UW dolphin kick and butterfly, Phelps and Lochte

 Tight abs, small fast kick, control the upper body movement, hips up/chest down, breath/pull/kick FORWARD.

YES!

WE DID IT!  This team continues the streak to a consecutive 20 State Championships!  

People ask us, "How do you always get such a great taper?"

It's not about the taper.  It's about the TRAINING.

"What's your secret?"  No secrets.  Just need a willingness to show up, work hard, do your best.  That includes everyone on our team:  swimmers, divers, coaches, parents, pool staff. 

"You make it look easy."  Any athlete, any coach knows it may look easy, but it is NEVER easy.  A different team every year, different dynamics, different individual psychologies, different circumstances.  We give it our all, our whole heart and soul, every day.

On second thought, maybe there are a few secrets.... 

How do you create a team that feels like a family?  

How much does it take to feed 25 athletes hot breakfast every morning after morning practice and hot dinner every Wednesday evening?  

How do you motivate young men to care about each other?  

Where do you find new ideas to experiment with every year to help make a team better than it's ever been?  

Thank you Gentlemen of the Team, Parents & Families, Fellow Coaches.

Thank you for a remarkable season and the sweetest lap we ever get to swim.

What makes a team be the best it can be?

This is my team of high school boys at last weekend's Conference meet.  I'm so proud of their hard work, in the water, in school, as teammates.  Athletes, their Families/Friends, and Coaches.  Is any one part of this effort more important than another?  We need everyone to do their best for the team to be its best.   We need health, knowledge, willingness, compassion, generosity, strength, growth mindset, grit, determination, courage, heart.  

We are headed to the State Championships next week, on our quest to win #20 consecutive state championships.  This team exists in the proud tradition of all the teams that existed before.  We dedicate this year to our dear friend Bruce Gresly.

 Thank you for the honor and privilege to serve.

(Photo by Mark Crawford)

UW Sophomore Maria Harutjunjan, Breaststroker

 Mountain West Conference record, 100 breaststroke, 1:00.21, set by Maria Harutjunjan of UW.
Slicing clean, head down extreme streamline kicking into the line.  Hardly any splash.

I love watching swim video of beautiful fast swimmers because it shows me the strength and economy of motion that makes up an efficient swim.  I recommend this to all my athletes.  What do you see?

SPRINT FREESTYLE!! Caeleb Dressel, 18.23 50 Yard Freestyle

 Caeleb Dressel is a Sophomore at Florida, in prelims and finals, setting NCAA records at SEC Championships in the 50 yard Freestyle.
What do you see?
Start, underwater dolphin kicks, stroke count (8 strokes off the start, 14 the second length), straight arm shoulder-driven stroke, unrelenting monster kick?
SPRINTING!

Ryan Hoffer, 17 year old, 100 yard free in 41.23 in December 2015.
Watch his underwater kicking off every wall.

Michael Andrew's 100 Fly

 When we met Michael Andrew in November, he told me he was changing his breathing pattern in his 100 fly to breathing every other stroke.

 He is a 16 year old. Watch his forward motion, breathing close to the water, hips high, low sweep of his arms, underwater kick.  Count his strokes.

USRPT and Michael Andrew

 Michael Andrew is 16 years old, holds more than 80 age group records, went professional at age 14 with Addidas. His father is his coach, his mom is his agent, his sister is his chef.

 We met Michael and watched him swim in the Lander pool this past Thanksgiving, with Josh Davis and the Mutual of Omaha Breakout Clinic. He's training for the Olympic Trials this year and uses Dr. Brent Rushall's USRPT (Ultra Short Race Pace Training) method. It's not a new method, but using it exclusively is "controversial" and it's causing renewed interest in the training. Short yardage is tempting, but it takes intense focus, conscious intention, and discipline.

 A sample workout, done 2-3 times a day:
Warmup and drills
Set#1: 30x25 on :30, holding a goal time (i.e. 12.5 sec for 50-100 free training). Principle: You must hold goal time or faster. If you miss it, you sit out the next one. If you miss 3, the set is finished. Recovery set
Set #2: 30x25 on :30, perhaps another stroke, a different goal time, same principles. Recovery/warmdown.

Freestyle with Dolphin Kick into the finish

 Watch Michael Klim in 2000 finishing with a head down, no breathing, dolphin kick freestyle in the final 15 meters.

Michael Phelps talks below about using this finish for the Olympic Trials this year.