Your input is needed!

As I get ready for swim camp at Hartwick College, I really want to ask parents, swimmers, and coaches for their input on this blog and the posts.

What do you think?  Your opinion? What do you want to see talked about?

This is an interactive blog and I need your help.

If you are reading this from another country I would love to hear your thoughts also.


Coach Scott

Wrapping up CAL U Swim Camp...in style!

Wow...4 weeks of swim camp has came and went.  When I look back at it all I really can't believe how fast it went by.  I really think it was the most productive 4 weeks we have had at CAL U.

So many great things learned.  So many swimmers who are actually better now and will see the rewards of their week with us in the coming months.

I look forward to hearing from them.  One of the best parts of the experience is what lies ahead for those swimmers.

The message was clear and it was taken in 100%.

Simple.  Just think about what you are doing.

I am always sad when I leave camp, the time, effort, and energy put in by our staff is amazing.  My goal is simple...4 weeks of CAL U camp with 42 swimmers every week.  I think we are on the way there.

It is a special camp, with special young people, and a staff that loves what we do.

Thanks to Coach Georgia, Coach Nikki, Coach Michelle, Coach Julian, and of course Coach Ed.

5 days till I leave for 3 weeks of camp at Hartwick College...Swimming Smart travels well.

Coach Scott

Full days of swimming to wrap things up

Wednesday was Breaststroke day and it also brought us to the mid week break.  A lot of great work was done in the pool and in the classroom.

The Specialty Group was on "In Meet Nutrition".  The message was simple...

"Never eat concession stand food..."

A trip to Dairy Queen and Movie Night rounded out the day.

Today brought us to Butterfly.  So much was learned by the campers and it was great to hear them relate that to me.

We finished up with Swim Camp Survivor with my Lane 4 team beating out the other coaches teams.  I jokingly told the other 4 teams that they would be exiled from Swim Camp tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. (a convenient time considering it is the end of camp).

Tomorrow we will review the week and get in some work on Starts and Turns.

Coach Scott

What have you learned so far? The Week 4 edition...

I asked the campers to write down 2 things they have learned so far (1 Freestyle and 1 Backstroke).

Here is a sampling:

Colby - "Keep my hips up on Backstroke."
Lizzie - "Bubbles are a No No"
Jacob - "High Elbow Recovery"
Rylee - "The parts of the Power Phase."
Cameron - "I need a Race Plan"
Erin - "Body Roll"
Cheyanne - "Keep my body up."
Anna - "I never knew you had to have a high elbow or streamline on your side once you push off the wall."
Lucretia - "No windmill"
Becca - "Catch"
Madeline - "You need a high elbow and a good streamline (there was a smiley face made with exclamation points at the end...)"


Coach Scott

Forward and Back

Tuesday brought Backstroke Day to CAL U Swim Camp.

Some great work was done in the pool as the swimmers learned to use their core to their advantage.  We spent a lot of time focusing on getting the hand anchored with the catch and then getting a great body roll.

With so much skill in the pool, the fun came in getting them to be more aggressive with their shimmers and tempo on their breakouts.

We had Specialty Groups on Nutrition and Dry Lands.

We wrapped up the day by beginning Swim Camp Survivor.

Quote of the day...

This one is for Cameron...

"The first step in swimming faster...THINK!"

This swimmer takes amazing notes and actually asked for a quote of the day.


Coach Scott

Freestyle Take IV

Monday brought another Freestyle day to CAL U swim camp.  Each one is different as each group of campers brings something different to introduce and something new to work on.

Some great work today.  Everyone was really thinking and working hard.  This is an interesting group with such a diverse background.  Watching returning campers demonstrate is always a treat but watching new campers enjoy their experience and really learn something new is awesome.

A lot of time was spent on Distance Per Stroke and feeling the water.

We had a great Specialty Group on the "Race Plan", when you have 35 swimmers locked into the lecture you really feed off of their interest.

Tomorrow brings us Backstroke.


Coach Scott

Week 4 is underway!!!

35 Swimmers began their journey to Smart Swimming this evening at the CAL U pool.  We started the evening talking about the importance of Streamlining.  "You can't have the alphabet without the letter A and you can't have fast swimming without Streamlining." was the message conveyed.

We worked on the deck and in the water to perfect their streamlining.  The idea is there but making the connection between their minds and bodies helped to improve their streamlining.  With 35 different kids you have 35 opportunities to turn something into something great.

Step 1 accomplished and a lot more to do tomorrow.

Coach Scott

So here we go...Week 4 is here!

A great weekend recharging my batteries has brought us here to Week 4.  It is really hard to believe that we have already had 97 swimmers here at CAL U and here we are ready to welcome 33 more.

So many great kids have learned Smart Swimming over these weeks.  I was so amazed at our Week 3 campers and the great way they wrapped up their camp experience.  You could really see the improvements and changes both in their technique and in their overall attitude.

So here we go...

Another week and another chance to make a difference.

Coach Scott

Flying to the end of another great week

A day's worth of work on Breaststroke and another on Butterfly has given the campers a lot of new things to think about when it comes to these short axis strokes.

A lot of great drills and adjustments over the course of the past 2 days put us in a great position to wrap up the week in style.

Watching these swimmers makes changes and know how to make changes really shows the skills they all have.

Tomorrow we wrap things up with a review and some work on Starts and Turns.

This has been another great week.

Coach Scott

Quote of the Day

We had a great Specialty Group about "Race Plans" today. Some words of wisdom that were passed on...

"Don't let things happen...make things happen."

Coach Scott

A "Golden" day of Backstroke at camp...

Tuesday was Backstroke day at CAL U swim camp.  We started with a very detailed classroom lecture and had a great morning session in the pool.

I had a special surprise for the campers as my good friend and 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist B.J. Bedford Miller called to give the kids some helpful tips.  B.J. won her Gold Medal swimming the Backstroke leg of the 4x100 Medley Relay (the relay also set a World Record).

She talked to the camp about the importance of having a tight core, a good body roll, and being sure to have a good hand placement during the power phase.

The swimmers literally were hanging on every word.

We wrapped up the day finishing Backstroke and beginning our Week 3 Swim Camp Survivor.

Coach Scott

Learning something new...

It is great when you present something simple and swimmers grab it and use it to make their swimming better.

Freestyle.  The concept is simple but the way it was presented today everyone learned something new.  The energy in the classroom and in the pool was great.

Simple concepts like increasing Distance Per Stroke and Anchoring the hand to get connected really inspired the swimmers to try things that will in the end help them.

We will wrap up Freestyle tomorrow with our Quarter/Half/Roll drill and some other fun things.

Our Specialty Group today discussed "In Meet" Nutrition which really got the swimmers thinking about how to fuel themselves to preform at a higher level.


Coach Scott

Quote of the Day...

"Never sacrifice a good stroke for speed."

Well let's get Week 3 started!!!

43 swimmers arrived at CAL U today to begin their Swim Camp experience.  Again this week we have a lot of new faces.  Abby one of our returning campers actually brought 14 of teammates to camp who had never been before.  This speaks volumes for the great things we do here.  Now it is another opportunity for us to make a difference and teach "Smart Swimming".

We had a great session on Streamlining and setting the ground work for "deliberate" movements.

Gonna be a great week.

Coach Scott

Wrapping up week 2...

Week 2 wrapped up with a great day of Breaststroke and Butterfly.  I was great seeing the improvements in the swimmers fly by concentrating on swimming it smart.  There is a difference between swimming fly and trying to survive it.  Getting them to understand the importance of the catch made the world of difference.

Every group of kids is special, you want every swimmer to take something home that is going to help them.  Sometimes it is something simple as improving Streamline and sometimes it is watching the fire light in their eyes.

No matter what it is, it is what makes our camp special.

Another group of "Smart" Swimmers!

Coach Scott

Taking "Thinking" to another level and learning to focus.

After a successful day of Freestyle, we moved on to Backstroke.

A great classroom session was followed by 3 pool sessions breaking down Backstroke and really getting the campers to learn that there needs to be a connection between your mind and body.  We talked about "T.C.B.Y" (see the Blog post on that topic).  Thinking about what you do and being able to control your body the proper way.  Correcting bad habits and deliberately do things every time.  I told the kids that the difference between just doing a skill and doing it deliberately is that when you do it deliberately it takes thought to make your body do exactly what needs to be done.  It actually hurts because you are forcing yourself to do it correctly no matter how you did it in the past.

We talked about having a good body roll and creating power with a good "catch" (Anchoring your hand in the water 4" to 6".)

I try so hard to describe and detail things in a way that everyone can grasp.  The look on kids faces when they get it and make changes is awesome and worth all of their effort.

Here is a Panoramic view of the Backstroke lecture...

Tomorrow Breaststroke and Movie Night...midweek and still a lot to cover.


Coach Scott

A new look at Freestyle (Week 2)

Another week and another chance to make a difference.

Every week of camp is different.  The content and message are always the same, the secret is adapting it to each week and each group of kids.  Every single kid needs to understand the message.  No matter what their age or skill level.

We began the day with a great classroom lecture on Freestyle (See pics below).

3 pool session working on Streamlining, Break outs, and many drills lead us to conclude the evening session in a great place.

Mary was our camper of the day.  She was a great listener and great example of a smart swimmer in the pool and in every aspect of camp.

It took a lot of work and cooperation to get to where we were.  When you have 28 campers who are new to the camp and the things we do it is so much fun watching them improve.

Tomorrow Backstroke.

Coach Scott

New Camper week...

First impressions mean the most.  That was the situation we found ourselves in today.  We have 37 campers, with 7 of them being returning campers.  Yup, 30 new campers to CAL U Swim Camp.  We really pride ourselves in what we do here and the difference we make.

It is very simple, we make it a priority to teach swimmers to swim with great technique (Swim Smart) and to enjoy the sport they have chosen (Have Fun).  Any opportunity we as a staff have the chance to do that it is like "grabbing that brass ring".

We got in the water this evening for a pretty intense session on the topic that starts and stops any conversation about swimming fast.

Streamlining...

So simple drills in the water, to a fun activity, to on deck streamline awareness.

A great first step as I have said many times over the course of years of doing camps.

The fun continues tomorrow.

Coach Scott

The end of Week 1 the beginning of Smart Swimming for 22 Swimmers...

Week 1 of CAL U Swim Camp wrapped up today.  What a great group of respectful young people.  From 9 year old Brooke E. Smith to 18 year old Tiffany Nestor and all the others in between.  Spirited and attentive for sure.

We concluded with a wrap up session covering all 4 strokes and a ton of drills, plus 2 mini groups focusing on Starts and Turns.  We wrapped up with some closing words to the swimmers and parents and the team picture you see below.

Now for some downtime before we get into Week 2.

Swim Smart + Have Fun = Swim Fast!

Coach Scott

Wrapping Week 1 up the right way

This week has truly flown by.  We are close to the finish line but there is still a lot to cover.  We started this morning by finishing off Breaststroke.  It is great to hear swimmers say they feel stronger by making subtle changes in how they catch or get anchored.

We then went into the classroom for a Specialty Group Session on "In Meet" Nutrition.  So many great questions.  There is so much that swimmers, parents, and coaches can do to make sure that swimmer get what they need to be at their peak when it comes to hydration and nutrition during a meet.

After lunch the swimmers had another Specialty Group Session on overall Nutrition.  That lead into a classroom lecture on Butterfly and 2 pool sessions working on Fly.

The night ended with the finishing relays for Swim Camp Survivor...

Rooms were cleaned and all are asleep.

Tomorrow we wrap things up.

A couple of swimmer thoughts after the Butterfly session today and what they can do to make it better:

Brooke (#2) "My Arms...My Arms!!!
Matthew "Having a set breathing pattern"
Lauren "Improve my timing"
Abby "The SNAP at the end of the stroke"
Olivia P. "Having a better catch"
Jonathon "Improving the path of my hand"

Coach Scott

Homework in the Summer?

I gave the swimmers some "Homework" last night.

I asked them to think about and write down 1 thing that they have learned and 1 thing that they have changed to improve their Freestyle.  It is great reading their responses.  Here is a sampling in their own words...

Kendall - "I learned how my hands are supposed to move in Freestyle"
Logan - "Establish a breathing pattern and practice it"
Luke - "I learned about the parts of the Power Phase and I fixed my streamline"
Madison N. - "Too much streamline does not exist"
Adriana - "I liked that I learned about how I need a Race Plan"
Tiffany - "Quick kick off my walls are better than long ones"
Brooke (#1) - "Now I don't push off in a crappy streamline.  I actually put effort into it"

Great work...

Think!


Coach Scott

A busy couple of days...a lot learned.

Time really does fly when you are having fun.  These kids really get it and are working so hard.  It is so rewarding to watch kids as they do a drill and see them change as they Think...Feel...and React.

We finished up Backstroke today after giving them last night to relax and do some relays.  Between Freestyle and Backstroke a lot of improvement has been made.

We have had 2 specialty groups which I will be writing separate posts so that campers and swimmers not here can enjoy and refer to the content.  The first was "The Race Plan" and the second was "A Swimmer's Profile"  both times the swimmers really enjoyed the content and gave feedback in each discussion.

We started Breaststroke with a great classroom session, there was a lot of discussion about the path of the hand and where exactly the hand travels.  I can only give them my opinion and tell them how I coach Breaststroke.  I would never say another coach is wrong, I am only here to help them Swim Smart the way Coach Denny and I have been doing things here for the past 11 years.

We then got in the pool, where Coach Nikki lead the first of 3 pool session on Breaststroke.

We ventured into California and took the camp to Dairy Queen.  The campers are currently watching the movie "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" as this is our midweek movie night.

Another great day!!!

Coach Scott

Freestyle day at CAL U (Week 1)

An overcast morning greeted the early risers that went to our 7:00 A.M. practice.  20 swimmers enjoyed a fun workout with Coach Nikki.

After breakfast I gave the first class room session of the summer on Freestyle.  I broke the stroke down into some basic elements.  I talked to the camp about the Power Phase, Recovery Phase, Kicking, Breathing, and Distance Per Stroke.  When you have swimmers ranging in age from 9 to 17 it is important to breakdown the stroke using the simplest terms possible and to relate it in ways that they all will understand.

We spent a good bit of time on the "Power Triad" or the first 3 elements of the Power Phase.

I spent time getting our campers to understand the they will not create any power or lift without the proper Entry, Roll, and Catch.  I explained how important it is to drop the pinkie 2 to 4 inches to get a good Catch and "Anchor" the hand to the Pull and Push the body through the water.

It is so much fun to have a captive audience, these swimmers really wanted to learn and understand the things they needed to do to Swim Smart.

We spent our 3 water sessions breaking down Freestyle with drills.

Some of the drills included:

The 88,66,and 44 drills which help with Body Roll.

The Quarter/Half/Roll Drill which helps with the High Elbow Recovery Phase.

It was a great day at CAL U.

Tomorrow we move on to Backstroke after putting the finishing touches on Freestyle.

Coach Scott

Off to Cal U...

Well it is June 1st and that means one thing...it is time to head 311 miles south to the campus of California University of Pennsylvania for 4 weeks of swim camp.

This will be our 13th year of camp and for the second straight year we will have four 1 week sessions.  We hold our numbers at no more than 42 camps to give the best possible experience to all the swimmers.

There are a few topics I really want to highlight this year like "in meet" nutrition, anchoring the hands in Free, Back, and Fly, and race plans.

It should be a lot of fun.

Check in for daily updates.

Coach Scott