Regional Swim Meet Concludes 2011-2012 Winter Swim Season

By Marcie Bolton

The Middlebury Aquatic Club competed in their last meet this past weekend February 10-12, at the Upper Valley Aquatic Center in White River Junction.  Swimmers ages 6 to 18 gathered and swam along with hundreds of other water lovers from all over New England. Many succeeded in swimming some of their best times in butterfly, back, breast and freestyle events from 25 yards to 1650 yards.   The 75 swimmers in the winter swim club started their season October 3, 2011 practicing five evenings a week over the past four months.

The Middlebury Aquatic Club (MAC) offers an organized age-group swimming program for children meeting the needs of all swimmers, from beginner to advanced, by following a progressive, developmental model that fosters excellence and commitment to the team.  They want each swimmer to achieve the best that they are able to.  A swimmer learns the values of sportsmanship and teamwork, empowered with physical, emotional, and intellectual skills that will last a lifetime.  

MAC Head coach Monica Benjamin asks her swimmers to “Always come to practice prepared to work hard and with a good attitude.  No matter what happened at school or at home that day, it needs to be left at the door before they enter the pool area.  Once they are in the pool area, for those 1.5-2 hours it is all about swimming.  Also, the more practices they come to per week, the more they will get out of the season.  On that note, as I mentioned above, it's not just about coming to practice and going through the motions, they have to set goals for themselves and be willing to work hard to achieve those goals.  Whether the goal is long or short term (a qualifying time versus making a certain interval that practice), it still takes more than just swimming.  I always tell my swimmers, swimming is 90% and 10% physical.”  

Look for sign-ups in May from the Middlebury Parks and Rec for the summer swimming club.  Congratulations on a great 2011/2012 season!