Northampton Area
Swimming
www.naswim.org
October
13, 2009
"Excellence
is not an act but a habit. The things you do the most are the things you
will do best."
-Marva Collins (1987)
Great Dual Meet with
Patriot Swim Club
The meet on Sunday
turned out really well and we won so congratulations to all! I was very impressed with our swimmers, who
were ready to swim (no one accidentally missed an event) and were really a
terrific group both in and out of the water on Sunday. I felt great about how our swimmers looked in
the water and will continue on the present path of improving strokes and
working on endurance and speed in practice sessions. Also, I want to thank all of the parents who
came, worked, and donated to the food table.
It is a chaotic few hours for me, but it seemed like everyone was there
and on task, which I really appreciate.
Though the food table didn't make too much money, it will help cover
some of the costs of the meet and we do have some food left over, which we will
sell at the next meet (Pentathlon on 11/1 at Smith) – it is a bigger meet with
nearly 3 times the number of swimmers in this past Sunday’s meet and will also
have more spectators. Again, thanks to
all . . . it was a great first meet for our swimmers and families and a good
first meet experience for new swimmers.
Officials’ Clinic
There is a clinic
being offered to train those interested in becoming swimming officials on
Wednesday this week at JFK at 6:30 – 8:30 pm, so if interested, please let me
know.
NAS Pentathlon Meet
11/1/09
Hopefully,
everyone is aware that all NAS swimmers need to be signed up for events for our
meet on 11/1; please turn in your entry if you have not yet, since it is past
due (entry forms were emailed again today and are also available on the
website). Entries for the Thanksgiving
Meet are now also past due, so please turn them in. If anyone needs help or guidance with
entries, please let me know. There will
be food sign-ups and work preference sign-ups posted on the website later this
week. It is likely that parents will be
needed for the whole session for the meets coming up, but feel free to split
shifts with your spouse or another recruit. Assignments will be made for all parents for
the meets unless we have already spoken and worked something out.
NAS Thanksgiving Meet
11/27-29
Entries
were due last week . . . again, if help is needed filling out the form, let me
know. This meet is our largest and we
will need everyone’s help. Since the 10
and Unders and 13/14s swim in one session each day, while the 11/12s and 15 and
Overs swim in the opposite sessions, we have only ½ the team helping at any
session. Please encourage your 13/14 yr.
old swimmers to come to the meet and help in the afternoons and/or your 15 and
Overs to help in the mornings. Also, if
both parents are available to work in any session, let me know because we may
need all the help we can get. The Food
sign-up will be posted after the Pentathlon and we will go thru lots of food
that weekend, so please be generous when signing up. Please let me know of questions or
conflicts. Thanks.
Team Hiking Trip Saturday, 10/17
Weather permitting;
a team hike is planned for Mt. Monadnock, NH (if it is rainy, we will try to go
on Sunday 10/18). It takes about 1hr
15min to get from Northampton to the Dublin Trail Head, which is about a two+ hour
hike. Check out the Dublin Trail on web site http://www.qcc.mass.edu/brink/Trav-rec/mt_monad/monadtr.html . We will
leave Hamp (JFK parking lot) at 8:00 am for those who want to meet, follow, or
carpool, so it would put us on the summit at about 11:30 or noon. Please
bring a bag lunch, at least 2+ bottles of water, and a fleece or sweatshirt
(something warm, as it will be cooler on the mountain) and wear a good pair of
sneakers or hiking boots/shoes. Carry a day pack (like a school book bag
size); younger swimmers could share a pack with parents. We should be
back down to the trail head by 3:00pm and we will plan to stop on the way home
for ice-cream. Hike is recommended for
ages 9+up, but younger children are welcome with parents. FYI: Verizon cell phones work well on the
summit. Dave and I will drive and are
happy to take swimmers, but other drivers may be needed and other parents are
WELCOME to come with us. It is really a
fun hike and great day. Let me know if
you are coming. Thanks.
NCAC Meet Entry Due
Wed.
NCAC
Meet, White River Junction, VT, 12/4-6 – entry due Wednesday, 10/14. No late entries will be accepted, so PLEASE
turn in your entry by Wednesday if you want to attend.
Swim Team Payments
Due 11/1
The
second payment for the swim team registration is due on November 1st,
so anyone who did not pay the full amount in September including the US/NE
membership fee of $60 will need to pay the balance. Bills will be sent as it gets closer.
Competitive
Swimming Terminology/Jargon, etc.
The dive at the
beginning of the race is called the start.
Forward starts are performed for Free, Breast, and Butterfly
strokes, and an in-the-water backstroke start is performed for back. When Hot Starts or Over-the-Top starts are
being used in a meet, the swimmer finishing a race on the front stays in the
water and close to the wall until the next heat of swimmers starts off the
blocks over them (Hot Starts are not
used for Backstroke races, so swimmers climb out of the water after their
backstroke event immediately, so the next swimmer may enter the water).
At the
end of every race,
swimmers should remain in the water and wait for the rest of the heat to
finish, then shake hands, congratulate,
and/or say “nice swim” or something like that to swimmers in nearby
lanes. This should happen quickly since
the meet moves along so fast, but this practice and habit demonstrates great
sportsmanship in swimmers.
Whistles are used by
officials to signal swimmers to get ready for their swim (series of short
whistles), then to step up on the block (long whistle).
A Best Time is the swimmer’s best time in a particular event. Usually, a seed time is the Swimmer’s best
time and the time the swimmer is trying to beat in a race. Sometimes, seed
times are incorrect because the times have not been updated since entering the
meet or a coach’s estimate time was given when no seed time was available. Swimmers are always in pursuit of best
times, but not every race will mean one (a good thing to keep in
mind). Coaches look for improvements in
a swim, including better turns, starts, or finishes, breathing patterns, and
stroke technique. Swims can be
successful without being best times.
Thanks again to parents and
swimmers – nice work at the meet!
Sherry