November 25/10  2010 Poppy Invitational Coaches Recap

    It's always special to see the whole Silver Tide Swim Club from the smallest to the tallest at one meet and the Poppy always gives us that chance. Every Tide swimmer came ready to race at our very own meet and race they did, collecting enough medals and ribbons to leave the coaches sorting for the better part of an hour. The best part about the meet though wasn't the energy in the pool but outside it. There's nothing better than having the support of your team behind you when you're on the block and the Tide made sure to get loud for every swimmer and every swim. I'm sure every club took notice of the Tide's presence both on deck and in the water. You might think that it was the Senior and TAG groups that were the loudest but the JD and JAG groups had them beat hands down. Nobody cheered harder or longer than these guys and the atmosphere they created was fantastic. Great job guys, next meet you can show the TAGs and Seniors how it's done.

    I was really glad to see that we used this high energy and support to really put up some amazing swims. There were more best times, ribbons and medals from the Tide than I can count. Often there's nothing more important in racing than just going for it. This means you have to cut away all the nerves and expectations and just swim faster than you ever have. Every Tide swimmer went for it in at least one race over the weekend but a few swimmers really stood out in this regard. First up was Bella Blake in the 200IM for not just getting her first Age Group Trials qualifying time but absolutely smashing it by 6 seconds. It takes some really tough and really great swimming to do that. Nathan Swinton also showed off how to race in his 400IM. Trying harder doesn't always mean swimming faster but trying harder and swimming better always does. Nathan blasted out a fantastic 400IM by racing hard and really using his skills. Nobody in that age group had better turns and streamlines in that race. Last but not least, a special mention goes out to Parker Polowy. It's hard enough to get up and race at a normal meet. Now imagine it's your first one ever in a giant pool like Kinsmen with your whole team looking on. None of this managed to phase Parker who jumped into every race with the attitude and tenaciousness of a winner. Well done. 

     Congratulations to all the swimmers and thank you to all the volunteers who came together to make this year's Poppy another meet to remember.
Go Tide!

Maciek Zielnik
Assistant Head Coach
ICS Coordinator
Silver Tide Swim Club
Maciek.zielnik@silvertide.ca

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