Swimming Team At A Swim Team

My parents tell me that I took to swimming like... a fish takes to water. It is a safe place where I can float free of worries. Driven by passion and dedication, I decided to begin swimming competitively. Competitive swimming requires an intense level of determination and discipline. Forcing myself to get out of my warm bed at 5:30 in the morning to put on a still-slightly-damp swimsuit and stand in 40-degree weather waiting for practice to start. Putting up with limited lane space and irritating swimmers who think they are faster. Making a conscious effort to work on my stroke form, turns, touches, and techniques. The water becomes a whirlpool of injuries, losses, wins, friendships, enemies, and sickness. The water becomes home.

Imagine taking one step into a chlorine-filled arena. The humid air rushes onto your skin. An immense smile spreads across your face. This is because you know everything is about to change. In less than 24 hours you will be holding a glistening gold medal in your hand, standing up on the podium while the Star Spangled Banner blares for the whole world to hear and tears will stream down your face. Taking one look back at your coach, Teri McKeever, you realize if it wasn’t for her you would not be here. Graciously, you run up, swing your arms around her body, and embrace her in a powerful hug that says it all. Swimming is a very intense sport and consumes every second of a swimmer’s free time. However, putting in hundreds

To volunteer in the adapted aquatics class (on Saturdays from 11 am to noon) at Reston Community Center you have to be 13 or older. Fortunately the first class was on September 17, one day after my 13th birthday. After the first class I have volunteered three other times: September 24, October 8, and October 15. The first swimmer I worked with is a fellow Langston Hughes Middle School student, Sammy. He was very hesitant to get in the water at first but once Sammy gets in with his life vest and starts swimming around he is in the zone. Sammy’s goal is to blow bubbles more consistently. The way that we keep him motivated is he throws a rubber duck (Sammy plays adapted baseball so his throwing skills are very good) and than swims after it. One emotion I felt while volunteering that I wasn’t expecting was embarrassment. Most of the kids in the class use barbels, lifejackets, and other equipment I hadn’t used in years. I don’t always know if I was doing the right thing and communicating with someone who can’t say anything back can be really difficult. I felt like the parents and even kids in the regular swim classes were judging me, thinking “Is she disabled too?” I wish that society didn’t look down on those with special needs, but unfortunately that isn’t the way the world works. Confirming that I did volunteer on the dates listed above there is a screenshot of an email from the Aquatics Director at

I have always been very involved in swimming even after my injury. When I lived in Powell River I (co)coached a satellite swim team; there, I was incharge of fine detail concerning technique. Through that I have seen firsthand how a small change to how you do things can make an exponential difference in the product they deliver. Here in Parksville, I have volunteered in teaching kids and parents alike the importance of water safety and swim lessons; I have taught how important it is to not give up (that they can complete this swim level) and seen the happiness once they have completed the

I have been part of the varsity swim team for four years now, which I am now a captain of it, reached cadet chief master sergeant in Civil Air Patrol, where I soloed a plane, and other; however, these two accomplishments are the foundations of my goals.

Meeting younger swimmers during multi level practices and cheering them on by name during team relays has allowed to share my positivity to all.

Implementing cost saving strategies is essential to saving money or even figuring out smarter ways to maneuverer the budgets or increase revenues. There is many ways in which the NJCAA tries to save costs using specific tactics such as cutting athletic programs, monitoring travel expenses, limiting athletic scholarships, and adjusting salaries/budgets of the staff members. Cutting athletic programs or a specific team is seen as a tool to that “improves the academic programs and services” (Mullin, 2011). This is seen as one of the last resorts by an institution that is not producing revenue. Along with cutting the programs, checking travel expenses is equally important because of the revenue increase from the ethical decision of the scheduling within an organization. In addition to using scheduling or conference realigning as an advantage, the “smart reductions in travel length and duration can significantly reduce operational costs” (Mullin, 2011). Despite taking a look into realigning of conferences, this can be seen as a benefit when lessoning the travel distance which serves as a tool for cost reduction. The reduction of scholarships has been seen as a way to save more money for institutions which is equally important to the travel expenses. The actual process of limiting scholarships is provided by the “national governing boards such as NJCAA, which dictates whether scholarships can be provided and provide scholarship limits for each sport” (Mullin, 2011). However, this strategy helps save thousands of dollars annually by limiting scholarships being given. Lastly, cutting or adjusting the budgets of the coaches is not something that is recommended as a main option in involving revenues. At the “community college level, unlike many large four-year institutions, coaches/staff members serve various roles, including but not limited to serving as an administrator or

Staffed with a board of seven trustees, General Manager Ned Hyduke said the reason why they decided to donate the money to PAL was to help offset operating costs of keeping the pool open this summer, with that hope that children will use it to keep cool than taking the risk of swimming in the local canals.

When I first joined the North Attleboro Swim Team my freshman year of high school, I did not know what to expect. Prior to joining, I had never swam on a team before so it was a whole new experience to me. As the first week of swim started, I was apprehensive if I wanted to continue since I was not on the same caliber as my other teammates were. The practices were brutal but extremely rewarding, as I strived to prove myself and to my coaches. As my freshman season was under way, a couple of upperclassmen took

During the spring of 2015, I missed all of the time cuts to make Speedo Sectionals, forcing me to compete in a much slower meet at the end of the season. There are few things I have experienced that are more crushing than trying my hardest and falling short of my goal. Despite the heavy disappointment, I used the opportunity to harden my resolve and use my strengths to my greatest advantage. Along with my coach’s help, I used my ability to think strategically and hone my technique through focus on the smallest details from how I would approach a swim mentally to how I would warm up. My coach had many important and useful suggestions and lessons from his past experience that required me to be an active learner that could apply his information.

Over 1,075 of all the second graders in Citrus County schools took part in the School District’s water safety last year. In addition, from August through October nearly every day high school swim athletes, their families and spectators also took place in FHSAA high school competitive swimming either in practice or by competing or attending one of the near 20 high school swim meets last school year. This means that 1,000s of Citrus county school students visit the Y each year as part of school actives. As we both agree it is our hope that the new Aquatics Director is a proponent and supportive of Citrus County School District’s learn to swim program and High School

The journey of competitive swimming started at the age of eight for my local `neighborhood team. I exhibited great potential for the future, for I won nearly all my races. This seemed like the sport

Joining a team with kids ranging from five to eighteen, it can be hard. It seemed as if everyone already knew each other. At first, I felt like an outcast, but not for long, once I proved I could swim fast. It took time learning names and getting used to the practices, but in the end my entrance into this group was easy compared to the practices I had to go through. The coaches, swimmers, the swimmers’ parents became my second family. We all believed in hard work, having fun, and racing when the time came. Our norms were putting in the effort when swimming and if you did, it would pay off in the meets. Slacking off was never rewarded and always sanctioned. Either the coach or your parent, or both, would yell at you, which distracted others, which could ultimately cause you to be kicked out of practice for that day. Although I never got kicked out of practice, I was given the infamous nickname, Snax. It was not necessarily a bad nickname, it came about because I had a habit of always having snacks. We all got nick names from something we had done or just because. My best friend was Yugi, because his younger brother had called him that, my other friend we called squid; it was just part of the culture of being on the

It is important to recognize that the bureaucratic structure of Northwestern Men’s Swimming is indicative of its rationality. There are delegated roles designed to allow different departments to operate within their respective sphere of competences, which theoretically should translate to a lubricated, rational organization. However, the idea of over-rationalization and the “iron cage” of rationality is not something that should be overlooked here. Weekly meetings with psychologists, constant check-ups with trainers, and the lack of an off-season are all things that, when viewed through the lens of rational decision maker, are things that should better the program in its entirety. However, there comes a point when the returns to these investments begin to decrease, as over rationalization may actually become irrational, and inhibit

13 years. It has been 13 years since I first plunged into the pool to begin my first lesson. I was small, skinny, and shy at the time, not willing to talk to people. I had tried other sports; baseball, soccer, basketball, but I found those to difficult. My dad first brought me to a pool, to splash around in the play area. But I soon found myself wanting to go the deeper parts where the whirlpool and the lazy river were. So I began group lessons on the basics on how to swim, most of the other participants were older than me so I did not make conversation with them. After I finished a couple of lessons and learned how to swim the most basic two strokes; freestyle and breaststroke, I joined a summer team, the Bradley Farm Wave. I was not very