I have officially competed in my first ever
Masters Swim Meet!
Sometime during this past summer, my old coach, Brad Thornton, had asked me to help out with his
Hoboken Masters Team and start coaching every Friday morning practice. I gladly accepted the offer and this past semester has been so much fun getting to know the other Masters swimmers while coaching them and swimming with them as well.
I’ve been swimming with my home club’s Masters team since the summer after my Junior year of college. The previous two summers I had trained with the younger kids, but once I picked up my triathlon training, I didn’t feel the need to swim as much during the summer if I was biking and running a ton as well. The practices generally went about an hour, sometimes 15 to 30 minutes over that depending on the day, and they were just perfect for my off-season training for swimming. I totally owe a lot of my improvements during my Junior and Senior year to swimming
Masters of the summer in addition to the triathlon training.
So now that you know all that, it makes sense why I love
Masters swimming and why I was so excited to join up with the team at the Stevens pool more regularly now that I’m no longer a competitive collegiate swimmer. I have met quite a few new people and it’s been a great experience so far.
Therefore, when Brad first mentioned his idea about running his first Hoboken-hosted
Masters Swim Meet at the Stevens Pool, I was stoked about it! I planned my flight home for the following day and committed to signing up.
I had definitely upped the running mileage following my jump back into training, so I have some good cardio going for me. And in the few weeks leading up to the meet I made every effort to increase the number of swim practices I was going to.
I signed up for the 100 fly, 50 free, 50 fly, 100 IM, and then the 500 at the end of the meet.
Results are as follows:
100 fly 1:06.72
50 free 28.21
50 fly 30.45
100 IM 1:11.85
500 free 5:44.92
Definitely doesn’t compare to the caliber of racing I was doing just
1 year before at ECACs with the Stevens team, but I was happy with the results and I wasn’t too embarrassed.
I think I loved the camaraderie amongst all the Hoboken folks the most because it was the thrill of being part of a team again that got me excited. I think that part of me that loves a team atmosphere will always be there and why I’ll always love swimming for a Masters team the rest of my life probably.
Sarah and I were joking that we can’t wait to be old people killing all the old folks records when we get up there in age : )
I know it’s a long time from now, but my debut into the world of Masters Swimming has officially happened and I’m in it for the long haul!
As I write this, I’m on the plane back to sunny Southern California in anticipation of a long and much-needed winter break without having to come back early for a hellish training trip. Life is good!
