nov 9th

I am currently under the assumption that we will have all swim practices at D.P at the regular time this week. DP water polo will be in the play-offs in the next few weeks and I can assume that we will get moved out to UCSB a couple of times, but I don’t have the dates yet. I’ll e-mail everyone when I find out, and I’ll also post the info on the website.

Wednesday swim practice will be at the regular time.

Reminder that age group will NOT be doing dryland anymore but will start swim practice immediately at 4 pm. Age group athletes that arrive at swim practice early are asked to be ready to get into the water at 4 pm, but not to participate in the senior group dryland program.

At the parents meeting on Friday I mentioned the possibility of a team travel trip to Phoenix Az on Jan 15-18. I would like to get a rough estimate of who might be interested in participating. Please e-mail me with an initial response of “interested” or “not interested.”

This swim meet in Phoenix is open to EVERY athlete on our team. I will encourage athletes 10 and under to travel with their parents and lodge with their parents. My initial plan is for myself and a chaperon to drive 2 large vans midday on Jan 15^th (kids will miss some school that day) and stay in hotel rooms with 4 athletes per room. We would leave Phoenix around 2pm on the 18^th and return to S.B. most likely late that night.

Ventura Swim meet Recap

Scott Mahan en route to a new best time in the 100 backstroke.

Swim meet recap.

Wow, what a weekend we had in Ventura. Multiple best times were achieved, a few first place finishes were claimed, and the first ever official Santa Barbara Aquatics Club relay was contested. Thank you to all the parents that helped on the timing line. Here’s a quick rundown of the weekend:

SBAC participants; Scott/Erin/Matthew Mahan, Janelle Nguyen, Reagan Eickret, Ari Wallis, Courtney Nuttall, Abby/Deacon Hill, Andrew/Mia Giacobazzi, Eric Lindheim-Marx, Lilly Menear, Sophie Thompson, Audrey-Anne Patterson, John Errico, Shannon Slaught, P.J. Lannon, Drew Casier, Mark Warkentin.

Results can be found at socalswim.org.

Highlights:

Scott Mahan swam a personal best time in the 100 backstroke and competed in multiple races.

Matthew Mahan, Andrew Giacobazzi, Lilly Menear and Sophie Thompson all swam their first official USA Swimming competition with great success.

Abby Hill claimed the silver medal in the 8 and under division in multiple races with incredibly fast times.

John Errico/P.J. Lannon/Drew Casier/Mark Warkentin set a team record in the 200 M.R.

Courtney Nuttall swam her first 200 freestyle with an impressive time and went 2 seconds faster than her previous best time in the 100 freestyle.

Erin Mahan swam multiple races and had a tremendously positive attitude even when she was disqualified.

Reagan Eickert swam a best time by 3 seconds in the 100 freestyle.

Janelle Nguyen won 4 races, claimed multiple best times, and was in the hunt for the high-point award in her age division.

Ari Wallis swam multiple personal best times, in particular a very fast 100 breaststroke.

Deacon Hill (only six years old) competed against 8 year olds and swam very well.

Audrey-Anne Patterson swam 3 seconds faster than she did last week in Camarillo in the 100 breaststroke.

Mia Giacobazzi swam the 200 IM for the first time.

Shannon Slaught swam 4 races per day and swam a personal best time by over 2 seconds in the 100 backstroke.

Eric Lindheim-Marx swam 45 seconds faster than his previous best time in the 200 I.M (seriously).

As the head coach of our swim team the only downside to the weekend was that more SBAC athletes did not participate in the swim meet. I hope that parents/swimmers can see that our team was represented by a vast array of athletes at various ages and ability levels and we all cheered for each other and enjoyed the experience. The swimmers that participated swam well, gained confidence, learned about themselves and their capabilities and realized the possibilities ahead. We will have more opportunities in the future to swim in USA swimming competitions and I hope that everyone considers participating.

PVST SWIM MEET round-up

PVST PUMPKIN SWIM MEET ROUND-UP.

SBAC sent 11 athletes to the Pleasant Valley Pumpkin swim meet on Saturday and came away with multiple first place finishes at every age level in both individual events and relays.

Our 8 and under girls team of Abbi Hill and McKenna Grant claimed the gold and silver in the 25 freestyle, the 50 freestyle, and the 25 backstroke. In addition Abbi Hill claimed titles (and rubber duck prizes) in the 25 breaststroke and 25 butterfly.

Our 9-10 age group was represented by Erin Mahan. Erin placed 4^th in the 50 Free, 4^th in the 50 back, and 5^th in the 50 breaststroke. Erin narrowly missed the rubber duck prize on numerous occasions but swam lifetime bests in every event.

At the 11-12 age group level SBAC had multiple heat winners and best times. Reagan Eickert placed 1^st in the 100 I.M. 3^rd in the 50 breaststroke and 5^th in the 50 butterfly. Courtney Nuttall finished 5^th in the 50 butterfly, 2^nd in the 100 IM, and 4^th in the 50 backstroke. Madeline Brown finished 8^th in the 50 free, and 6^th in the 50 backstroke.

At the 13-14 age group level SBAC was represented by Audrey-Anne Patterson who finished 7^th in the 100 breaststroke.

On the men’s side SBAC was represented by a trio of athletes at the 13-14 age group level. Spencer Kemp finished 1^st in the 100 breaststroke and 2^nd in the 100 free. Graham Young finished 3^rd in the 100 free, 2^nd in the 100 back, and 8^th in the 100 breaststroke. Scott Mahan finished 2^nd in the 200 IM, 6^th in the 100 free, and 3rd in the 100 back and breaststroke.

Competing in the 15 and over Men’s division Big John Errico placed 1^st in the 200 I.M. 2^nd in the 100 free, 2^nd in the 100 back, and 2^nd in the 100 breaststroke.

SBAC also put together a female relay team (Reagan, Courtney, Madeline and Audrey) and a male relay team (Big John, Spencer, Scott, and Graham) and competed in the 200 free and 200 medley relays. SBAC TOUCHED FIRST ALL FOUR TIMES.

Congratulations to everyone that participated in the swim meet this past weekend. As the coach of the team I was very proud of all of our swimmers that participated.

Our next competition is this upcoming weekend in Ventura. The swim meet is expected to be very fast and very large. Almost every swim team from Paso Robles to Westlake will be competing in this event. Let’s have a good week of preparation!

NOV 1st

SBAC Families,

It's getting colder and darker.....and the likelihood of sickness increases dramatically. Please help keep your family (and others) healthy. One way to do this at swim practice is to take a few precautions.

1. Wear shoes as often as possible to the pool and try to encourage your family to wear shoes AFTER swim practice.

2. Wear a swim cap at swim practice. A swim cap will help keep your head warm.

3. Dry your ears out after swim practice so that cold water doesn't get stuck in your ear.

4. Wear warm clothes, bring a big towel, and use them!

At this time it appears that all swim practices this week will be at D.P. If a random water polo game comes up that sends us out to UCSB I will make sure to e-mail you. The D.P. team is nearing playoff time and there may be some short notice pool changes.

On Tuesday night at midnight our online team store will close. You only have 2 days left to purchase team gear! Suits, bags, parkas, jackets and pants are all on sale with deep discounts off retail prices. The Santa Barbara team logo (either embroidered or silkscreen) will appear on all apparel and I highly encourage you to purchase a swimsuit if nothing else. The swimsuit (and team gear) will help identify our athletes at swim meets and will help develop our team image and personality. Please participate. Attached is the apparel information. Tuesday will be your last time to get team gear for a few months (there will be a couple of swim meets in that time) so get going!

I will be selling official Santa Barbara Aquatics Club “Rocket Scientist” team T-Shirts all week at the pool. If I’m busy coaching try to find Kelly Mahan (Thanks so much for the help Kelly) when she's around. If you are going to the swim meet in Ventura this weekend I HIGHLY encourage you to get a team T-Shirt.

I would like to have a parents meeting on Friday at 5 pm at the pool. The meeting should only take about 20 minutes but I can stay later to answer questions. There are a few issues about the winter swim schedule, potential travel swim meets, and the future at SBAC that I would like to share with all of our parents. Parents from every group in the program are encouraged to attend. Because of the swim meet on Saturday/Sunday we will have a shortened swim practice for age group and senior group that will conclude around 5:15 pm. I will have Coach Alisha take over coaching duties while I host the parent meeting.

If you have questions that might be helpful to have answered please e-mail me beforehand.

A recent morning practice

Reagan, Courtney, Drew, Shannon, Janelle, Mark

6x100 warm up
1oo swim, 100 kick, 100 no breath x 2

10x50 breaststroke with paddles on 55
or
10x75 freestyle pulling on 55

10x75 on 1:15 Fly, Back, Breast

10x200 freestyle pulling
or
10x150 breaststroke/freestyle pulling
or
10x150 freestyle pulling

10x100 pulling on 1:15 1 EZ 1 Fast
or
10x75 Fly, Back, Breast on 1:15 1 EZ 1 Fast

10x25 fast rabbit

200 SBAC style warm-down

PVST meet combined into one session

Originally the swim meet in Camarillo this Saturday was supposed to be split into two sessions with the older ages in the morning and the younger ages in the afternoon. However, the were not very many entries for the older age divisions and so the meet hosts decided it would be best to combine the entire swim meet into one session. The swim meet will start at 9:00 for everyone and will be finished by 12 noon at the latest. Attached is the new updated timeline for the competition.

EVERYONE PARTICIPATING IN THE SWIM MEET SHOULD BE PREPARED TO ARRIVE AT THE CAMARILLO SWIM POOL AT 8:15 AM. PLEASE WEAR TEAM T-SHIRT IF POSSIBLE.

E-mail me with any questions you may have in relation to the swim meet.

TEAM GEAR IS HERE!

Two major pieces of apparel news today:

#1

At long last SBAC now has team apparel for everyone!

YOUTH TEAM SHIRTS will be available tomorrow! I will be selling YOUTH “Rocket Scientist” T-Shirts on Wednesday at swim practice. Cost is $15. If you can't make it to Wednesday practice you can purchase team shirts on Thursday or Friday at swim practice.

#2

Recently SBAC became a NIKE sponsored swim program. What does this mean for our families? Most significantly it means that we get deep discounts on NIKE swim products. SBAC families now have the opportunity to have our team logo printed on swimsuits, parkas, swim bags, and team jackets/pants. Starting today you can go online and purchase SBAC team gear through our online NIKE distributor.

Here’s how it works.

1. E-mail coach mark and get the SBAC team apparel fact sheet.
2. Purchase team gear at the online store (you have 1 week starting today to get the stuff you need before the store closes.)
3. All team gear will be shipped in one large shipment (to save shipping costs) to SBAC sometime in mid November
4. Get your team gear from Coach Mark when it arrives.

The SBAC store will remain open for one week before closing at midnight on NOV 3rd. The store WILL reopen again sometime in the winter, but this is your only chance to purchase team gear before Thanksgiving. Our winter order will likely take place sometime in December.

Obviously, there is no requirement to purchase team gear, but I would strongly encourage the purchase of a team suit if possible.

I know, I know, I know…..you have questions. I’m ready.

mark warkentin

sbac swim team head coach

Janelle, Shannon and Drew in Simi Valley

Janelle Nguyen, en route to a personal best time in the 400 I.M

Shannon Slaught competing in the 100 Fly

Drew Casier, competing in the 200 Fly at the Southern California Swimming Senior Invitational

Oct 25th

#1
SWIM PRACTICE THIS WEEK WILL BE AT UCSB ON BOTH TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. ALL OTHER DAYS WILL BE AT D.P. AT THE REGULAR TIME.

#2
Success over the weekend in Ojai and Simi Valley.
It was a very successful weekend for SBAC. For the first time ever SBAC was represented at 2 separate competitions on the same day. 10 of our athletes from the novice/age group programs competed in a junior competion in Ojai while 3 of our Senior level swimmers traveled to Simi Valley for a upper level competition. With best times achieved from both locations it was a great weekend for every swimmer and our entire program. If anyone has a picture that they'd like to have posted on the website please forward to me.

#3
"It was the first mistake I've ever made."
Considering the SBAC T-Shirt logo is "Rocket Scientist" it was a rather humbling and ironic turn of events to realize (after it was too late) that T-Shirts come in Adult and Youth sizes. What type of intellectual genius could have known? Anyway, I hope that our smaller athletes will forgive me as I will be placing an order this week for T-Shirts that will fit.
I think that many of our athletes (ages 10 to 14) will be able to fit in the current SMALL or MEDIUM sizes and some of older kids can wear a LARGE without any trouble. I'll be selling the current set of T-Shirts on Monday and Thursday. E-mail me if you are coming on Tuesday or Wednesday and would like to purchase a particular size. Cost is $15.

#4
In a related matter, SBAC is now selling apparell to parents and supporters of the adult variety. Authentic SBAC team gear is just $15! E-mail me with requests!

#5
This Saturday SBAC will have athletes from all three groups (novice, age group and Senior) represented at a swim meet in Camarillo. I will be there for the meet to support all athletes. This is going to be a very fun meet for all attending.

MAJOR SWIM MEET NEWS.
#6
On Nov 7-8th SBAC will participate in a swim meet in Ventura. This swim meet is encouraged for EVERY age and EVERY level of our program, including our most youthful and inexperienced athletes. There are no minimum times (you can enter the meet No Time). This is our last swim meet prior to Thanksgiving and I hope that we can send a large team to the competition. (It's really fun when the whole team is there!) Attached is all of the swim meet info for the Ventura Swim meet. Entries are due in the mail on Monday. (Postmarked any time on Monday). If you need help filling out a swim meet entry card I will be available after swim practice on Monday or you can ask around the pool deck on Monday during practice and see if anyone can help you.

#7
Relays are the most fun part of swimming and at the swim meet in Ventura SBAC will attempt to participate in all of the relays. Every SBAC relay at the swim meet has a very, very, very strong chance of establishing a team record. Some of our age groups at SBAC may have only 4 swimmers total - the minimum required to field a relay - so your participation in the swim meet might be the difference between SBAC having a relay!

October 22nd

Dear SBAC Families,

It was brought to my attention this week that some families have been dropped from the team list and didn’t receive recent e-mail messages. I don’t know how this happened but I apologize for the mistake and I’ll do my best at making sure everyone is included on the list. Here’s my additional solution for the future: I will continue to send out an e-mails on Sunday night (and the occasional one during the week) but I will also post the information on the team blog swimsbac.com. If you’re ever unsure about the schedule or the latest news on team events please go to the website.

Here’s a few quick hits before the weekend.

1. I put in an order for long-sleeved SBAC swim team t-shirts last week. I talked to the designer today and he said that the order would be finished tomorrow. Because we have a swim meet in Ojai on Saturday I am going to bring the t-shirts to afternoon swim practice on Friday. I don't have a final cost per item yet, but the cost is likely to be around $15. These shirts are 100% cotton so I’d recommend getting one on the larger side. (I didn’t purchase any XSMALL, only SMALL, MEDIUM, LARGE and XL. If the team runs out of a particular size I will make an additional order as soon as possible). I will only accept cash for the t-shirts.
2. I will not be attending the swim meet in Ojai this Saturday but Carolyn and Amanda will be there to assist your athletes with coaching and support. (I will be at a different swim meet with our older kids). Carolyn will be selling team swim caps at the swim meet in Ojai at the cost of $3 each.
3. Please try to arrive at the swim meet in Ojai at least 45 minutes before the start of the competition to make sure you are signed in and warm-up up for the day.

see you at the pool

mark