Author: Badger Swim Club

Congratulations to Zane Grothe and Cody Miller on being named to the 2015 Duel in the Pool roster representing the United States on December 11th and 12th at the IUPUI Natatorium in Indianapolis as they take on the European All Stars in short course meters.

The full story can be found at SWIM SWAM .

Winners of the “Badger Foursome at Winged Foot” from the Badger Ball.

Chris Poleway, William Raffo, Todd Growich and Chris Powers, out enjoying a day of golf with good friends.

     “Be a Student of the Sport”  – Success

The first in a series of “Be a Student of the Sport” clinics brought to you by Badger Swim Club was a huge success.  The clinics, led by our National Champions, Badger Swimmers and National Team members, Zane Grothe, Cody Miller, and Lindsay Vrooman, were filled with advice from pre-race preparation to post-race recovery.  Each session was well attended by the majority of the Junior Team and Competitive 10&Under Program.  Over the course of the four day clinic, the team had an opportunity to get coached by and swim with three National Champions who kept the team engaged and paid incredible attention to detail in and out of the pool.

USA National Team member, Cody Miller is one of the fastest breaststrokers in the world.  He is also an American record holder in the 50BR.  He shared, demonstrated and coached the Senior, Junior and Competitive 10’s in Breaststroke and Backstroke during the clinic. Cody spent time with all the kids over the weekend and talked about his approach to workouts, workout recovery, and pre-race routine.  Cody touched upon his dedication to nutrition and commitment to maintaining a healthy body how together they allow him to perform at his best. The drills and excitement that he brought to each session was felt by all; the kids thoroughly enjoyed Cody’s vibrant approach to swimming.

USA National Team member, Zane Grothe, ranked 9^th in the world in the 400 freestyle, spent time talking to the kids about his experiences as a distance freestyler, highlighting how important technique and communication with his coaches is to his current and continued success.  In the water Zane focused on his approach to power in relation to his freestyle with emphasis on his technique and how important it is to be self-aware of your stroke in order to continually improve.  Zane shared and demonstrated his turn technique regarding fast walls and how key it is to practice perfect and powerful walls daily.  He connected the significance of practicing in terms of preparation for successful meet performance.

Lindsay Vrooman joined us at the Badger pool on Monday and Tuesday and worked with the largest groups of the weekend.  These swimmers were treated to Lindsay’s explanation to how important proper breathing is to her swimming as well as her focus on technique in her freestyle. The swimmers were also informed on Lindsay’s incredible work ethic and practice routine that aided her in winning gold medals at the CIG, World University Games, USA National Championship, and FINA World Cup.  Lindsay discussed the importance self-motivation as well as motivating those around her at workouts and establishing a positive training routine and group.

Although each Champion had different messages, there were some underlying commonalities: Race preparation, proper nutrition, the need for sleep, post-race recovery, and the importance of proper technique.  All four days of “Be a Student of The Sport” clinics were a success for the swimmers who were treated to a high level of  education on technique, pointers on things they can work on but also a great insight into the careers, training and lives of Badger swimmers Lindsay, Zane and Cody.

A note from Badger Parent Advocate, Mike Conaton:

I recently caught up with coaches Eddie Reese and Greg Rhodenbaugh and asked them about their views on the parent’s role in swimming.

Greg Rhodenbaugh is the head coach of the men’s and women’s swimming programs at the University of Missouri and recent USA assistant coach at this summer’s Pan Am Games. While most of his coaching experience is at the college level, Greg also happens to be the parent of EIGHT kids of his own, many of whom are age group swimmers. “People think I’m an expert because we have eight kids”, says Greg. “We just try to help them learn how to take responsibility – isn’t that what parenting really is”, he asked rhetorically. “You can have an age grouper swim really well by doing everything for them”. But in the long run ironically, Greg implied, we can set our kids up for failure. “The ability to take responsibility can come naturally with maturity”, he concluded. But it seems it can be hastened by parents backing off and allowing kids to fend for themselves and be responsible. Responsibility in swimming can include getting to practice and making a consistent effort when there, preparing for meets, building self-confidence…

I think “helping kids take responsibility” sums things up beautifully and succinctly. And it’s amazing how that theme even carries into the college level.

Eddie Reese is a three time Olympic head coach and the legendary head coach at the University of Texas, where he won his 11th NCAA team title this year. Eddie told me he is happy to take inbound calls from his kids’ parents, but he often filters the “advice” he hears from some. “Some parents will want to tell me how it is and I kind of look at them and say I’ve been doing this for a while”, said Eddie. I find this hilarious and incredible to hear. Look, we parents mean well I always say, but comes a time we have to let our kids be coached, especially by the best of the best. “And comes a time kids have to take responsibility for themselves” said Ed. Again the recurring theme. He told me the story of a parent who called to ask Eddie to help their son deal with a couple disappointing races at a big meet. Eddie’s response – “he needs to help himself…We can’t keep pillowing these kids”, he added. I will add the commentary that he is of course talking about young adults in college if you think this sounds a little harsh. Eddie dishes out a lot of tough love but most know he is a sweetheart of a guy and his kids would take a bullet for him, and vice versa.

Both Eddie and Greg intimated that they tend to spend a lot of time (and probably too much time) with certain swimmers, who even at the loftiest levels, can still struggle with confidence. Self-doubt can quickly spiral. Thus the earlier comment cautioning against coddling age groupers too much. Relying on someone else to support kids emotionally can be a crutch and can catch up to them. The consensus seems to be that kids need to learn to take responsibility for themselves as early as possible. Eddie offered up his advice on the subject – “The key to success and longevity [in swimming] is learning how to deal with problems at each next level”. There is always a new set of issues and obstacles to overcome at each turn (i.e. plateaus, training fatigue, self-confidence, physical and emotional maturity). It’s how we deal with those issues and overcome those obstacles that defines our ability to achieve continuous improvement.

Eddie went on to suggest a little bit of humility is also important. “You can’t ever think you’re above it all. I still pick up trash on the pool deck and put in lane lines”, he said.

Words of wisdom for us all….
 

Michael Conaton, Badger Swim Club Inc. and Badger Swimming Inc. accept no liability for the content of this article, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided.

Badger Swim Club is proud to announce the first in a series of  ‘Be a Student of the Sport’ clinics led by our National Champions. Badger Swimmers and National Team members, Zane Grothe, Cody Miller, and Lindsay Vrooman will be at Badger Pool Saturday through Tuesday, September 12 to September 15, 2015.