Jun 25, 2014
Just a few mid-week updates:
CHECK-IN TIME AT GUNDERSON: 7:30 AM
LPAC check-in this Saturday is 7:30 am at Gunderson High School. Please leave plenty of time to drive and park so you arrive on time. Check the Montevideo meet page for a map and other details.
VOLUNTEERS STILL NEEDED FOR SATURDAY
Montevideo will be running nine lanes (!) at the meet this Saturday, so we need several more timers and recorders for second shift. Also, your job assignments will be different than they are at home meets. Please be sure to check the Volunteer Assignments link on the Montevideo meet page so you know your assigned shift(s). If you don’t see your name listed and/or are available to help out with timing second shift, please email Julie Waldron (jnewcomb65@yahoo.com) ASAP. This meet should go quite a bit faster than usual, so the shifts will probably be shorter.
OOPS…WE MISSED ONE!
Apologies to Mackenzie Keslin, who was inadvertently left out of the record-breaking list in Monday’s email. Yes, she did it again — broke her own 15-18 Girls 50Y Backstroke record, with a new time of :29.94. Congratulations Mackenzie!
DON’T MISS THE BOAT!
Just another reminder…if you want to go on the raft trip July 5, you need to turn in your waiver AND payment no later than this Saturday. Forms go in the “RAFT TRIP” folder; the LPAC file box will be on the ribbon table at the Montevideo meet. Contact Chad Seps (chadseps@gmail.com or 408-887-3267) if you have any questions about the raft trip. You can download the forms from the Raft Trip page of the website.
CHAMPS FORMS DUE SATURDAY TOO
Also, don’t forget to place your orders for Champs meals and Champs ads. Forms are available on the Champs page of the website.
SOME FUN EVENTS COMING UP
Next Tuesday, July 1, will be the Ice Cream Social and Pool Party at Los Paseos Pool. This fun event is open to all penguins and their siblings. The cost is $1 for Association members and $2 for non-members. Please pay at the gate as you come in. You do not need to RSVP for this event. We do, however, need some parent helpers to scoop and serve. Contact Kris Fuss (krisnbob@fussorama.com or 408-225-8797) if you can stay and help.
Friday, July 11 will be a mini-golf outing for swimmers in the 8 & under age group. Parents are responsible for taking their kids to and from Emerald Hills Golfland at 976 Blossom Hill Rd. We’ll plan to leave from the pool right after practice is over (10:15 am). The cost is $7.99 for kids and $8.99 for adults (golf only). You can also go on the water slides, which is an additional $7.99/$8.99. You can bring your own food or purchase snacks and lunch there. Siblings are also welcome to attend. Contact Judy Seps (judyseps@yahoo.com or 408-506-3532) if you have any questions about this event.
TURN IN THOSE PLEDGE FORMS!
Congratulations to all our penguins who swam their hearts out yesterday at the Swim-a-Thon! Remember to turn in your pledge forms and money to the “SWIM-A-THON” folder no later than July 11 to be eligible for prizes. We appreciate your support! You can download the pledge form from the Swim-a-Thon page of the website.
Jun 23, 2014
Dear Penguins and Parents:
Congratulations on another victory! LPAC defeated Silver Creek on Saturday by a score of 120.96 to 102.36. Let’s keep up the momentum this weekend against Montevideo!
MORE BROKEN RECORDS
We’ll have a brand-new name added to the LPAC record board this year: speedy six-year old Sarina Seps went a :21.97 in the 25Y butterfly, breaking Madison Mamola‘s record from 2007. Great job, Sarina! Meanwhile, Daniela Fasan shaved another hundredth of a second off own 11-12 girls 50Y breaststroke record with a time of :34.53. We might see more records fall in the big pool at Gunderson this weekend…stay tuned!
THIS WEEK AT PRACTICE
This is the second week of the Donut Blitz, and attendance has been great so far. The coaches are seeing noticeable improvements as a result, so keep up the good work and keep coming to practice every day!
SWIM-A-THON ON TUESDAY
The Swim-a-Thon fundraiser will be tomorrow (Tuesday, 6/24) during your regular practice time, so be sure to come a little early so you can start swimming right away! It’s a great chance to challenge yourself to swim as many laps as you can while earning money to support the team. The coaches will have goals for each age group. If you meet the goal, you get a ticket to enter in the raffle for fun prizes. You can earn extra tickets by swimming more laps beyond your target.
Download the pledge form from the Swim-a-Thon page on the website. We do need parent volunteers to help count laps, so please plan to stay during your child’s practice time to help out if you can.
PHOTO MAKE-UPS ON WEDNESDAY
If your child missed picture day last week, come to the pool on Wednesday (6/25) at 8:00 pm to take makeup individual photos. You will still receive a copy of the team photo as well. Remember to bring your checkbook if you plan to order extra prints or buddy photos.
GET THOSE FORMS IN NOW!
Remember, if you want to go rafting, eat at Champs, or show your penguin pride with an ad in the Champs program, you need to turn in those forms and payment THIS WEEK. Download the forms from the website:
SATURDAY’S MEET: @ MONTEVIDEO/GUNDERSON
This Saturday’s meet will be an away meet against the Montevideo Piranhas. Montevideo’s home pool is too small to host meets, so we will be swimming at Gunderson High School (622 Gaundabert Lane). See the Montevideo meet page for a map to Gunderson, which is the big pool you can see from the junction of Highways 85 and 87. We don’t know the LPAC swimmer check-in time yet but will let you know by Friday.
PENGUIN BRIEF #6
Coach Ryan has penned another Penguin Brief, about how every race can be a learning experience. You can read the article on the Penguin Briefs page of the website.
Jun 20, 2014
Just a few quick reminders:
CHECK IN TOMORROW AT 6:30 AM
We’ve pushed back swimmer check-in time by 15 minutes so we can all get a little extra sleep. All penguins must check in with coaches promptly at 6:30 am for tomorrow’s home meet against Silver Creek. If your child is ill, please call or text Coach Scott: 408-613-5126. Preliminary meet entries have been posted to the Silver Creek meet page of the website. However, there are sometimes last-minute changes, so be sure to check the entries posted at the pool and always check OUT with the coaches before you leave the meet in case you’re needed as a last-minute relay substitute.
HELP WANTED!
We are still in desperate need of more parent volunteers for tomorrow’s meet. We need one more snack bar helper for both first and second shifts, and at least four timers for second shift. If you can help out with any of these jobs, please contact Julie Waldron (jnewcomb65@yahoo.com) ASAP. And when you check in tomorrow morning, be sure to sign up for a job at the upcoming Montevideo meet as well. (Note that updated volunteer assignments have been posted to the Silver Creek page of the website.)
LAST HOME MEET
Tomorrow will be our last home meet of the season, which means it’s your last chance to enjoy the league-renowned LPAC breakfast burritos and tri-tip sandwiches. Remember that all snack bar proceeds benefit our team, so eat hearty!
IMPROVEMENT COUNTS!
Just a reminder that in this league, improvement points count for half of the overall team score. So every individual swim really does make a difference. In fact, quite often the team who wins in improvement points ends up winning the meet. Encourage your kids to know their entry (seed) times, and to check with timers afterwards to see if they improved.
BEACH TRIP FOR HIGH SCHOOLERS
Any swimmers who have completed their first year of high school are invited to attend the Beach and Bonfire trip tomorrow (Saturday, 6/21). The cost is $8 per person. We still need more parent drivers for this trip; swimmers are not allowed to drive themselves. Younger siblings may attend if their parents are driving. Please RSVP to Sandi Bolton (sandi.bolton@gmail.com). Plan to meet at the pool at 4:30 pm. Check the Beach Trip page of the website for a map and additional information.
See you all in the morning…GO PENGUINS!
Jun 16, 2014
We had another great meet on Saturday. Although LPAC scored more place points, Belwood edged us in improvement points, and the Dolphins won the meet by a final score of 120.90 to 117.48. We are still very proud of all our penguins and look forward to taking on the Silver Creek Sharks this Saturday!
We’re entering the busiest part of the season, and there are lots of events and forms to keep track of, so please read this entire email carefully so you don’t miss out on any of the fun. For your convenience, we’re attaching several forms to this email, but you can also download them from the website at any time.
MORE RECORDS FALL
Nicole Richards shaved a bit more time off her week-old 15-18 Girls’ 50Y Butterfly record, posting a new time of 29.44. And Daniela Fasan set a new 11-12 Girls’ 100Y Individual Medley, with a great swim of 1:09.57 (beating Leah Thompson’s record from 2012). Congratulations!
THIS WEEK AT PRACTICE
Today kicks off the two-week “doughnut blitz” attendance challenge. Swimmers who miss no more than one practice over the next two weeks will earn themselves a delicious doughnut. Nothing tastes sweeter than a hard-earned reward, so come on out to practice every day!
NEW COACHES TAB ON WEBSITE
We’re slowly building out a new “COACHING” tab on our website, which will be a resource area with stroke technique tips and other information direct from our awesome LPAC coaches. We’ve created a new “Stroke Technique” section. If you click on the Butterfly page, you’ll find general tips, official rules, and an explanation of the different drills we do during practice. We encourage both swimmers and parents to read this information, as it can help you better understand and reinforce what the coaches are teaching. We plan to expand this section with additional strokes over the next few weeks, so stay tuned!
We’ve also posted Coach Ryan’s “Penguin Briefs” from last year. Penguin Brief #3, which talks about how “Every Race Counts” in this league, is especially relevant given the close scores in our last two meets. We’ll let you know when new articles are posted here as well.
SATURDAY’S MEET: SILVER CREEK @ LPAC
This Saturday will be our last home meet of the season, against the Silver Creek Sharks. If you have to miss any part of the meet, please email the coaches NOW: coaches@swimlpac.org.
This year Silver Creek has a smaller team, so we’re hoping the meet won’t last quite as long. Check-in time will be 6:30 am, so everyone can get an extra 15 minutes of rest Saturday morning. Please be sure to check in on time, though. Swimmers have done a great job these last two weeks, and we want to keep up the good work!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR SATURDAY
Volunteer Assignments for this Saturday’s meet have been posted to the website. We do have a number of families who will be out of town this weekend, so there are still several open jobs that we need to fill:
- 1st shift: 2 timers, 1 alternate, 1 snack bar
- 2nd shift: 1 timer, 2 alternates, Runner, 1 snack bar, 1 outdoor clean up, 1 women’s bathroom & trash
Wendy Marley is out of town, so please contact Julie Waldron (jnewcomb65@yahoo.com) if you can help fill any of these positions, or if you are currently assigned to a position and will not be at the meet Saturday. Thank you!
PICTURE DAY ON WEDNESDAY (6/18)
Picture day will be this Wednesday, June 18. Please note that there will be no practices on this day. Individual photos start at8:00 am, and the team photo will be taken at 9:00 am. All swimmers should wear either the new black-and-white LPAC team suit or a plain black suit.
Your registration fee includes one individual photo, team photo, and a photo button. You can also order additional prints and/or buddy photos for an additional charge. Please bring a checkbook on Wednesday if you plan to order additional photos. See the Picture Day page of the website for more information.
BEACH TRIP FOR HIGH SCHOOL GROUP ON SATURDAY (6/21)
The annual beach-and-bonfire trip for the high school age group will be this Saturday, June 21. If you plan to go, please RSVP to Sandi Bolton (sandi.bolton@gmail.com or 408-202-9670). The cost is $8 per person, which includes hot dogs, chips, sodas, and s’mores. You can bring the money with you that day.
We need lots of parent drivers for this event, as swimmers are not allowed to drive themselves. Plan to meet at the Los Paseos Pool at 4:30 pm. See the Beach Trip page of the website for more information, including a map to Twin Lakes State Beach and a list of things to bring.
RAFT TRIP (7/5)
The river is running! Parents and penguins are invited to join in the annual team rafting trip on Saturday, July 5. Forms and payment are due by Saturday, June 28 in the “RAFT TRIP” file folder. For more information, see the Raft Trip page of the website.
CHAMPS MEALS AND CHAMPS ADS
It’s hard to believe, but Champs is only 5 weeks away, which means it’s time to get your orders in for meals and program ads.
Champs is a long, all-day meet that usually lasts until at least 4:00 pm, so you will definitely need to plan on feeding your family. There is a full snack bar, but only a limited number of meals are prepared. Place a pre-order to be sure you don’t miss out! You can order breakfast and lunch items from the BBQ snack bar or from Panera; download and print the Champs Meal Order Forms to see all your choices. Make checks payable to “LPAC” and turn in forms and payment to the “CHAMPS MEALS” file folder no later than Saturday, June 28 (at the Montevideo meet). Proceeds benefit the Valley Cabana Swim League to help offset the cost of Champs.
A great way to show support for your swimmers (and help raise some extra funds for the team) is to place an ad in the Champs program. Please see the attached Champs Ad Form, which is also due by Saturday, June 28. You can either design your own ad, or Kris Fuss can help create one for you.
COLLECT SWIM-A-THON PLEDGES!
Don’t forget…the Swim-a-Thon is coming up next Tuesday (6/24). Be sure to collect pledges from friends and family. See theSwim-a-Thon page on the website for more information.
OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS IN SANTA CLARA
You can see Michael Phelps, Missy Franklin, and other top swimming stars competing this week at the USA Swimming Arena Grand Prix meet, June 19-22 at the International Swim Center in Santa Clara. It’s an amazing chance to see Olympians in person! Find out more at usaswimming.org.
Jun 15, 2014
Just some quick reminders before tomorrow:
MEET CHECK-IN: 6:15 AM
Tomorrow’s meet is at home against the Belwood Dolphins. Remember, swimmers must check in with the coaches at 6:15 am. If your child is ill, please call Coach Scott at (408) 613-5126. Thank you to everyone for getting up early so we can get the meet started on time!
CHECK THE WEBSITE
Meet entries and volunteer assignments have been posted to the Belwood Meet page of the website; please check these ahead of time so you know when you’ll be swimming and working. Once we have the final meet score and results, those will also be posted.
MERCHANDISE SALE
We have some extra team merchandise as well as “vintage” LPAC items that will be available to purchase on Saturday. Be sure to get a team cap if you haven’t done so already!
DOUGHNUT BLITZ STARTS MONDAY!
The “Doughnut Blitz” attendance challenge will start on Monday (6/16), so we hope to see all of our penguins in the water Monday morning!
See you all in the morning…GO PENGUINS!
Jun 11, 2014
Way to go, penguins! For the first time in 11 years, LPAC has defeated the Almaden Gators. At yesterday’s meet, LPAC beat the reigning VCSL champions in both place points and improvement points, by a total score of 129.40 to 121.12. Complete meet results have been posted to the website.
NEW TEAM RECORDS
Saturday’s meet got off to a fantastic start, with our 15-18 Medley Relay team (Mackenzie Keslin, Nico Fasan, Nicole Richards, and Connor Bleeg) pulling out an exciting win — and a new team record of 1:51.66, beating the old record by more than 2 seconds. (The old record was from 2009 with Rachel Sandberg, A.J. Urias, Julia Thompson, and Adam Jasper.)
Just a few events later, Nicole Richards got back in the water and broke the 15-18 girls’ 50 yard butterfly record (another record formerly held by Coach Julia) with a great swim of :29.54.And finally, Daniela Fasan broke her own 11-12 girls’ 50 yard breaststroke record from last year with a new time of :34.54.
Congratulations, everyone!
PRACTICE TIMES CHANGE
Morning practices start tomorrow (Monday, June 9). The practice times are as follows:
- 15-18: 6:45–7:45/8:15 am*
- 12-14: 7:45–8:45/9:15 am*
- 9-11: 8:45–9:30 am
- 8 & under: 9:30–10:15 am
Swimmers who are unable to attend morning practice because of school or work commitments may attend night practices, Monday through Thursday from 8:00-9:00 pm. Swimmers must have coaches’ prior permission to attend night practices.
*Swimmers ages 12 and up have 30 minutes of dryland exercises immediately following their regular practice times on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings. Please bring running shoes on those days.
THIS WEEK AT PRACTICE
Tomorrow will be “Fun Monday,” where we’ll work on a specific skill and then play some fun pool games to celebrate our hard-fought victory over the Gators. Coach Scott will also be bringing his top hat of treats for swimmers who have had perfect (or almost perfect) attendance for the last three weeks. In addition to our usual focus on stroke technique, we’ll be working all week with swimmers who need help with diving from the blocks.
WILL YOU BE HERE ON SATURDAY?
This Saturday, June 14, we will be swimming at home against the Belwood Dolphins. If your swimmer will miss any part of the meet, the coaches need to know NOW. If you have not already done so, please send email to coaches@swimlpac.org and also notify volunteer coordinator Wendy Marley: marleywl@yahoo.com. We had great attendance for our meet against Almaden and hope we will have all our penguins on hand to defeat the Dolphins!
LOOKING FOR MORE INDIVIDUAL STROKE INSTRUCTION?
Though our LPAC coaches focus on stroke technique every day at practice, there’s only so much they can do with 30-40 kids in the pool at one time. Individual or small-group swim lessons can be a great way to improve your strokes even more. See the Swim Lessons page of the team website for suggestions and contact information.
SWIM-A-THON IS COMING SOON
Our annual team swim-a-thon fundraiser will be held on Tuesday, June 24. Go to the Swim-a-Thon page of the website to download and print the Pledge Form now so you can start collecting pledges from your family, friends, and neighbors. It’s a fun way to help raise funds for the team while challenging yourself and getting a great workout. And you can win cool prizes too!
RAFT TRIP: RESERVE YOUR HOTEL ROOM NOW
The annual team raft trip will be on Saturday, July 5. For more details, check the Raft Trip page of the website. If you plan to stay over either Friday or Saturday night, you should make hotel reservations now. Completed forms and payment are due no later than June 28.
SPEAKING OF BOATS…
Not sure what to do with all your free time now that school’s out? Maybe start working on your cardboard boat for the Penguin Regatta on Saturday, July 12! Check the Cardboard Boat Races page of the website for official rules and more information.
