« GOOD MORNING & HAPPY FATHER"S DAY! | Main | Fritz's 80th Birthday »
Sunday, June 25, 2006
2006 Sarasota YMCA "Sharks" Open
Well, the big meet of summer for the YMCA Sharks is finally over; 4 days of swimming in the heat and humidity...oh wait: only the kids swam, us parents wilted under the brutal Florida sun!
This was Karl's inaugural swim meet, and he came through with some excellent swims. His first event was the boys 11-12 100 meter breaststroke, and did surprisingly well, with a final time of 1:54.96. With only 3 weeks of practice, he managed to beat 2 teammates that have been swimming for almost 1 year! Natalie followed with a 1:57.07 in 10-U girls 100 meter breaststroke, a 1.6 second drop in time! She bested that effort with a 1:33.56 in the 100 meter freestyle, dropping 9.69 seconds!! Karl then swam the 50 meter backstroke, finishing in 54.23. Natalie demonstrated what weeks of training can do; she swam a 49.61 in the same event for 10-U girls, shedding 3.84 seconds and finishing 16/29.
On Saturday, the kids really shined! It was their favorite event; the 50 meter breaststroke. Karl got things off to a great start by clocking in at 51.02, good for 10th place/16 and a 2nd alternate position for finals! Natalie again lowered her time by .49 seconds to 52.96 and placing 12th/46. She then capped off the day by swimming the breaststroke leg of the Girls 10-U 200 Medley relay, Sharks team "D". They placed 5th out of 12 entrants, and bested the Sharks team "C"!
Karl in "recovery" before the "glide" phase!
Natalie about to glide...
Sunday was a bit of a downer. There was a 1 1/2 hour delay due to lightning, all relays and the 400 IM heats (all 14 of them) were canceled in order to stay on time. Both kids swam the 50 meter freestyle, logging respectable times, but you could tell everyone was tired. Natalie's last event was the 50 fly, and she gave it her all, but faded the last 15 meters. Sometimes the swim is just not there! All in all, the weekend was great, the meet was exciting and the kids swam with enthusiasm; what more could one ask for?
Cindy was seemingly everywhere poolside; volunteering as backup timer, pacing the pool exhorting the swimmers on, and lugging H2O, snacks, towels, suits. All I did was sit in air-conditioned comfort, running the timing computer, scoring computer and announcer for Friday night finals! Will we survive? Can we survive? For the kids...of course!