Southern California Meet

(Better known as SuperMex Meet)

One of the meets under consideration for the 2012-13 season is the Southern California Armada Senior Meet (La Mirada, CA).  The meet dates will not be set until early June so we should know mid-June if we will be able to attend this meet based on how the dates fall with Spring Break and testing in our local schools.

This meet is prelims/finals in Long Course format over a Friday, Saturday, Sunday.  Most of the Senior group has already qualified for this meet or are very close to qualifying.  We also have several swimmers who should make it back to finals based on this year’s results.  Many finalists achieved Olympic Trail cuts at the meet so this is a great opportunity for us to swim with some of America’s best!

Qualifying time standards are shown below in LC, SCY as well as “Bonus Cuts.”  Swimmers who achieve one regular qualifying time standard are eligible to add additional events provided they have achieved the “Bonus Cut” time standard.  Also listed is the 24th place time at the meet which would make it back to swim at finals.

There will be requirements to attend the 2013 Spring Travel Meet in addition to time standards.

The Significance of a Team Travel Meet

Many of you (swimmers and parents) have often asked, or wondered, why we plan team-travel meets (athletes traveling as a group without their parents).  There are several reasons why the coaches feel this is important and feel that we should share these with you.

We are very fortunate to have a group of such dedicated and hard-working athletes.  There are many benefits that your swimmer(s) will experience from a team travel trip.  Often, these are dangled as “rewards” in front of swimmers to “inspire” them to attend practice, work hard, and “be good kids.”  We, and you, are blessed – they already do all of that!  While it is true that a team trip is a great “reward” and wonderful way to cap off a great season, there are many other benefits.

Team travel is a great way for our athletes to further bond their friendships, become closer to team members that they may not know as well,  learn to work together as a team, and discover the importance and satisfaction of representing their entire team and not just themselves.

Additionally, team travel presents an opportunity for young athletes to experience and grow their independence.  As coaches, we are committed to supervision of athletes at all times.  However, there are times when athletes will need to make decisions on their own or with guidance from someone other than their parents…just like the real world of college and employment.

Swimmers are often inspired by the performance of athletes at “new” meets.  Many times there are nationally, and internationally, ranked swimmers at meets we have considered attending.  It is also good for our swimmers to see different faces behind the blocks that are the same age and see where they “stack up” with athletes from different areas (there’s more to swimming than Ohio).

At our most recent trip to Orlando, Florida, our swimmers got to watch (AND SWIM) with Ryan Lochte, Amanda Weir, Peter Vanderkaay (yes, that’s spelled correctly), and many other athletes who will be competing at the USA Olympic Trials in Omaha.  (Ask Thomas Dawson what happens when you get in the way of one of these athletes during warm-ups).  But one of the most inspiring athletes at the meet was a 14 year old girl who swam her Olympic Trial cut in the 800m Freestyle and turned around less than 10 minutes later to get a new OT cut in the 200 Butterfly (out-touched by .10 for second place in the event).  All of our swimmers were talking about her (in a good way) and were both inspired and motivated by her performances at the meet.

We plan ahead for these meets and expect mad-crazy performances at these meets.  However, we also plan to set aside some time for a fun experience that includes something away from the pool.

While these experiences are priceless, we are conscientious about the cost of these meets.  Coaches Laurie and Lew have both had many experiences of planning trips for groups ranging from 3 to over 200 athletes and are confident that we can arrange a trip that will be cost-effective and reasonable.

We would like to plan a parent meeting to discuss planning for the 2012-13 season so that you are informed and prepared for your athletes to participate in group events.  Please stay tuned for meeting details.

Senior Practice Schedule–Summer

Summer Practice times for the BKYS – SR group are listed below.  Start dates will be after school is out for summer (parents are now singing a 1980’s song in their heads, FYI).

The schedule was designed to allow those swimmers who will be working the opportunity to have at least 4-hour time-slots available as well as one “long day” and non-meet weekends.

Monday 6:30-9 am, Columbus North

Monday 3-5 pm, Columbus North

Tuesday 9-noon, Northland (50m)

Wednesday 6:30-9 am, Columbus North

Wednesday 3-5 pm, Columbus North

Thursday 9-noon, Northland (50m)

Thursday 6-8pm, Columbus North

Friday 9-noon, Northland (50m)

All a.m. practices include dryland activities.  Please plan to bring stretch-cords, water bottles, and sunscreen for dryland. 

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Canadian Swimmer Julia Wilkinson

Breaking the 1-minute barrier

By Julia Wilkinson

Posted: Friday, March 30, 2012 | 10:30 AM

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Julia Wilkinson celebrates after winning the women's 100-metre backstroke at the Canadian Olympic Swimming Trials on Wednesday. (Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)

I am no stranger to delayed gratification.
It's the life of a swimmer, at least after your 13th birthday when you stop dropping time every time you hit the water.
Every year, I spend countless hours training, but I am only in peak race preparation maybe twice every season. I spend a long time working on the details, with my fingers crossed that what I am doing will translate to my race by the time I taper.
That is why, after four long years of waiting, it was so sweet to finally break the one-minute barrier in the 100-metre backstroke en route to qualifying for my second Olympic team. That's right: I'm officially London-bound!
It's only day three of the six-day competition, and we have seen what Olympic trials are all about. In the first event on day one, my young (18-year-old) teammate from the Victoria Academy of Swimming, Alec Page, won the 400m individual medley and saw his Olympic dream come true. When I saw that he had defeated the field and qualified for the team, I thought my heart was going to explode with pride. Alec is a swimmer who loves to race, works harder than almost everyone I know, and has so much talent it's scary.
I was so proud of how he kept his head up walking out for his first ever Olympic trials final, stepping onto the blocks with a huge smile on his face, and racing to win. And win he did.
On day two, I was searching the stands for my parents when I met a family who introduced me to their young son and daughter. Their daughter, also a competitive swimmer (in backstroke) wanted so much to see me swim that her parents drove all the way from Burlington, Ont. to Montreal for my race.
After hearing their story, I found myself in a whole new mindset. I remembered when I was her age, when my Olympic dream was just that: a dream. As much as this little girl thinks I am an inspiration, meeting her really inspired me more than she'll ever know. As I sat in that big red double-decker bus (our elaborate ready-room before the race) waiting for our event to be marched out, I thought of that family in the stands. I knew there was no way I could let them down. This is something that I will carry with me to London.
Not all fun at Games
But, it's not all fun at Olympic trials. It is heartbreaking as well.
A few of my teammates' swims have not gone their way, and have not yet been able to autograph the bus (all the qualifiers so far have signed their names on the double-decker). As happy as I am for myself, I can't help but carry some of their frustration as well. I saw how hard they worked every day, in the lane beside me, or even leading me through a hard set. And it just wasn't their day on race day. That being said, there isn't a single swimmer from my group who is out of the meet yet, and I have one hundred per cent faith in their ability to bounce back from anything. We're tough out on the island.
Obviously, there is little time for me to celebrate, since I still have three races to swim: the 200 individual medley, the 100 freestyle and the 200 backstroke. My win in the 100 backstroke did more than put me on the Olympic team -- it won me my freedom on day three of the competition.
Since I swam a fast 200 freestyle at the Missouri Grand Prix, my coach Randy Bennett decided that I could be considered as an option for the 4x200 freestyle relay in London without competing in the race at Olympic trials as long as I was already on the team. You are allowed to have a total of six girls swim the Olympic relay: only two from prelims will swim again, allowing two girls to be rested for the final. Obviously I will have a better idea of my chances for the relay after seeing the times posted by the women in the final, but either way, I am very happy with the decision to scratch from the race. Now I can be more focused and fresher for the 200 IM on Friday.
Three more days, three more races. Now that the pressure of making the team is off my shoulders, I can focus on seeing how many more events I can add to my schedule in London.