The Swordfish Splash

2009-09-18T08:25:00.000-07:00

Calgary Swordfish AGM and Awards Night

Calling all Swordfish Swimmers and their families!

To end our fantastic season of swimming we invite you all to a night of fun,food, a great forum for discussion, ending with an awards presentation forthe swimmers!

Date: October 17th, 2009

Cost/family: $10.00 to be collected when you arrive.

Look for the SwordfishTable!

Location: Southland Leisure Centre, 2000 Southland Dr. SW

Schedule of Events:

4:30 -6:00pm : Swimmers, siblings and a supervising parent for swimmers under the age of 7 swim!*

4:45-6:00pm : Annual General Meeting. We ask that one parent from every family attend the meeting.

6:15-8:00pm : Supper and Awards presentations. We will beproviding pizza, veggies, drinks and dessert for supper. Upstairs Pool Viewing area.

The Club photos are ready! Please remember to pick up your swimmer's photos before you leave!

See you there!

Wildcards!!!!

2009-08-10T13:44:00.000-07:00

Wildcards are in!!!!
The swimmers effected are:
Brent - 400m & 1500m
Luke - 25m free
Bradley - 25m fly
Amber - 50m Br
Rios - 100m IM & 50m Bk
Bryn - 100m free, 400m free and alternate in 50m free
Jenna - 50m Bk
Andrew - 50m free & 25m Bk
Stephen - 100m Br, alternate in 50m free and 200m IM
Neven - 50m Br
Cam - 50m Fly, 100m Bk
Ashley - 100m Bk, alternate in 800m free
Courtney - 200m IM, 400m free, and alternate in 100m Fly
Shelby - 100m Br & 50m free
Casey - 50m fly & 50m Bk
Cole - 50m Br

RELAY WILDCARDS!!!!:
Tyler, Siavash, Everett and Cole - both Medley and Free
Hailey, Fiona, Amber and Jasmine - both Medley and Free
Daniel, Sebastian, Joel and Akash - both Medley and Free
Alfred, Zack, Robert and Seena - both Medley and Free
Brooke, Greta, Bryn and Sara - Medley
Octavio, Brent, Mitch and Stephen - Free

Congrats to you all, I will see you at practise tonight!!!
The link provided will take you to the database to view all qualifiers: http://www.assa.ab.ca/database/wildcard/clubProvQualifiers.php

Provided is also a link to the Provincials Meet Package:
http://www.assa.ab.ca/pdf_files/2009_provincial_meet_invitation.pdf?

All Relay qualifiers need to be in Edmonton for 11:50am on Saturday the 16th.

Regionals!!!!! August 8th and 9th at the Talisman

2009-08-06T08:48:00.000-07:00

Well the time has come to show off all our hard work over the past season!!! We have 70 Swordfish swimmers competing this weekend, the largest number we have ever sent to this meet!!!!

Warm ups on Saturday morning begin at 7:30am sharp!

Sunday morning DISTANCE SWIMMERS - warm up at 7:45am

EVERYONE ELSE - warm up at 9:10am (sleep in a little)

This can be a high stress meet so it is important to eat well, get lots of sleep and time in the morning- don't rush or be late.

PLEASE SHOW UP AT LEAST 10 MINUTES BEFORE THE LISTED WARM UPS AND CHECK IN WITH THE COACHES!!!!

See you all at the pool!

Canmore Meet - July 24th and 25th

2009-07-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

This weekend is the Canmore Coho Swim Meet, held at the Canmore Aquatic Center.

Friday Night is for swimmers entered in distance events and long fly. If you are unsure if you are swimming Friday night ask your coach or check your events on the entry sheets posted at the pool. Friday nights events are:

Short Distance

Medium Distance

Long Distance

Long Fly

Warm ups Friday Night are at 6:30pm, events begin at 7:00pm

Warm ups Saturday Morning begin at 7:20am, please be at the pool by 7:10am and check in with your coach. Canmore is approximately an hours from Calgary so give yourself enough time to arrive on time. Swimmers who have not checked in by 8:00am will be scratched from the meet - no exceptions.

The meet is timed out for 4:30pm on Saturday, if you do not plan on staying for relays please tell a coach first thing in the morning. Please keep in mind the coach's will be selecting the Regional Relays after this meet and participation will be considered in their selection.

2 weeks till Regionals!!!!! Time to get excited!!!!

Tritons Meet July 18

2009-07-15T20:54:00.000-07:00

ATTENTION!!!!! WARMUPS ARE EARLIER THAN FIRST POSTED!!!! WARMUPS ARE AT 7:00AM!!!!!

Tritons Meet is this weekend.

MEET INFO

Warm-ups will be at 7:00am as usual so please check in with your coach by 6:50am. The meet is in Calgary at the Talisman Center so we get a bit of a sleep in which will be nice.

Due to past years having to many people on deck to the ratio of lifeguards available the Tritons swim club is limiting the amount of parents allowed on deck. All parents on deck will require a pass. If your child is 8 or under you can request a pass if you feel that they need the extra supervision. If not, there will be parent chaperones on deck to help take care of all the swimmers. We are getting close to the end of the year so hopefully everyone is feeling comfortable with how everything is running and the children may be feeling a bit more independent :).

There is a concession as well as a Jugo Juice there so lots of healthy choices will be available.

We look forward to a good meet this weekend. See you all on deck!

Coaches Corner Hanna

2009-07-13T21:56:00.000-07:00

This past weekend in Hanna was fun and exciting. Not only did the weather keep us on our toes, switching from the possibility of rain to sunshine, but seeing parents and family members compete was an added bonus. Representing the Swordfish squad was the Abel family swimming an amazing 1:1475 with the help from Cole, The Rudy family close behind going a 1:17.08, the Knudson family going a 1:27.61, the Bester family going 1:44.47, the Cheung Family, with help from Karin, going a 1:57.85, and finally the MacGregor and Sanabria families joining forces and going a 1:45. 87

Overall the Meet was a success with the Hawaiian get-up and water guns as well as some fun races to watch. Our next meet is close to home at the Talisman center. We have a good number of swimmers attending so I look forward to some more exciting races.

HANNA UPDATE!!

2009-07-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

Warm-Ups!!

For all those going to Hanna this weekend, warm-ups for us are not until 7:50 so please check in with your coach by 7:30 and ready to get in at 7:50

Coaches Corner Innisfail

2009-07-06T20:49:00.000-07:00

Good work to everyone who attended the Innisfail meet this past weekend!

It was the first meet with the 800 and 1500 meter distance races.

Highlights Of The Meet

Brent swam his first ever 1500 meter race swimming the exact time that he predicted just prior to his race. He had a very strong race holding even splits throughout the entire race. As well be showed everyone what it means to leave everything in the pool.
Congratulations to Khaled who swam all best times this meet including a very strong first ever 200IM
Tyler showed true grit by getting back in the water to race after an unfortunate run-in with his heal and a door. He was bandaged up and ready to race not letting a little pain slow him down. Rachel H also showed good self discipline by getting in for warm-ups, despite the chaos, and had great races and a great meet to show for it.
Bradley had a great meet placing first in everything accept fly which he placed second, earning him gold aggregate. Kati B had a strong 25 meter Breastroke! Good work Kati.

Good work to everyone in Innisfail! It was a long day and everyone stuck it out and had some strong swims to show for it. This next weekend is in Hanna. I look forward to seeing some good races from our swimmers as well as our parents in the family relay. Don't forget the Hawaiian costumes :)

Hanna Seals Swim Meet!!

2009-07-05T20:24:00.001-07:00

The meet this weekend is our only outdoor meet hosted by the Hanna Seals Swim Club. It takes about three hours to get to Hanna so camping or staying at a hotel is usually the option people go for.

Check out this website for camping facilities: http://www.hanna.ca/Visitors/WhattoDo/Camping/tabid/141/Default.aspx

Warmups are at 7:30am so please check in with coaches by 7:15am. Due to the number of swimmers signed up for this meet not all the coaches will be attending the meet. That being said, the coaches attending (Audrey, Hilary, and Joe) will take those who are coached by Miranda and Steph.

IMPORTANT MEET INFO!!

The meet is outdoors so be prepared for the weather. If it is good weather everyone will be camping outside. There is a grassy area that people can set up tents and chairs. Umbrella's are recommended as it may be hot and there will be little shade. Incase of bad weather there is an arena that we will be able to use to set up camp. If not, be ready for hot weather and bring supplies such as SUNSCREEN and lost of water.

FAMILY RELAY

At the end of the meet families are given the opportunity to swim together on a relay. There must be at least three family members on the relay. It's a fun chance fore parents to swim with their children. However, it is time permitting.

Food/Concession

There is a concession available inside the arena. As of today the weather is said to be sunny and a high of 25 degrees so drinking lots of water is recommended. Fruit is always a good choice to keep the swimmers refreshed giving them fluids and good sugars.

THEME

The meet is a Hawaiian theme. Costumes are encouraged. Who knows, you may see your coaches sporting some fashionable grass skirts and colourful flowers again this year :)

Innisfail Info - Saturday July 4th

2009-06-30T13:09:00.000-07:00

The meet this weekend is hosted by the Innisfail Dolphins Swim Club in Innisfail. Innisfail is one of our further away meets, about an hour and fifteen minutes drive North on the QEII. Some families choose to drive up the night before and camp which is a nice option. There is a campground in the town of Innisfail and the Best Western has been suggested by the host club:

Innisfail Campground or

Best Western (Ask for the Innisfail Dolphin “Special Rate” of $98.99 rate - Breakfast included! Valid until June 15, 2009)
Best Western newly built in 2009 contact number: (403)227-4405

WARM UPS!!!!! - are at 7:30am again, this means all Swordfish swimmers should check in with their coaches no later than 7:15am!!!!

At our meet we had alot of issues with relays! This is very frustrating to the coaches as well as your team mates! If you do not want to be a relay team member then you need to write this on the sign up sheet, this is clearly written on all meet sign up sheets! If you forget to write No Relays next to your swimmers name(s) then it is important that you notify the coaches first thing in the morning!!!!!

From here on out, if you do not notify the coaches that your swimmer will not be able to swim relays and are consequently put on a relay team it will be the responsibility of your swimmer of your swimmer to inform their teammates that their relay will be scratched and they will be unable to participate.

IMPORTANT INFO ABOUT THE MEET:

Shelter:

Swimmers will be expected to use the outdoor park area between races. There is not enough room in the pool to accommodate all swimmers. Please come prepared to spend the day outside. Bring your own tent!!

Viewing Area

Due to lack of deck space there will be bleachers provided for spectators. Once you have viewed the race please make your way back to your team area. This will ensure the enjoyment for all spectators and athletes.

Food & Concession:

We will have a concession inside which will be open all day containing snacks and lunch. Deck food and lunch will be provided for all officials and coaches only. There will be no designated lunch break. Afternoon officials will be fed and then take over when required.

Please see the link below for a map to the Innisfail Aquatic Center:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=google%20images&rls=com.microsoft:*:IE-SearchBox&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7DACA_en-GB&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl

COACHES CORNER - OUR FANTASTIC SWIM MEET!!!

2009-06-30T12:45:00.000-07:00

What an amazing meet we hosted!!!! Thank you to all our amazing Swordfish parents for putting together an exciting flawless meet, swimmers pat your parents on the back!

Some great swims of the meet include:

India's lighting fast 25m freestyle!!!

Graeme's first races of the season were a great success, the coaches hope he will keep up the hard work and race again very soon!

JC is looking great in all of her races and improving every meet!

Nic is racing strong and learning to focus in his races - face forward!!! :)

Andrew is racing like a champ and beginning to take the lead in his races!!

Great Job to all of our swimmers!!! A major focus for the next two weeks in practice will be turns as all the coaches noticed this was a primary area of needed improvement for our club.

Distance races next week in Innisfail will be very exciting!!! I want to see all of Swordfish swimmers out in the stands cheering on our teammates and pushing them to new levels of success!!!!

2009-06-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

Sorry that time is July 2nd NOT July 3rd. My mistake. Thanks.

Attention Green and Black swimmers and parents

2009-06-28T18:06:00.000-07:00

New pool time for Green and Black Starting July 3^rd until the end of the season

Group	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Green	6pm-7:30	6-8pm	6-7:30pm	6-8pm	@ SAIT
Black	6-8pm	6-8pm	6-8pm	6-8pm	@SAIT

*Green will still be doing dryland on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s and Black will be doing dryland on Monday’s and Wednesday’s so remember to still bring appropriate dryland clothing.

Practice Change from June 22-July 2

2009-06-21T17:17:00.001-07:00

Just a reminder to all parents and swimmers that the Sait pool will be closed down for maintenance from June 22 to July 2. During this time all Swordfish swimmers will be swimming at Foothills. Here are the times each group will be swimming.

Groups	Monday June 22	Tuesday June 23	Wednesday June24	Thursday June 25	Friday June 26
Gold @ Foothills	6:00pm- 7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	6:00pm-7:00pm	7:00pm-8:00pm	NO PRACTICE
Orange @ Foothills	6:00pm-7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	6:00pm-7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	NO PRACTICE
Red @ Foothills	6:00pm- 7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	6:00pm- 7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	NO PRACTICE
Green @ Foothills	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	NO PRACTICE
Black @ Foothills	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	NO PRACTICE

Groups	Monday June 29	Tuesday June 30	Wednesday July 1	Thursday July second	Friday June 26
Gold @ Foothills	6:00pm- 7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	CLOSED CANADA DAY	Back to regular schedule
Orange @ Foothiulls	6:00pm-7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	CLOSED CANADA DAY	Back to regular schedule
Red @ Foothills	6:00pm- 7:00pm	7:00pm- 8:00pm	CLOSED CANADA DAY	Back to regular schedule
Green @ Foothills	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	CLOSED CANADA DAY	Back to regular schedule
Black @ Foothills	7:00pm- 8:00pm	*7:30pm- 9:00pm	CLOSED CANADA DAY	Back to regular schedule

*Black and Green will be doing dryland so bring appropriate clothing

Swordfish Swim Meet June 20th 2009

2009-06-16T17:43:00.000-07:00

I would like to start this message with a big thanks to the Swordfish Executive and all the parents for helping out and putting this meet together! Its really great that we are able to race out of our home pool and our swimmers can feel a sense of pride hosting a meet. Thank you all!

The meet this weekend is at Sait.

Warm ups are at 7:30 am again, so please check in with your coaches by 7:15am.

This will be a hectic meet as the Swordfish have entered 101 swimmers, that's a record baby!!!! So please be as helpful as possible in making sure all Swordfish swimmers make it to their races on time and stay organized. Coaches will need to know ASAP whether or not your swimmer(s) will be staying for relays.

The meet package is posted on our website , please reference our website for more info including order of events.

The coaches are very excited for a great meet this weekend - and may even have a relay or two up their sleeves....

Coaches Corner for High River

2009-06-16T17:24:00.000-07:00

What a great second meet! As a team we really came together and worked out the kinks from Okotoks, fewer disqualifications and faster times! Way to go!

From the Green Squad Akash achieved all best times for the second meet in a row, he also stood up and made his team proud choosing to swim his 50m Breaststroke later in the day after the officials made a mistake and disqualified him from the heats. Octavio, Nandi, Jordan and Nic had great 100m Freestyle races taking off a combined time of 39 seconds!

Speaking of taking off huge chunks of time Brent started the day off with a stellar 400m Free earning a personal best by 30 seconds! Brent swam a strong and aggressive race from the start maintaining even splits and finishing hard. Amber had a great meet swimming 4 for 4 best times and swam smart executing race plans. Kirsten had a great 50m Fly looking strong and taking off 6 seconds.

The Red Squad swimmers had great races and learned some important lessons this meet. India swam her heart out after losing her goggles in the 25m Free and Bradley powered through an entire 100m IM after losing his goggles on the start, way to tough it out and race!

Samuel had a quick Flutterboard race and is really coming along as a competitive swimmer!

Our relays dominated the High River pool, power in numbers! I can't wait to see the number of relays the Swordfish will be able to produce this weekend with a whooping 101 swimmers entered in our meet!!!! It will be awesome!!!

Finally a big CONGRATS to Stephen in the Black Squad!!! Stephen qualified for the ASSA ALLSTAR TEAM in his 100m Breaststroke posting a very fast time of 1.24.72. By swimming this time Stephen has qualified for winter club A Provincials held at the Talisman Center on June 26, 27, 28. Be sure to shake his hand when you see him and wish him luck!

High River

2009-06-08T11:46:00.000-07:00

The High River Swim Meet is this coming weekend June 13th. The Meet is to be held at Bob Snodgrass Sports Complex. The complex is on the main road into Highriver, over the bridge heading west.

Warm ups are at 7:30am, please check in with the coaches by 7:15am.

All swimmers must participate in warm ups!!!!

The meet is timed out for 4:00pm (fingers crossed) The order of events is listed below:

EVENT LIST

8:30am – 12:30pm

400 FREE (30min.)

BREAST STROKE(60min.)

MEDLEY RELAY(60min)

LONG FREE(60 min.)

BUTTERFLY(30min.)

12:30 pm – 12:45 pm

LUNCH –time permitting/OFFICIALS SWITCH

12:45 pm – 4:00 pm

BACKSTROKE (90 min.)

LONG FLY (20 min.)

SHORT FREE (60 min.)

I.M.(20 min.)

See you all there!!! Go Swordfish Go!!!!

Okotoks Stingrays Swim Meet June 6th 2009

2009-06-08T10:41:00.000-07:00

This past weekend the Calgary Swordfish attended there first swim meet of the season hosted by the Okotoks Stingrays. It was great to see the Swordfish swimmers in action!!!

64 Swordfish swimmers came out to compete on the weekend, a great turnout for the beginning of the season. The day began with swimmers from the Black Squad swimming the 200m freestyle. Haley, Kirsten and Stephane had very strong mid-distance swims. Stephane took the lead 100m into the 200m race, beat his time from last season and earned a 1st place in the event.

In the very competitive 25m Flutterboard event our little twins Marko and Luca kicked to victory placing 1st and 2nd in the event. All of our 8 and under swimmers had a great meet and made their coach Miranda very proud.

The Okotoks meet was coach Miranda's first speed swimming meet, she did an awesome job preparing her little swimmers to compete. A little more prep may need to be put into the 8 and under girls relay, little technical things like one swimmer racing at a time and if you pass your teammate half way down the pool maybe someone left to soon. Hahaha too funny!!! And so fun to watch!!!

The coaches agreed that Swordfish swimmers really came together as a team from
helping us find some of the kids that hadn't checked in or getting relay teams together and ready to race.

For both new and old swimmers we found that they really took this meet for what it was supposed to be and that is a chance to get back into the swing of competing. Those who were DQed took it in stride and used it to learn for the next meet. When Ankit false started on his first race he was obviously shook but he didn't let it
affect the rest of his day, just one example of swimmers taking ownership of their mistakes and trying to improve from them there were many more like that.

Thanks to all the parents who came out and volunteered to officiate or time, the meet couldn't run without you!!!

Our next meet is this coming weekend in Highriver, watch for our first IM swims of the season as well as 400m freestyles!