October Swimmers of the Month

Juliana Vidal (TYPHOON 2)

Juliana was chosen as a swimmer of the month because she has been having a great season so far!  She was moved into TY2 recently and she has been working really hard on her strokes and technique.  Juliana is a good leader in her lane and listens very well to the coaches, and has a positive and fun attitude.  Juliana’s favorite meet so far was the SNOW Pumpkin meet in October because she shaved 10 seconds off her IM time.  Her favorite event to swim is IM because she gets to do all four strokes.  To get ready for a meet she likes to relax and watch TV, and eat healthy foods like yogurt.  She believes the most challenging part about being a swimmer is eating healthy and being/staying in the fast lane!  Some of her favorite things about being on BWST are the coaches and her friends.  One of her goals for this year is to improve all her times, but especially in breaststroke which she has been DQ’d in many times.  She will do this by continuing to work on her starts and pullouts.  Juliana’s favorite food is Clementine's, chocolate, and mashed potatoes.  Something you may not know about her is that she was born in Tampa, FL.  If she won the lottery the first thing she would do is give it to her family.  When she is not swimming Juliana likes to play the piano, basketball and do Girl Scouts.  One accomplishment outside of swimming that she is most proud of is getting straight A’s last term, because she worked so hard for them.  Way to go Juliana!

Sam Knowles (GREEN Crest 1)

Sam was chosen as a swimmer of the month because he has shown the coaches that he has been working really hard and working on his stroke technique.  He did a great job at the last meet because of this!  His hard work has been paying off and he has been listening well to the coaches.  Sam’s favorite meet was the first one in October because he had never done one before so it was a new experience for him.  His favorite event is the 50 breaststroke because he likes breaststroke and it doesn’t tire him too much.  To get ready for a meet he makes sure to practice hard so that he feels ready.  The most challenging part for him about being a swimmer is working on stroke technique and doing dryland.  Some things he likes about being on BWST is that the coaches pay attention to him and they are nice to him.  One of his goals for the year are to do better flip turns, get stronger and work on cardio.  Sam’s favorite food is mac and cheese.  Something you might not know about him is that he’s left-handed and was born in Texas.  If he won the lottery the first thing he would do would be to go and spend money! When he’s not swimming Sam likes to play video games, play outside with friends and play with his sister.  One of the accomplishments Sam is proud of is having patience with his friends, who can sometimes be mean.  Good job Sam!

Alex Vanik (BLUE Crest)

Alex was chosen as a swimmer of the month because he has shown great improvement and growth.  He listens and pays attention well and has been working really hard this season so far.  He has shown a great dedication to the sport and team!  Alex’s favorite meet this year was the travel meet to VA Tech in November.  He liked this one best because he swam more events than he has ever done in a meet before and he felt challenged by it.  He also swam the 500 free and 400 IM for the first time.  His favorite events to swim are the 200 free and 400 IM.  He likes the 200 free because it is more of a middle distance and he likes the 400 IM because it’s a challenge and you have to pace yourself.  To get ready for a meet Alex likes to eat healthy breakfasts and dinners, and go to bed early the night before.  He also likes to set goal times for each event that he is swimming.  He also practices hard to work on technique.  The most challenging part of being a swimmer for Alex is that it isn’t exactly a team sport…at the end of the day it’s about beating your own time and achieving your own goals.  The team supports you but you are racing on your own.  Some things he likes about being on BWST is that everyone knows each other, and the team is like one big family.  One of his goals for the season is to go under 3 minutes for 200 breaststroke.  This has been a hard stroke for him and he wants to improve his technique and turns, in order to drop time.  Alex’s favorite food is anything his Grandma cooks at her house!  Including zucchini casserole and frittata.  Something you might not know about Alex is that he played both soccer and baseball before joining BWST.  However he grew frustrated with both sports and turned to swimming instead.  If he won the lottery the first thing he would do would be to put it in the bank for future use on college and cars.  When he’s not swimming Alex likes to do Boy Scouts and get ready for a backpacking trip.  One accomplishment outside of swimming that he is most proud of is his academics and his straight A’s.  Awesome job Alex!