We got in our first California double of winter training today. This morning I watched the sun creep over the trees outside the pool and cut a swath of sunlight across water. Susie was the first one in its path. She was at the far end, just about to take off on her sendoff, and the sun hit her back and she turned around in the water with the biggest grin pasted across her face.

After some great training, it’s true we made time for a little frolic.


As my high school cross country coach used to say, “Workin’ hard or hardly workin’?”

Our “Prom Style” photo after dinner at Lindsay Nixon’s family home. Thank you for all the great pasta! And the homemade ice cream sandwiches. And the brownies.

Glorious Winter Training!

We arrived in southern California this afternoon for our Winter Training Camp. What followed was a trip to the pool and a sunset swim. We're looking at about 75 degrees tomorrow and that's just fine by me.

Happy Holidays from Pioneer Swimming!!

Snow Day!

Yesterday school was snowed out. Roads are still pretty sketchy, but I braved the wider world to get in to campus this morning. These are a couple shots from my walk up to the Trail Room for lunch. I didn't do any sledding outside my office yet, but these kids did.

Following are a trio of photos from freshman swimmer Erik Khazoyan during his expedition around campus Sunday when the snow was fresh (and still coming down).

Turkey with my favorite team

Thanksgiving has come and gone. So many things happening that blogging has fallen, oh so briefly, by the wayside. No longer!

Just before the team left town for Thanksgiving, they threw a holiday dinner in one of the on-campus apartments. Just like last year, I was pleased to see our team's classroom and swimming prowess extends to the kitchen, as well.

When my wife and I got there, we smelled the feast from the lobby downstairs. My wife brought a cauldron of her family-recipe punch and we all washed down delicious turkey, potatoes, stuffing, pies and several more things I know I consumed in the haze of eating. Oh right, Grace’s cookies (I had two and they tasted like fudge).

I love holidays with the team.

The sea of orange, team fun & team success

What a night! Capturing the intensity of finals in collegiate swimming is tough with just words and pictures. Lost is the deafening excitement and the hair-raising adrenaline. All this was in effect Saturday night at the Northwest Invite as our swimmers moved up places on nearly all their swims. Lee and Matt moved from 4th and 6th seeds in their consol final to finish 1-2. No more than fifteen minutes later Catherine and Kaitlin went 1-2 in their consol before watching Annie take second in the 100 Backstroke final.

The sea of orange was in action again on the pool deck as our kids cheered, danced, and hollered their teammates through big swim after big swim. Lindsay completed her sweep of the Medleys with her strong victory in the 400 IM. Watching our team cheering during races at the end of the pool, surrounding the block and spilling out behind other lanes took me back to my own college swimming days and the way a team can get you through the big races.

Catherine offered to get us home quickly by driving the tour bus. Her offer was declined, but she still got this nifty photo.

Finals tonight and a return trip to Portland

We've refueled after prelims and the team is veging out until we head back to the pool. Our 200 Medley Relays will set the evening in motion and the fun won’t stop until after the 400 Free Relay several hours later. We have loads of finals swims ahead of us and many great races already behind. Our swimmers have opportunities to move up and the chance to make small adjustments after our morning swims.

More than anything I’m impressed with how well our men and women are racing. We’re attacking swims without fear or misgivings. It is far better to give everything to a race in the face of possible discomfort and pain than to wait around hoping things will go smoothly and easily. This difference is the hard thing to teach and it is a blast to see our team lay everything on the line for great swims!

Road Trip!

The Pioneers took to the road this weekend for the Northwest Invitational in eastern Washington. Two-day meet with prelims and finals each day. In this format we cover the entire Conference Championship slate of events in only two days. The swim coach in (which pretty much takes over this time of year) loves the challenge of so many races packed tightly together. If our kids have the grit and gumption to succeed here, the big meet will prove restful and spread out by comparison.

In true Pioneer Swimming fashion we got out of the gates fast and put up great morning swims, logging seven big-final berths and many more consol and bonus consol slots. At lunch we hit the sandwich shop and returned to the hotel for quick R&R before boarding the bus for the pool. Finals were big, loud, exciting and fast. A sea of orange lined the pool for our team races and the women swam an impassioned 400 Medley Relay to finish second overall.

At the halfway point I go to sleep with a happy heart and a stomach full of pasta, salad, and garlic bread.

Albany Quad: Friday morning on campus

I walked to the Dovecote with Michael so he could get his morning hot chocolate. I've used the word "glorious" to describe the last two days on campus far too many times already. This probably won't stop me using it again.

Glorious.

Tuesday from the pool's front steps

The OTHER important election: Our own Matt Yelin wins coveted costume award

In what's been a real nail-biter, a sophomore swimmer wins the campus-wide Halloween costume contest. Check it out! http://www.lclark.edu/~infotech/HALLOWEEN/

Sprint Pentathlon, Relay Meet, and..... is that Michael Phelps on our team bus?

Friday night we competed in the annual Sprint Pentathlon. 50s of each stroke and a 100IM. You probably realize not all swimmers are suited to these events, but I told our team beforehand I believe everyone has something to gain by attacking these races, supporting their teammates, and having some fun. We did just that. There were solid swims and our returning swimmers crushed many of their times from last season.

Our women won the team competition with Lindsay Nixon taking first overall for the five-event combined time. We had 5 women in the top 13 places. Our men swam fast, the returners making great drops, and our freshmen showed us great range in their stroke events.

More to follow on our Halloween workout, but it's important to note that sophomore Matt Yelin was Michael Phelps for a day. All day!

Saturday we hosted the annual Northwest Conference Relay Meet in Zehntbauer. It's great to welcome so many teams to our home pool and the meet ran fast and smooth.

Kim dangles from the ceiling in the name of... science.

Sophomore Kim Guinn hangs from a pulley system (she volunteered for this) during a physics lecture on mechanical advantage. Hopefully the lesson on force and friction was worth the immeasurable stress placed on her swimming coach upon hearing about this.

ALASKA ! !

Fall break trip to Alaska for two meets with NCAA Div. II University of Alaska Fairbanks. Part of our women's team flew to Alaska last Thrusday night and, after few travel hiccups and a serious airport delay, we touched down in Fairbanks and stepped out into the cold. This term is relative, but to us it was cold. I can't say enough good things about how we raced and the fun we had as a team. This was a first trip to the 49th state for almost all of our women and we took in some sights between trips to the pool.

Pios take to the air... and the snow.

North Pole, Alaska (turn right on Santa Claus Lane, then right again on St. Nicholas Drive... for real).

Glow Putt Alaska!

Homecoming! Alumni! Racing! Giant dogs!

Last weekend at L&C, Homecoming activities swarmed campus. Friday night at the Hall of Fame Banquet we inducted the 1982 Women's Swim Team, along with several other Pioneer athletic greats in other sports.

Saturday was the first annual Alumni Swim Meet. Over twenty Pio swimmers of the past joined us at the pool for a dual meet. Five of last year's graduating seniors made the trip home to see us, one coming all the way from Singapore. Seeing these men and women reconnect with their teammates was a blast. Grads stretching back more than 25 years joined in on relays and individual races. The whole morning kicked off with a greeting line and team cheers for this varsity vs. alumni extravaganza.

By the time I left for the Alumni tent preceding the football game, I was riding the high from a successful first go at this event and I know we'll have even greater turnout next year.

Our new mascot is Pio, a Newfoundland dog, played last weekend by "Buddy." If you've boned up on your famous explorer history, you're sure to know Meriwether Lewis and William Clark had a dog and that dog made the entire journey with them. That same spirit now leads our athletes onto the fields of play. Incidentally, Newfoundlands are excellent swimmers. More on that later....

Swim Lab Time

Friday mornings we break into stroke groups arriving at different times to focus in on specialties. More space and great technical exploration! I was really happy with our work this morning and the attention everyone gave to the drills and skills. I was inspired to send an email to the team afterward thanking them and highlighting some key points to take forward from our work this morning:

Freestylers/Backstrokers: Rotation is power. Rotation is healthy swimming. Make each arm a strong anchor so each stroke counts. Free/Back drills are kicking drills!

Butterflyers: Remember, the rhythm controls the stroke. Butterfly is finesse as much as it is power. Keep your rhythm to keep your speed.

Breaststrokers: Know you’ve made it back to your platform quickly so the hips follow the torso in line. Take your pullout speed into fast breaststroke swimming.

Voodoo strikes swim workout!

Saturday's workout capped a successful first week of the season and I wanted to throw a minor celebration. Voodoo Doughnut is a Portland institution and the situation called for four dozen of their finest creations!

Swim Season is here! (and armed men in dark shades)

It begins! Training is upon us and the energy is amazing. I didn't fully realize the void of the off-season until we started a new year this week. Writing workouts and walking the pool deck beside our athletes is the best thing I get to do each day. It’s been a great week because of the excitement our swimmers bring to the pool and the exuberance with which they approach training. We’re having fun!

Today campus is crawling with secret service, K-9 units, and all manner of chauffeurs. As I write this, Sandra Day O’Connor is speaking next door in the gym at an event for our law school. Howard Dean was here last week so the movers and shakers are certainly rolling through early this school year. Who will be next?

I'm thinking of asking for my own security detail. Dark sunglasses, ear piece, waterproof loafers for the pool deck... the works.

Hall of Fame Swimming Alum LeAnne Desilet conquers 2nd Ironman Triathlon

I am a Pio Swimming alum, circa 1986. When I swam my final 200 yard breaststroke at NAIA Nationals in March of 1986, I never dreamed I'd ever use my swimming in a competition again. However, time marches on and I wanted to start competing in something. My husband's family was into triathlon. I still had the same five-gear bike I'd had during my LCC years and only four gears worked. Oh, and I could not run three miles without stopping to walk. But, I trained a little bit and found that I enjoyed the structure and the goal setting (sound familiar?). I didn't know if I was going to keep my breakfast down after finishing that first sprint tri in 2002, but I did and have participated in many more races since then.

Flash forward to early 2006 when I was training for Ironman Canada. Long story short -- major car accident crushed my pelvis and left foot. I ended up covering the race for the magazine Inside Triathlon, carrying a cane, five months after that accident. I then slept outside in a long line in the city park, rock concert style, so that I could sign up for Ironman Canada 2007. With months of physical therapy and a lot of pain behind me, I got to Penticton in August of 2007 and competed. My husband and three children drove to various points alongside the course to cheer me on for over 14 hours that day. Finishing that race was a fabulous accomplishment, but many things went into it and one major component was the support system I had and still have. It's a key for any and every athlete to surround ourselves with positive people who understand and support your goals and commitments.

Last month my family drove once again to the Great White North and installed ourselves in a condo for a week so that I could do Ironman Canada 2008. I had the race of my dreams. I cut four minutes off my swim time, which started the day off very well. During the 7 hour bike, my extended family were at various spots on the course. I am not sure I could ever do this race without seeing family during the course of the day. 7 hours seemed like about 12 and I finally deposited my bike to the waiting volunteers and put on my running shoes.

It had started to rain by that time -- nearly unheard of during Ironman Canada where they routinely record temperatures of 100F. I was probably one of the few people who was really happy to see the rain, since I live and train in it all winter and spring. It rained during my entire run, and I remember seeing Brazilians, Mexicans, and Greeks running by in garbage bags as I stayed happily in my tri suit. I had never run an entire marathon before, and during this one only walked about a half mile during a steep uphill section. I kept telling myself that it would end faster if I ran.

At mile 21, I saw my wonderful daughter running toward me and I could hear the finish line announcer 5 miles away. My daughter ran with me for a short section and I continued into town. By mile 24, the spectators were three-deep on either side of the racers and the noise was incredible. At mile 25, racers turn onto the road where the finish chute is, and do an out-and-back. There, I saw my entire family once again, all screaming and yelling and the kids joined me from the sidewalk. During the time it took me to get to that finish line, I don't think I heard any noise, though. I asked my kids after I finished, "Where were the grandstands this year?" and my middle son turned me around. They were 50 yards behind me, so noisy that we couldn't make ourselves heard without yelling.

My final time was 13:12:32. Everything had come together -- my training, my nutrition and hydration during the race, my support team throughout the year, and even the weather.

Oh, and on the day prior to the race, I signed up for Ironman Canada 2009. Guess I'd better get to the pool.

More of LeAnne's race-day photos:

BARBECUE!

Team barbecue at the apartments on campus to welcome the freshmen swimmers. Sam grilled me a cheeseburger and someone was thoughtful enough to bring a couple plates of mini-cupcakes. I thoroughly enjoyed one (one cupcake, not a whole plate).

Welcome to Campus!

Tomorrow our incoming freshmen arrive for orientation! I look forward to seeing our newest team members and their families this week. After a summer of recruiting, swim camps, planning, and watching pools do their thing, it’s exciting to know our swimmers will be back in school next week and a new season is upon us.

For a few weeks our returning swimmers have been popping back onto campus. The reunions have been grand and this Olympic summer has put everyone in a seriously motivated frame of mind. Now the fun begins!

Gold Medal moments of August

If there was ever any doubt about the value of a good finish, surely we've learned our lesson. The Lezak freestyle relay anchor leg and Phelps' 100 Fly were tight enough to knock a person off his couch in anticipation. I was reminded of the finger tip margins in great 50 Free duels between Tom Jager and Matt Biondi, the great American heroes of my swimming youth.

The pundits and journalists deign to call this the best Olympics ever and, as a swim coach and swimmer, it's hard not to agree. As I watch the U.S. women win the mile relay on the track, I am sad to see the competition drawing soon to a close, but I have to say I welcome the end of my sleep deprivation.

"What I did on my summer vacation!" Part 5: Erik Khazoyan, Freshman

The highlight of my summer so far has been going to Europe and spending 12 days travelling through Switzerland, Italy and France. Some of my favorite moments included: swimming in Lake Lucerne at night which was cold but was really refreshing and relaxing to float in the lake and stare at the stars and commune with nature. Switzerland was beautiful and Lucerne is a great city.

Venice and Florence are also amazing cities. In Venice, we saw a thunder storm and were in the middle of the laguna on a water taxi during the storm; it was really intense. Eze was also absolutely gorgeous and for those who do not know of Eze, it is this little old hilltop village that looks down on the Mediterranean and near Nice in the South of France. Then on to Paris.

Since I have been back from my Europe trip, I have been working at a pool and getting ready for school. But now, I am looking forward to meeting all of you.

"What I did on my summer vacation!" Part 4: Zach Yeager, Senior

I love the team blog! What a great idea Chris. This summer was a blast. I learned all about nutrition with Koy, studied Yoga with Chris, worked at the Nike swim camps with Cat, Sarit, Koy, and Mandy, watched the Olympic trials in Eugene, and then went to Philosophy camp in Boulder, CO for a month!

It wasn't really philosophy camp but almost. CU puts on a seminar for undergrads in philosophy every summer. They bring in a bunch of amazing professors from all over the country to lecture on their specialties. It was a lot of fun but I'm not looking forward to the twenty page paper I still have to write. As for the rest of the summer I'll be getting ready for the XC season, that is, when I can pull myself away from the Olympics. I'm so excited! I hope everyone else is having a great summer as well and looking forward to swimming as much as I am.
See you soon, Zach

"What I did on my summer vacation!" Part 3: Elle Stark & Claire Jordan, Sophomores

Claire took a break from nannying and long course training and Elle from guiding raft tours outside Aspen, CO so they could spend part of July in the Hawaiian islands. See them here communing with nature and one another...

"What I did on my summer vacation!" Part 2: Sam Palmer, Senior

it's been a glorious summer for me out in the boonies of california rafting on the american river. i've spent my days working on the south fork and training for the class IV middle fork river which i finally am running commercially as of last week!! if you don't know what it's all about you should look for it online and even come up rafting with me! i love the days here even though they are super long and hot.

sad for the summer to be closing but super stoked to be moving up to portland in about a week. i'm running the Raft The Deschutes NSO trip so you freshmen better watch out. either way we should plan a team trip some time in september before it gets too late. i'm going to go catch the last hot part of the day and make some dinner, but to all, welcome to Lewis and Clark College and especially the Pioneer Swim Team. you're in for a real treat.