Keep Calm and Swim On - 2013 Ron Johnson Invitational

I know this phrase has been beaten to death, but I really like our "Ron Jon" shirts this year. They're kind of fitting, considering our head coach, Jonny Tunstall, is a Brit originally from Liverpool. He's a US citizen now, but I don't think he'll ever lose that accent. So, in your best British accent say the words: Keep Calm and Swim On!

Without fail, Arizona experiences some of the best weather around beginning mid-September; however, once we're closer to the Thanksgiving holiday, things invariably get a bit chilly. And, without fail, the annual Ron Johnson Invitational swim meet, put on my swim club, takes place during that time. For the past three years, it's been a bit chilly on the day of the event and yesterday was no exception. Rainy and 55 degrees -- Brrrr!

Trying to warm-up before my races was near impossible, but thank goodness for furry boots and swim parkas!!

The ever smiling Shirley Chow

Yeah, it's chilly, but look how beautiful it is!!

This is a webcam photo taken from Mesa, AZ pointing towards 

the Superstition Mountains. Gorgeous!!!

The cold and rainy weather didn't dampen the spirits of over 200 swimmers who came out for some some fun and fast swimming. Our new Masters champion, Darian Townsend was back for his second Masters meet and brought several of his former University of Arizona teammates with him. I wasn't able to watch many of Darian's races this time around, but I caught the last heat of the 200 Freestyle, which proved to be pretty amazing. One of Darian's former UofA teammates, Tyler DeBerry, swam a blistering time with our own LMSC President, Terry "Jaws" DeBiase (a former Cal Berkeley swimmer close to 50) on his heels. Another well-known Masters swimmer, Kurt Dickson was right there with them throughout the entire race.

In the top photo, from the left, Jaws is in Lane 3, with Tyler DeBerry just to his right in Lane 4.
Look where Tyler is after the first turn -- yeah, he's fast!

Here's a link to the Swimming World article, which provides additional insight into the amazing swims at our meet: 

http://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/lane9/news/Masters/36865.asp

Besides, the fast swimming, there is the social aspect of a Masters meet that helps to offset the less than ideal weather.

Aung Sann Oo and Katy  Hodson (a.k.a. K-funk) in between races (sitting to Katy's left is her brother Greg (a.k.a. G-funk) Our coach is very fond of giving us fun nicknames.

Doug Foster (a former Navy Seal) in his "tactical" weather gear

Well, another Ron Jon is under my belt (my third), so it's time to continue keeping calm and swimming on until the next meet. Cheers!!

First Top Ten Swim! Another USMS Milestone!

While checking my swim information on usms.org today (I was curious as to whether the info from the October Flagstaff meet had been posted), I was delighted to learn that my 3rd place Summer Nationals relay swim counts as a Top Ten swim -- my first! The results are still Preliminary, but I'm sure they'll stick and I'll be ordering my first ever Top Ten patch. Woot! I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to swim with such fast ladies!

Happy 4th Swim Anniversary!!

November 7th marked my fourth anniversary with United States Masters Swimming! 

4th Swim Anniversary Collage

Top (l-to-r): Members of my swim club, Sun Devil Masters, helping me show off my Third-place relay medal at Summer Nationals -- Me showing off one of my old "bar" tricks (balancing a salt shaker) -- My swim board. I've added so much stuff to it in four years I think I'm going to have to start another one.

Middle (l-to-r): Someone snapped a picture of me warming up in the rain during a noon workout. My club parka -- Me with my coveted medal

Bottom (l-to-r): My best swim friend Elaine and Me at Summer Nationals -- My kickass swim team at Summer Nationals (we won 1st place Regional Team -- 1st place Men's and 1st place Women's)

Since my swim year starts in November, the first "official" meet for me is the Ron Johnson Invitational, held at my home pool. This particular year I swam in a lot of relays and had a ton of fun.

Me and my mixed relay team at the 2012 Ron Jon

The next highlight was attending the Swim Diva Holiday Party. I ended up with a "gift" of 50+ Olympic Trial swim caps. I have too many already!!! LOL!

Know anyone who needs a cap?

The next meet was the January Polar Bear held at the University of Arizona in Tucson, where I swam my fastest 50 ever!!!.

Wendy from the Phoenix Swim Club (left) and Helen ("of Troy") from Tucson Ford Masters.

Two wonderful Masters Swimming ambassadors.

I missed out on a couple of meets due to a weird hip injury, but I didn't let that stop me from having fun as a volunteer at the Mesa Grand Prix in April.

Clark Burckle (back toward camera), Matt Grevers (to Clark's right), and 

Mike Alexandrov (making a point). Lots of Olympic representation at the Mesa Grand Prix

In late April, I made a huge change to my swimming schedule, and switched from swimming workouts at 6 PM to the noon hour. This was my first summer swimming through the day-time Arizona heat. But you know what? I think it really helped me be better acclimated to our searing summer temperatures. The first few weeks when the temps were well above 100, I could really feel the fatigue, but as the weeks went on, it no longer mattered even when it topped out at 119 on the 29th of June. It just felt good to be in the water. Plus, I'm sporting a really bitchin' tan!! (And, yes, I do wear sunscreen.)

My noon "watering hole" -- McClintock High School -- Tempe, AZ

The next big event on my calendar was Summer Nationals in Mission Viejo, which I posted about earlier in August.

Here's a video of me swimming the 50 meter Breaststroke at Summer Nationals

(I'm in lane 6 near the top of the video wearing a white cap)

My next swim meet took place at high altitude in Flagstaff mid-October. Talk about a strange experience. This was my first time swimming above 7000 feet and my body did not like it. I'll swim this meet next year, but I've already told myself "Nothing over a 50!!" One of the highlights of this trip was watching a "daddy/daughter" kick grudge match (of course, the daughter won).

Several members of my swim team cheering on the kickers in the grudge match

On November 3rd, I swam at the Mesa Aquatics Fall Classic meet. In this particular meet, I didn't swim very fast, but someone else sure did. None other than Olympic swimmer Darian Townsend. He set 5 USMS World Records at this meet within a 2 hour time frame. I can't think of a better way to end my fourth year of swimming, and what a perfect beginning to my fifth!

Darian Townsend  (photo by Mike Lewis -- Ola Vista Photography via SwimSwam)