Coaches Column JULY 2017 by Steve Freeborn · This year, Last Gasp will be epic and not one to...
Transcript of Coaches Column JULY 2017 by Steve Freeborn · This year, Last Gasp will be epic and not one to...
JULY 2017TABLE OF CONTENTS
President Report 1
Coaches Column 1
WhidbeyIsland Swim 2
Foggy Goggles 4
Martha Lake Swim 5
ECAC Lights 6
Coeur d’Alene 70.3 6
Membership Report 8
BWAQ @ NYC Tri 9
Treasurer’s Report 10
LGOS Race Info 11
LGOS postcard 12
Coaches Columnby Wendy Neely
As open water season is ramping
up, you will want to get the final race
of the season on your calendar now;
Last Gasp of Summer, September
23rd at Angle Lake.
This year, Last Gasp will be epic
and not one to miss. Not only is
BWAQ the host, but Last Gasp is the
home of the USMS National 1 Mile
Swim. We will also have the choice
of wetsuit 1 and or 2 mile events, the
Julie Montiel Fun Mile (yes, fins,
wetsuits and snorkels (no paddles)
and the USA (kids) 500, 1 and 2 Mile
Swims. 2017 Last Gasp is for
everyone: friends, families,
recreation swimmers and everyone
else in between. Every USMS entry
is qualified for the Blue Seventy
drawing for a Blueseventy Reaction
Wetsuit.
http://www.lastgaspofsummer.com/E
ventInformation.aspx#EventList
Not only are we calling all
swimmers to swim, but we are
calling on volunteers. We have lots
of departments that we can use
support. If you can help in any
capacity please email and let me
know at wendy@bluewave-
aquatics.com
Blue Wave Aquatics is a non-
profit organization and can supply
letters for proof volunteerism.
Volunteers Needed Saturday 9/23Continued on page 3
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 1
President’s Letterby Steve Freeborn
Like clockwork, it is now July
and summer sunshine has finally
come to the Northwest. While the
club continues to offer a variety of
pool practices, and long course
nationals for those of you who
wish to maintain that certain level
of competition, the focus has
shifted more toward the open
water season. I for one, really like
this time of year as there is no
better way to experience the
beauty of this area than to swim in
our lakes and the Puget Sound.
There will be organized and
coached open water practices
every Thursday evening, through
July and August, between 7:00
p.m. and 8:00 p.m. at 5 Mile Lake.
These practices are designed to
accommodate all levels of open
water experience. The club has
multiple orange floatation buoys
available, so don't use that as an
excuse not to attend.
Competition wise, on Saturday,
July 15th is the Fat Salmon swim.
This is a 3.2 mile swim in Lake
Washington. The start is under
the I-90 bridge with the finish at
Madison Park, just south of the
520 bridge. If you are considering
taking part in this swim, please be
sure an get your entry in, as this
swim fills up fast (ed. note- online
closes July12th, limited DOR).Continued on page 2
2017
TEAM OFFICERS
President:
Steve Freeborn
Vice President:
Dan Haegele
Secretary:
Kimberly/KC Wood
Treasurer:
Judy Williams
Membership:
NellisKim
Communication:
Angela Turley
KCAC AM Rep:
Michelle Menkens
KCAC Brunch Rep:
Patti Cunningham
KCAC PM Rep:
Scott Matthews
Evergreen Rep:
Kim Boggs
Covington Rep:
Eric Durban
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 2
On Friday, July 21st, at Lake
Meridian in Kent is the swim series
"Friday Night At The Races".
Three race distances are offered:
1/2 mile, 1.2 mile and 2.4 miles. At
the conclusion of the races a BBQ
is offered for all race participants
(part of your entry fee) and $5.00
for anyone you might care to bring
along to cheer you on. This year,
the race will be extra festive!!
Many of you know, and for those of
you who don't, July 21st is Zena's
birthday, as well as mine. We are
planning to celebrate our birthdays
at the Friday Night Swim. For any
of you who would like to share in
this celebration, we welcome you
with open arms. Zena has even
offered to shadow any 1st time
open water swimmers around the
swim course.
And this is only July!! Stay
tuned for other exciting upcoming
events! Don't forget to mark your
calendar for the "Last Gasp" open
water swim races on Saturday,
September 23, 2017 at Angle
Lake. This is a BIG event, as we
are the host club and site for the
2017 Sprint Distance Open Water
Championship. Your attendance at
this event as a swimmer, volunteer,
or both, is critical to the success of
this event and to our club, as this
will be our major fund raiser.
Continue to enjoy your summer
and "just keep swimming".
Steve
President’s Letter, cont’d Whidbey Island Adventure
Swim by Zena Courtney
Four adventurous BWAQers
carpooled up to Whidbey Island early
in the morning on June 17th. See us
above, L-R, Me, John Leet, Steve
Freeborn and Andy Iyall.
The weather was overcast yet
warm for the PNW. The water at
Seawall Park in Langley, WA was a
brisk 51oF so we all wore wetsuits.
The event had 29 swimmers for the
1.2-mile distance and another 25
swimmers for the 2.4 miles. It was a
smooth calm rectangular course that
served both distances, 1.2 miles was
one time around, 2.4 miles requires
swimming twice around. Steve and
Andy both missed one of the corner
turn buoys so being the honest and
accountable swimmers that they are,
they turned around and swan back to
the missed buoy. Andy (52) with a
time of 55:40.5 still finished 4th overall
and Steve (61) with a 57:51.9 came in
6th. John Leet (71) completed the 1.2
with a time of 37:26.6 and won his age
group while I won the 1.2 overall with
a 29:31.4. Next came lunch at the
local restaurant up the hill from finish.
YUM! Join us next year!
Coac
Coaches
Column
Continued
Head Coach
Wendy Neely
Coaches Column, cont’d
Volunteers Wanted Saturday 9/23
Departments of Support
Last Gasp Ambassador:
DURATION: Now until race day.
If you already love swimming Last
Gasp and would like to share your
Last Gasp love with others, this
would be a fun area of support for
you. Help invite friends through
social media, help spread the word
through local communities,
community boards and stores in
your area and social circle sharing
print media.
Hospitality:
DURATION: 6:00am-2:00pm
We can use support the week of
Last Gasp and especially at the
event to set up, serving lunch and
clean up. Hospitality will take many
people and would be a great group
volunteer project.
Parking:
DURATION: 7:30am-9:00am
Help guide swimmers to parking
areas, hand out maps to drivers
Registration:
DURATION: Week before packing
goody bags and/or 7:30am-11am
Swimmer Check In
Lifeguards:
DURATION: 8:00am-swim end.
Must be Certified
Kayak Support:
DURATION: 8:00am- swim end.
Specify if you have your own boat
or need one
Finish Line:
DURATION: 9:30am-finish of races
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 3
Warming Tent:
DURATION: 10 am (Race warm) up to
race finish. Hang out and offer a place
for cold swimmers to get warm. Call
over doctor is needed.
Awards/Raffle:
DURATION: 12-12:30pm. Help
organizer with results and passing out
of awards
Clean Up Crew:
DURATION: 12:30-2:00pm Help pack
up and clean up our part of park
Donations: Do you have the ability to
get donation from a corporation or give
a donation to Blue Wave we can use at
Last Gasp? Please let us know. We
can follow up with a donation request
letter as well as send a thank you letter
with our non-profit id #
2017 Last Gasp is going to be
better than ever and we would love to
have everyone in the Blue Wave
Community participating though
volunteerism and swimming. It takes a
village to make Blue Wave great and I
know when we pull ourselves and
resources together we can make a
memorable and awesome event for all.
See you at the pool,
Wendy
LGOS USMS Open Water Sprint
National Championship
EVENT SCHEDULE
7:30 am Check-in opens
8:30 am Mandatory Meeting
8:45 am Chip check-in & warm-ups
9:00 AM START USMS Open Water
National Championship Event
Coac
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 4
BWAQ Sponsors
BWAQ fundraisingFoggy Goggles?
by Kent GavinWhile I enjoy
a Foggy Goggle
by Northwest
Brewing from
time to time, I hate it when my
swim goggles fog up. And if you
are like me and tend to run a bit
warm, it’s a constant issue. I’ve
had good success using JAWS
Quick Spit Antifog from
SwimOutlet.com, but based on
some comments from others that
use it, I found it works best when I
spray my goggles after
every practice, and simply
give them a quick wipe
before I swim. I think
works better than if you
apply it right before you
swim and minimizes any
possible eye irritation.
What’s your solution for foggy goggles?
Let’s grab a Foggy Goggle and discuss!
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 5
BWAQ at Martha Lake by Zena Courtney
My Blue Wave Aquatics
customized towel made another
appearance at a local open water
swim and won the envy of more
PSM-ites. (he he, all part of our evil
take-over plot…moohaha)
Melanie Crump, pictured left
above, is totally new to the open
water scene. She usually swims in
the evening and Saturdays. She
drove us to Lakewood to try out a
low key open water event that I had
yet to do. Simple format: 2, 1, ½
and ¼ mile events with the 2 mile
first at 8 AM (see photo on right)
and 3 minutes between event
starts. Easy triangular course and
an incredible sunny day!
Melanie and I registered for the
fast with that wetsuit on! Maybe it
was the adrenaline? We got out to
hear the pre-race briefing and then
Melanie started grumbling about how
far the course looked. I kept
reassuring her that it only looked
long. We watched the 2 milers take
off and I we lined up together on the
end. We agreed she would let the
faster folks take off before she
started. All went to plan and she
finished in 38 minutes; a new PR!
Alas I finish 2nd to a young one and
just missed a cool towel 1st place
prize. Lucky Melanie, however, won
a give away from Sylvia Swim shop!
Then it was off to find a yummy local
place for lunch. Event was posted on
BWAQ fb with open invite to join in.
LGOS Regular Open Water Events
9:00 am Check-in and Registration Opens
10:15 am Mandatory Safety Meeting
10:40 am Chip check-in and warm-ups
11:00 am START USA 2 Mile
11:05 am START USMS 2 Mile
11:10 am START USA 1 Mile
11:15 am START USMS 1 Mile
11:20 am START USMS 1 Mile Fun Swim
START USA 500 Meters when the course
has been cleared
1 mile event and then
lazily put on our wetsuits
and waded into the lake
to warm up, sheesh it
was like 71oF. Wish
there was a no wetsuit
division. We swam to
the last buoy before the
finish so Melanie could
get an idea of the finish
leg would look like.
Shock, she was super
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 6
Evergreen Pool Has New Lights. Come see yourself!
Kim Boggs Sighting at
ECAC!
Ironman Coeur d’Alene 70.3
Reflections for Blue Wave Aquatics by Kent Gavin
It started 4:45 am on a Monday
in October 2015. I was tired,
nervous, and cursing myself for
agreeing to take advantage of Blue
Wave’s 7-day trial period at the
encouragement of Blue Wave’s
Jason Brandt. I hadn’t swum laps
since 1989, and even then as a
sprinter I didn’t put a lot of laps in.
Not only had it been twenty-six
years since I swam, it had been
twenty-six years since I did any type
of consistent exercise. That first
practice was hard! I don’t think I
completed more than 25 yards
without rest, but it was a start. A few
months later I found myself again
with Jason Brandt looking at bikes
which started my biking journey. I’d
also started running a bit (mostly
walking at the start). Later that
Spring I set the goal of completing
my first triathlon–the Lake Meridian
Sprint. After completing it I was
hooked. I’d always thought those
that did marathons and such as a bit
crazy, and those like Jason Brandt
that did Ironman triathlons as full-on
certifiable. Well, after recentlyContinued on page 7
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 7
completing my first
half Ironman in
Coeur d’Alene on
June 25th, I guess
you could call me at
least half-crazy.
When I woke up at
3:30 am on Sunday,
June 25th 2017 I was
tired, nervous and
excited. I ate my race
breakfast and started
waking my three kids.
The weekend was
going great so far,
getting to spend time
with the kids at
Silverwood Theme
Park and Coeur d’Alene downtown.
I felt ready for the race. While my
training was less than ideal at times
due to work, the kid’s schedules and
the occasional non-swim, bike, run
activity, I was confident that I could
complete the race within my goal
time. I had my family there for
support, and many others cheering
me on remotely. Coeur d’Alene is
beautiful and other than parking
limitations and lack of shade on the
course, a great place for a triathlon.
Pre-race was uneventful – I lined up
on the beach in the 25-30-minute
group and mentally prepared for the
1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike and
13.1-mile run.
I was conservative in the water
to ensure I had energy for the bike
and run which are my weaker
sports, finishing in 31:27.
I felt great on the bike – much better
than I’ve ever felt in training. Maybe it
was all the volunteers cheering us
on, maybe it was adrenaline, maybe
it was the new tires with low rolling
resistance “BlackChili Compound”.
That said, many flew by me on the
bike as expected, but I kept my head
down, kept peddling and kept
drinking as it was heating up towards
the forecast temp of 90+. I finished
the bike in 3:08 at just under 18 miles
an hour which was better than I
expected based on the somewhat
hilly course.
And then the run… I hoped to
stay under two hours, but it was hot
and I’d learned the hard way in a
prior triathlon how important it is to
stay hydrated, protected from the
sun, and as cool as possible. I hit
every aid station for ice, water,
Gatorade and a big thank you to all
the families with hoses and sprinklers
going for all the runners. The run
through town and the finish shoot
was exhilarating. I picked out my
family and ran over for a hi-five.
Seeing them in their Ironman hats,
big smiles and hearing how proud
they were of me made the
accomplishment that much sweeter.
6:00:06 total time. Certainly no
record, but not bad for this 45-year
old who couldn’t run a mile two years
ago. We topped off the day with a
fourth leg of the race – kayaking in
the lake with my kids. Later that day,
my 11-year-old son quoted
something he had seen to me,Continued on page 8
Membership Report –
New Members!
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 8
“The miracle isn't that you finished. The
miracle is that you had the courage to start.”
So true. Thanks to all the Blue
Wave coaches and especially
Jason Brandt for your support on
this journey.
POOL EVENTS:
July 6-8 Senior Seattle Open LCM, Colman Pool, Seattle, WAAug 2-6 USMS LCM Nationals, Minneapolis, MN
Membership by Nellis Kim
Membership Update-May 2017
Happy Spring! In addition to being
the month of Champs and Spring
Nationals, our first group of 2017
Learn-to-Swim class participants
started class on April 1st! Do you
know an adult who has always had a
goal of learning swimming basics?
Each month, we will be offering a
new four-week session of adult
Learn-to-Swim classes. Classes are
limited to just three participants to
ensure that each participant receives
the individualized attention needed
to acquire swimming skills. Please
visit the Blue Wave Aquatics
Lessons page: http://www.bluewave-
aquatics.com/SwimLessons.aspx for
more information!
We also want to extend a warm
welcome to our newest members:
Joanna Bolosan
Allison Dean McEachron
Apinya Saengsililath
Meghan Kroll (returning member)
Katy Snoodyk
Tori Snyder
We look forward to seeing you in
the pool!
Questions about membership?
Please contact Nellis Kim at
Membership@BlueWave-
Aquatics.com.
BWAQ members do NYC Olympic
Distance Triathlon as
part of Team in Training!
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 9
BWAQ Team members, Misty
Fischer and Sean Mabin are
training for the Sunday, July16th
Olympic distance NYC Triathlon in
memory of Jim as part of Team in
Training (TNT). You can make a
donation to The Leukemia &
Lymphoma Society to support
research for cancers like the one
that took their dear friend and co-
worker, James “Jim” David Wells.
Jim worked as a soils driller for
20 years before joining Sean and
Misty at KBA, a local construction
management firm, in 2002. Words
cannot express how much he loved
working at KBA. He considered
them his second family and even
pushed off retiring because it
meant so much for him to be there.
He was always so proud, and his
eyes would light up, every time he
would talk about his projects.
During Jim’s 14 years at KBA, he
worked on many projects including
SR 522 in Kenmore and Wayne
Curve in Bothell, SR 99 Tunnel,
and several Sound Transit projects.
Jim became ill rather quickly in
December from rare and aggressive
form of leukemia. Jim lived an
amazing life full of love, success, and
contentment. Every person you talk
to will have nothing but wonderful
things to say, and a funny memory to
share about Jim. Family and work
were Jim’s two passions in life. He
was an incredible human being that
has left a lasting impression on all of
our lives. There will never be another
person as wonderful, generous, witty,
hardworking, and loving as Jim. He
will be greatly missed by all.
Donations accepted at
http://pages.teamintraining.org/wa/ny
ctri17/triforjim
Treasurer’s
Report
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 10
More Swim Defiance Pictures!
The bank account is still healthy as of 31May. Current balance is
$24,209.
Bank Balance 2015-2017
Scholarships:
One active scholarships for a $33/month. One pending Scholarship
request to be approved. $558 of scholarships approved for 2017. $387
has been donated to the Julie Montiel Scholarship Fund.
Accomplishments:
• Preparing for Swim Defiance. Paid for shirts, scarves, bus and Metro
Parks deposit. Will purchase ferry tickets on Friday.
• Submitted PNA Champs Financial Report
• Revised Swim Defiance budget
• Revised Last Gasp of Summer budget
• Worked with Mary Ann, Wendy and Mike on LGOS merchandise
Issues:
• Scholarships for one swimmer need to be renewed.
• Need to finalize merchandise for LGOS
• Need to finalize budget for LGOS
Coac
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 10
Coac
Blue Wave Aquatics
PO Box 24083
Federal Way, WA
98093
bluewave-aquatics.com VOLUME 19 - ISSUE 6 Page 12