Poseidon Swimming - Dec 4th: US Open report and important news

Dec 4th
US Open report and important news

We had a great weekend of competition at the recently completed US OPEN on the campus of Purdue University in Lafayette Indiana. With 21 Olympians in the mix and numerous countries represented, Lauren Haley, Stuart Ferguson, Tyler Harris and Patrick Veltman acquitted themselves admirably with excellent performances in the long course tank. The racing was fast and deep with athletes in various forms of rest/taper/shave looking for Olympic Trials cuts, personal best times and outstanding mid-season competition.

Our efforts were highlighted with tremendous race splitting and remarkable attention in technical details. The majority of the quartet's performances were lifetime best, un-rested LONG COURSE times with several just off their personal best. Of equal importance; Compete in such a high quality event un-rested will provide confidence and inspiration to our upcoming tests at Hargrave and Fairfax and well into the championship season.

AM sessions
I will be offering only Monday AM practice this week. Regular AM practice will resume next Tuesday. No Senior / National group practice will be offered Thur - Sat due to our weekend competitions.

Tom Dolan Travel Update!
One van will depart with those athletes that are participating in the Thursday distance events at 1:00 PM. A second van will depart at 4:30 PM. There will be plenty of room on the early van for any additional athletes! It is time to get fired up for an exciting weekend of fun competition and team bonding. Please remember to bring your grocery bag filled with favorite fuel, H2O and your recovery beverages. I trust that race planning and visualization has been taking place for the past few weeks during your quite time.

Only you can make it happen!
Chesterfield has an attendance policy that is somewhat overbearing. Please be proactive and get involved. I would encourage a committed effort to communicate with teachers, counselors, vice principles, principles, athletic directors and school board members about the importance of participation at higher level competitions. College coaches ARE looking at mid season performances and are formulating thoughts about individual opportunities. Our athletes are excellent students who happen to be participating in a sport that provides many advantages that greatly assist the college admission process. Our February travel meet, A/BB Champs, Senior Champs and Junior National events will require missed school days. Are the athletes in school team sports held to the same standards or are they able to miss school for events? The purpose of the policy is to have students attend school verses a day at the river. Get to work lobbying your schools for the "excused" absence for your child and those that will follow.

FIRE UP FOR POSEIDON!