The York Y Rambler

By Coach Michael

28 March 2008

THE EARLY BIRD GETS THE MEET?

There are not many long course meets offered, and the ones that are get filled quickly.  In order not to be shut out of meets, we are entering several upcoming meets right now to try to “reserve” our places.  The Eagle BB & Slower meet (April 19-20) tentative entries have been posted at the pool; please check them and get back to us immediately with any problems, so that we can send in the entries.  We will also be doing the tentative entries for the Trident A/B/C meet (May 2 to 4) this weekend; again, let us know IMMEDIATELY about any problems.  Finally, as soon as I get back from Florida from YNationals, we will be doing the entries for the NBAC June “A” meet (June 6 to 9); we will send these to families’ emails, since the team will be on its break when I do the entries.  We realize that this means doing entries a full three months early, in the case of the NBAC meet, but it is better safe than sorry.

FUTURE RACING

The long course invitational and championships meet schedule has been on the website for a couple of weeks now.  Please note that we have not yet received the summer league schedule, so none of those meets are on the meet calendar.  When we do receive the league schedule, we will put it on the website immediately.

TRAINING SCHEDULE OVER Y NATIONALS WEEK

Over the week of 31 March to 5 April, while Coach Andy, the Y Nationals travel squad, and I are in Florida for the meet, the training schedule will be adjusted somewhat:

Monday to Friday:

            Juniors:           4:45 to 6:15 pm

            Seniors:          6:15 to 8:00 pm

            There will be no dryland for either group.

Saturday:  usual time (9:30 am to 1:00 pm)

This means there will be no “Friday flip”, with seniors swimming first, this week.

The Shrewsbury site practice schedule will be its usual.

GEARING UP FOR A CHAMPIONSHIPS

Our traveling squad to the YMCA Short Course National Championships leaves this Monday.  When you see them, wish them well and fast swims!  This year, we are taking fourteen to the meet, a dramatic improvement from last year.  Of those fourteen, only one (Patrick Hamill) is a senior, and six are 13-14’s, so this bodes very well for our future strength.  Our nationals team is:

Caroline Bixler              Sarah Dotzel

Hali Flickinger              Chris Kramer

Carly Munchel              Morgan Pfaff

Danielle Schaefer                      Sada Stewart

Caleb Tuten                              Taylor Brew

Shannon Mulcahy                     Patrick Hamill

Brian Strathmeyer                     Enya Messersmith

WEARING THE RIGHT STUFF

For the last year, the York Y swimming team has been sponsored by TYR.  The entire team has gotten discounts for various TYR apparel and equipment, and our “Y Nationals and higher” team has received free competition suits and sweats.  In agreeing to let them give us things, we agree to do certain things for them.  One is that we race in TYR suits.  It has been happening that various of our swimmers are racing in non-TYRs.  This will not happen again.  We are a TYR team, period.  Don’t pretend you don’t know.  And don’t “forget” to put a TYR suit in your bag when you leave for the meet.  No games.  No tears of protest.  From here on out, if you are wearing a non-TYR suit at a meet, you will be ordered to change into a TYR; if you don’t have one with you, then you will have to purchase one at the meet or borrow one from a teammate, preferably of the same sex.  You will not be allowed to step on the blocks in anything but a TYR.

CLEAN YOUR ROOM!!!

Swimmers will use one or more pieces of training equipment during the course of most of our practices.  Most swimmers have their own equipment, others use the Y’s equipment.  Either way, as we finish practice, swimmers need to pick up and put away whatever they used.  The deck needs to be clean when you are gone.  Lately our deck has looked like a federal disaster area after practice, the swimming team looks like pigs in the eyes of lifeguards, members, and the Y administration, and drastic measures are called for.

Effective immediately, whatever is left on deck, we will lock away in the storage room so it is no longer available for use.  If you clean up nicely after a practice and the deck is sparkling clean, we will return one piece that we had confiscated. I find it hard to believe that children who, I am certain, keep their rooms squeaky-clean and wash the dishes every night after they eat dinner would leave their pool deck in a state of chaos.  Remember that it is your responsibility to pick up your things.  It is not the coaches’.  It is not your parents’.  It is not the lifeguards’.  This is a simple and obvious responsibility.  Further, be a good citizen and help your teammates out if they stumble:  if you see a piece of training equipment or a water bottle on deck as you are leaving, pick it up, even if it is not yours, and put it where it belongs.  Leave this campsite cleaner than you found it.

KNOW ANYONE WHO LIKES CAMPING?

This Sunday I will be running the third of our series of mini-camps, focusing on breaststroke and goal-setting.  The attendance for the camps so far has been fairly good, but I am hoping that it picks up for the last few.  Please help spread the word about the camps to swimmers you know on other teams. Every family has received several copies of the camp flyer in its team mailbox.  If you have not already done so, please give them to swimmers you know on other teams who might be interested in learning more about swimming and about our program.  The camps are a major way we can show the rest of the York swimming community what makes us special, what we have that other programs do not.  They represent an invaluable resource for our recruiting.  Help build the York Y Swimming Program!!!

A TEMPORARY AND WELL-DESERVED RESPITE FROM OUR BELOVED STRENUOUS LIFE

After one round of championship meets at LaSalle & State College & New Jersey, the winter/spring season is drawing to a close.  But isn’t closed just yet.  The whole team will train through the end of the YMCA Nationals meet, and then the whole team will take its break.  Please resist the temptation to take off for a week right now; double “vacations” – taking both your own and the team’s – result in double the missed training time and triple the deleterious effect on your fitness levels.  For our Juniors and our Seniors who have finished their last meet, the three weeks from your last race until the team break represents an important opportunity to get a jump on summer training and to make important stroke technique changes that are difficult to make in heavier training periods.

As usual during a break from the pool, enjoy yourself and recharge your mental batteries, but stay active by running around, riding your bike, playing soccer, kayaking, etc.  I’ve found that running on the trails around Lakes Redman & Williams listening to Beethoven on my iPod is just short of heaven.  Don’t just lie on the couch and become a vegetable.

The last practice before break will be Saturday 5 April.

Juniors will return to practice on Monday 14 April.

Seniors will return to practice on Thursday 10 April.

Junior A’s who wish to do so may join the Seniors in returning on Thursday the 10^th.