Audrey has brought a new level of sweet to Blue Wave. She has done well not only bringing a positive attitude, but she has done well focusing on improving her strokes, and challenging herself to improve her strokes. She is having a great season, proving herself more than capable to any challenge, even doing more butterfly! But enough hearsay, let’s get some information straight from the source! We got to ask Audrey some questions, because of course we all want to know, what makes a swimmer not just a swimmer, but a great athlete? So tell us Audrey, in your words, what do you like most about being on Blue Wave? “Meeting new people and competing in swim meets throughout the year.” The world of swimming is always new and exciting when you involve people! I say swimmers are some of the most interesting people you will ever meet. You say you like to compete? What has been your favorite meet this year? “I liked the Claude Moore Polar Pentathlon, because I got to swim every single stroke.” Do you like all the strokes, or do you have special favorite strokes? “Freestyle and butterfly are my favorite strokes. In freestyle, I’m not as nervous before competing. I love swimming butterfly events because I pretend I’m a dolphin.” And that’s why we do dolphin kick for butterfly! When you are preparing for a swim meet, what do you do? “The night before, I drink lots of water and go to bed early. Before meets, I have strawberries and mini chocolate pancakes and lots of water to hydrate myself.” Hydration is very important to swimmers. We need to keep our blood flowing smoothly! Those chocolate pancakes sound delicious! Do you have a favorite food? “I love chocolate anything!” Chocolate bacon? Chocolate veggies? Chocolate bread? I guess yes! Now Audrey, you have said before that you like to challenge yourself. What do you think is the most challenging part about being a swimmer? “The hardest part is diving off the blocks without doing a belly flop.” Ouch! Well I can assure you, it gets better with practice! The more you do dives, the easier and more fun they become! You can even pretend you are a show dolphin, diving through a hoop! Besides the challenges, an important part of swimming is goal setting. Now I know you are only in Typhoons, but it is never too early to think about goals! Do you have any you are working toward? “Getting a better time in the butterfly, and breaking another record on my summer swim team, or on Blue Wave.” Those are great goals to work toward! Keep working hard in practice, and you will get there! Now, besides being an avid chocolate lover, what is something your teammates might not know about you? “I play basketball, soccer, and the drums as well.” So you must have great rhythm! That is important to many parts of swimming, so keep at it! What do you like doing besides swimming? “Play the drums and the gymnastics bar.” Practice makes perfect. Okay, now we’re curious. If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? Would you buy your own drum set? “I would buy a pool!” Of course! Then, you would by the drums, and start a band. It would be called: ‘The Cheerful Chocolatiers!’ Or, ‘Rhythm and Chews!’ Just throwing a few ideas out there. Do you have any accomplishments outside of swimming you would like to tell us about? “I won a 6 and under hula hoop contest, and a jump roping contest at Fitwize.” Well, as if we needed more proof that you have excellent rhythm! That is most impressive! You will have t give us some lessons, because I am sure the team would love to see the coaches have a hula hoop contest. Hmm, fundraising idea maybe? Anyway, last question: If you were an animal, what would you be and why? “Definitely a dolphin because they are so cute!” As are you! Well Audrey, thank you so much for your time, and letting us get to know you better! Congratulations on being a Blue Wave Swimmer of the Month! #SOTMAudrey
Carly Hanlin (TYPHOONS 1)
Ladies and gentlemen of the swim team, I present to you the lovely and talented Miss Carly Hanlin! Well Carly, now that the applause has died down, let’s talk about swimming. You’ve had a marvelous season, improving turns, bringing you’re a-game to practices, and helping your teammates stay positive. You should be very proud! So we thought, it would be nice to get to know the real Carly! So we are going to try something different. Carly, many of us know that not only are you driven, but you are also very goofy (in the best way of course!). So here’s what we will do. We’ll do a serious swim question, then a not so serious not so swimming question, and see how it goes! Are you ready? Good! First question: What has been your favorite meet and why? “The Swim-A-Thon, because you swim your legs off!” Swimming for a long time can indeed work your legs. Silly question: What is your favorite food? “Chicken schnitzel!” Oh my! I don’t think I have ever experienced that. Swim question: What are your favorite events to swim? “Butterfly, because you use your arms more than your legs.” Something tells me you like pulling rather than kicking! Next question: What is something your teammates might not know about you? “I have 200 stuffed frogs!” Oh my goodness! You are swimming in frogs! Well, that answers my question about what is your favorite animal. Why do you like frogs? “They are very good swimmers and they are very cute!” What is something you like about being on Blue Wave? “It’s challenging and fun!” I could not agree more. Next question: If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? “I would buy 10 frogs, plus everything they need and want. They would be the happiest frogs on earth!” I bet they would be. You may have to buy them their own swamp with all that lottery money! Swimming question: How do you prepare for a swim meet? “I say ‘I can do this!’ Then I pretend a shark’s chasing me! ‘Aaaaaaahh!’” Now that is motivating! I would swim super fast if that was the case too! Non-swimming question: What do you do when not at the pool? “Read, watch Marvel movies, and play with my dog Penny.” Who doesn’t love a good super-hero movie? Swim question: What do you think is the most challenging part about being a swimmer? “Breathing and flip turns.” Very, very true. Unlike frogs, we humans are not fully adapted to being water creatures, so we must train our bodies to breathe while swimming. It is hard work, but we need air to live, so it is very important to keep working hard at it. What accomplishments are you most proud of besides swimming? “I’m in Enrichment for math and reading. It’s super challenging and fun!” Fantastic! Last question, then you can get back to your frogs. What is one of your goals for this year, and how will you achieve it? “Getting faster in butterfly, and I will practice, practice, practice!” Because practice makes perfect! Well Miss Carly, thank you for answering our questions, and congratulations on being a Blue Wave Swimmer of the Month! #SOTMCarly
Samantha Fleetwood (GREEN Crest 1)
Introducing, Samantha Fleetwood! A super-star in her own right, Samantha has become a great example of how far a positive attitude can take you. She comes into practice each day with a smile on her face, and is not shy about sharing it. Even through the most challenging sets, she keeps her smile, and keeps swimming. She has embraced all the coaches have talked about, including dedication, mental toughness, and how to be part of a family team. So wanted to ask her some questions about what motivates her, and makes her the fantastic person she is. So Samantha, what is one of your goals for this season, and how will you achieve it? “To get at least 3 more BB times. I’ll have to work really hard if I want to do it.” Anything worth doing takes some hard work, so keep going for that goal! What has been your favorite swim meet this year? “The PVS January Open. It was my first time doing the 100 free, and the 200 IM, and I was nervous. In the end, I got a B time!” Great job! Being nervous is natural. It’s how you channel that nervousness into positive energy that is important. What are your favorite events to swim? “The 100 IM, 100 back, and 50 fly. They are just the right level of hard.” Hmm, did not know there was a right level of hard. Of course, there will always be something more difficult. The challenge is not being afraid to take risks, and go one step further. Tell us Samantha, how do you prepare for a swim meet? Do you have any special rituals that get you pumped up? “I see if any of my friends are going, and I like to listen to music while I jump on my trampoline. It makes me less nervous.” So you jump to get in the zone? I like it! It sounds like a lot of fun! What do you find is the most challenging part about swimming? Besides the fantastically hard practices. “Reaching my goals. I have to work for them, and that isn’t easy.” If it were easy, everyone would do it! Plus, your goals are worth achieving, so they are definitely worth working hard for. What do you like about being on Blue Wave? “The coaches are super friendly, but they push you to try your hardest. The swimmers are also very fun and nice.” I am so glad to hear that. Swimmers improve the most when they are happy, and they enjoy the environment they’re in, and they like the people they are with. So you will probably be swimming really well at champs! Now for some personal questions. What is something your teammates may not know about you? “I love science, technology, engineering, art, and math!” So you are very much the academic. That is fantastic! You know, you never stop learning. Each day is an opportunity to discover something new, whether it’s about yourself, or the world around you. What is your favorite food? “Crème filled donuts!” Those are the absolute best kinds of donuts!! Especially if you throw chocolate in there somewhere. If you won the lottery, what would you do first? Would you by a mountain of donuts? “I would buy a vacation to Atlantis for me, my family, and my best friends.” Does that include your swim coaches? Just kidding! But really… What kind of activities do you do outside of swimming? “Soccer, science, texting, basketball, playing games with my family, and baking.” Do you make your own crème filled donuts? What accomplishments are you most proud of outside of swimming? “In our basketball game, I once scored 10 points!” Congrats! You must be working on your high jump. Okay Samantha, final question. If you could be any animal, what would you be and why? “Probably a dolphin. They swim so fast, and there are so many types of dolphins!” Well, keep up the great work at practice, and you will probably be as fast as a dolphin one day. Congratulations Samantha on being a Blue Wave Swimmer of the Month!! #SOTMSamantha
No comments:
Post a Comment