer it is so easy to make small corrections and go a best time. Kids are just learning what events they like, what kind of swimmer they are, and what kind of a competitor they are. I think we had a terrific showing. Even without many of my "regulars" we still took a bigger group. And these kids ripped it up. We left with lots of ribbons, medals,best times, and most importantly the desire to come to another meet to try our talents again.
Keep checking for updates as I will be trying to get more and more of you out to some more meets!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
JO's and The Race Club Banquet
A lot has happened in the last week that is worth discussing. The first of which is JO's. I had a great time at that meet mostly becasue I always enjoy a championship meet. There is a certain air at JO's that doesnt exist at the other meets. The swimming is faster, the competition is better, everyone in on top of thier game, everyone wants to win or make finals. It is the type of environment where swimmers either thrive or wither up, and I think that our swimmers did a good job of stepping up and swimming fast. Our goal for the next JO's is to get some more swimmers to the meet, and also to get more swimmers into the finals. Most everyone that swam, however, did personal bests and put thier hearts into each race. In the end what can I really ask for besides swimmers competeing with a big heart and a strong spirit. Now, I am looking forward to the summer when I know everyones focus will be on swimming and swimmers will be getting a lot faster! I plan on showing up to the summer JO's ready to rock and roll!
For the second order of buisness I would like to discuss the fundraiser held by The Race Club on monday night. It was a great event called The Race To Bejing where we tried to raise money for our swimmers competing for the Olympics. I will say I think we had a lot of success. There was a great turnout and it was nice to see the Keys coming out to support our team and our sport. Also, I think it was important becasue everyone saw how much we do here at The Race Club. Yes, our main goal is to send people to the Olympic Games, but we also run several of the aquatic programs here in the Keys, and for the first time I felt that The Race Club was more connected to the community. We are trying to create a symbiotic relationship here in the Keys, and when people show that they care about what is going on here, it makes it more fun for us coaches to give back to the community. All in all it was a very successful event, and maybe I just enjoyed socializing, but I cant wait until the next one.
There will be a few practice time that are canelled. Please continue to check for updates.
For the second order of buisness I would like to discuss the fundraiser held by The Race Club on monday night. It was a great event called The Race To Bejing where we tried to raise money for our swimmers competing for the Olympics. I will say I think we had a lot of success. There was a great turnout and it was nice to see the Keys coming out to support our team and our sport. Also, I think it was important becasue everyone saw how much we do here at The Race Club. Yes, our main goal is to send people to the Olympic Games, but we also run several of the aquatic programs here in the Keys, and for the first time I felt that The Race Club was more connected to the community. We are trying to create a symbiotic relationship here in the Keys, and when people show that they care about what is going on here, it makes it more fun for us coaches to give back to the community. All in all it was a very successful event, and maybe I just enjoyed socializing, but I cant wait until the next one.
There will be a few practice time that are canelled. Please continue to check for updates.
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