Friday Reminders (7/11/14)

Dear Penguins and Parents:

Here are some important reminders before this busy weekend:

OAKTREE MEET ON SATURDAY

Swimmers need to check in with the coaches by 7:30 am at Oatkree. Please check the Oaktree meet page on the website for a map and special notes about where to park and set up your EZ-Ups. Volunteer assignments and meet entries have also been posted to the website.

Last year Oaktree beat LPAC by less than one point, so we’re hoping this year we can show them our PENGUIN POWER and end the season with a victory over the Sharks!

OVERNIGHTER

The Overnighter starts at 6:00 pm on Saturday; please do not arrive any earlier to start setting up, even if you are an Association member. If you have not already turned in your form, it’s not too late; just bring your form and $15 to the Oaktree meet.

This year, all cardboard boats should be staged in the tennis court area. We will have ballots available for you to vote for your favorite boat designs before the races begin. Parents are encouraged to stay and watch the races. We ask that you please take your boats (or whatever is left of them) home afterwards. We don’t have enough space in the dumpster for all the soggy wreckage!

Pick-up time is 8:00 am on Sunday morning. Parents, when you check in at Oaktree, please sign up to help serve breakfast and/or clean up on Sunday morning so the exhausted board members and their spouses can go home and get some sleep!

TURN IN YOUR BANQUET FORMS

Our team awards banquet will be on Sunday, July 20 at 4:30 pm. Dinner will be catered by Buca di Beppo. Dinner is free for all swimmers, but we do need you to fill out a form to reserve your meal(s). Additional meals are available at $8 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under. Visit the Banquet page of the website to download the order form and get more details. Please turn in your order forms no later than next Wednesday, July 16.

NO OTHER TEAM CAPS

Please note that swimmers are not allowed to wear year-round or high school team caps during LPAC swim meets. They can be DQd for this infraction, so please remember to bring your LPAC or other plain cap to all meets, including Champs!

SWIM-A-THON PLEDGES ARE DUE!

All Swim-a-Thon pledges must be turned in by tomorrow (7/12) to be eligible for prizes. All donations are tax-deductible. We appreciate your support of LPAC!

SPIRIT WEEK

Next week is the last week of practices, which we call LPAC Spirit Week. For extra fun, we have dress-up themes each day and special snacks too. Monday will be “Good Morning Monday” — just roll out of bed and come to practice in your PJs. There will be special prizes for best bed-head!

We’ll have more details about the rest of the week coming soon…

GO PENGUINS!!

Weekly Update (7/7/14)

Hope you all enjoyed the three-day weekend. We’ve only got two weeks left in the swim season now, and those two weeks are going to be action-packed!

THIS WEEK AT PRACTICE

With just 9 practices left in the season, coaches are continuing to focus on the details that lead to improved times.  This includes a heavy emphasis on “wall work” — turns, breaststroke pulldowns, backstroke starts, and dives. Swimmers will also be doing some final conditioning before we begin tapering for Champs.  Every practice is a learning opportunity, so swimmers should try to attend every workout possible.

SATURDAY’S MEET: @ OAKTREE

Our final dual meet of the season is this Saturday, July 12 at Oaktree Cabana Club. If your child has to miss any part of this meet, please let the coaches know today by sending an email to coaches@swimlpac.org. Swimmers need to check in with the coaches by 7:30am. For more information, see the Oaktree meet page on the website.

ARE YOU SWIMMING AT CHAMPS?

The VCSL Championship meet (“Champs”) will be on Saturday, July 19, and will likely run all day until around 4:00pm. The coaches have to do entries for Champs this week, so please send email to coaches@swimlpac.org today if your swimmer will miss any part of the meet. We also need all families to sign up for one or more volunteer shifts at Champs; if you haven’t done so already, please sign up this Saturday at Oaktree.

OVERNIGHTER THIS SATURDAY – GET YOUR FORMS IN NOW!

The annual Overnighter is this Saturday, July 12, starting at 6:00 pm. If you haven’t already done so, please turn in your form and payment by Tuesday (that’s tomorrow!) to the Overnighter folder. Forms and additional information are available on the Overnighter page of the website. Time to start building those cardboard boats too!

GOLFLAND TRIP FOR 8 & UNDERS

This Friday (July 11), all swimmers 8 & under and their parents are invited to a fun team outing to Golfland on Blossom Hill Rd. We will plan to meet in the pool parking lot and drive over after practice is done at 10:15am. The cost is just $9 for 3 hours of unlimited water slides and golf. If you have any questions, contact Judy Seps (408-506-3532 or judyseps@yahoo.com).

GIFTS FOR COACHES

[A note from Judy Seps] The season is flying by, and we want our coaches to know how much we appreciate all their hard work!! I will be collecting money for their season end gift starting on Monday, June 30th. I will have cards for you to sign. Please come approach me during swim practices or at the Oaktree swim meet. Or any other time you see me. 🙂 There is no set amount for how much to contribute. There are five coaches, and I will distribute what we collect amongst the five. We have AWESOME coaches (undefeated in the coaches relay!), and we want them to feel the love!!!

 

UPCOMING EVENTS

Weekly update (6/30/14)

Our LPAC swimmers did a great job on Saturday, and the meet was very close. We were down by several points halfway through the meet and mounted a strong comeback in the freestyle events, but fell just a little short. Montevideo ended up winning the meet by a score of 114.65 to 113.03. Let’s see if we can catch them at Champs!

Meet results have been posted to the Montevideo meet page of the website.

WATCH FOR FALLING RECORDS!

On Saturday our LPAC team records were falling right and left. Here’s a quick summary: Nicole Richards improved her 15-18 Girls 50 Butterfly record again (:28.70) and then beat her own record from 2012 in 100 freestyle with a time of :56.66. Mackenzie Keslin also improved on two of her own records, the 15-18 Girls 50 Backstroke (:29.19) and 100 I.M. (1:04.12). Daniela Fasan lowered her own 11-12 Girls 50 breaststroke record by more than a second (:33.40) and then broke Lexie Barber’s 50 freestyle record from 2013 with a new time of :27.40. And Leah Thompson broke her big sister Julia’s 2007 record in the 13-14 Girls 50 Butterfly with a time of :29.04. Great swimming, girls!

THIS WEEK AT PRACTICE

Congratulations to all 73 swimmers who earned themselves a donut today in the two-week Donut Blitz! The coaches want to encourage all swimmers to keep coming to practice every day. It’s the best way to get stronger and faster, and it’s lots of fun too. Only three weeks left in the swim season now!

Be sure to check the Coaches tab of the website for some new stroke technique tips for breaststroke (Coach Ryan’s favorite!). This week the focus will be on conditioning, and the coaches will continue to work with small groups of swimmers on specific stroke issues as well as starts and turns.

ICE CREAM SOCIAL ON TUESDAY

Don’t forget to come out to the pool for the Ice Cream Social and Pool Party this Tuesday, July 1, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm. The cost is $1 for Association members and $2 for non-members. We still need some parent volunteers to come and help scoop!

NO PRACTICE ON FRIDAY

Enjoy the 4th of July holiday!

OVERNIGHTER: TURN IN FORMS NOW

The annual Overnighter is one of LPAC’s most treasured traditions and a highlight of the swim team season. LPAC swimmers get to camp out in tents on the grass next to the Los Paseos pool and stay up late swimming, dancing, playing dodge ball, and just having fun with their friends. LPAC Board members and their spouses stay the night to be sure children are supervised at all times. The Penguin Regatta Cardboard Boat Races also take place during the Overnighter.

The Overnighter will be on Saturday, July 12 at 6:00 pm. Please see the Overnighter page of the website to download forms and find additional information. The cost is $15 per swimmer. Please turn in forms and payment no later than Tuesday, July 8. Note that children must be 7 or older to spend the night. Swimmers age 6 and under are welcome to attend but must be picked up by 10:00 pm Saturday night.

GIFTS FOR COACHES

[A note from Judy Seps] The season is flying by, and we want our coaches to know how much we appreciate all their hard work!!  I will be collecting money for their season end gift starting on Monday, June 30th.  I will have cards for you to sign.  Please come approach me during swim practices or at the Oaktree swim meet.  Or any other time you see me.  🙂  There is no set amount for how much to contribute.  There are five coaches, and I will distribute what we collect amongst the five. We have AWESOME  coaches (undefeated in the coaches relay!), and we want them to feel the love!!!

SAVE THE DATE: BANQUET ON JULY 20

The team awards banquet will be on Sunday, July 20, starting at 4:30 pm. We’ll have more details and signup forms coming soon.

Friday update (6/27/14)

Happy Friday!

Some quick reminders before tomorrow’s meet:

CHECK-IN TIME: 7:30 AM

Check-in time is 7:30 at Gunderson High School, 622 Gaundabert Lane. If your child is ill, please call or text Coach Scott: 408-613-5126. See the Montevideo page of the website for meet entries and a map. Last year LPAC barely defeated Montevideo by less than two points, so we’ll need all Penguins swimming their fastest tomorrow to beat the Piranhas!

WHY WARM UP?

Every swimmer needs to warm up with the team in the morning. The coaches understand that it’s hard (after all, they were all LPAC penguins themselves and remember what it’s like!), and it may seem illogical to “warm up” when it’s cold in the morning and you might not be racing for another hour or two. Warming up in swimming is different than in other sports, but it is still an important part of getting ready to swim fast. First of all, it helps to wake your body up and get it used to the water. It’s also critical to get in a practice dive or two, especially on unfamiliar blocks like at Gunderson. And, most important, it’s just part of being on the team. We all warm up, all the time, at every meet. Parents, please support the coaches and be sure your swimmers get in and warm up with the rest of the team. Thank you!

NINE LANES!

We’ll be swimming nine lanes at tomorrow’s meet, which means things should move along much faster than we’re used to. There will be fewer heats of each event, so be sure to pay close attention to the announcements and get to Clerk of the Course on time. We don’t want any penguins to miss their races!

VOLUNTEERS STILL NEEDED

Because we have so many lanes, we still need a few more parents to volunteer as timers and recorders for second shift. An updated Volunteer list has been posted to the Montevideo meet page of the website. If you can help out, please contact Julie Waldron (jnewcomb65@yahoo.com) or (408) 578-2574.

SWIMMING BACKSTROKE TOMORROW?

If you are swimming backstroke tomorrow, be sure to check out the new Backstroke technique tips that Coach Scott has posted in the “Coaches” tab of the website. (Butterfly was posted last week.) Try to apply these tips when you swim your race and see if you can improve your time! Parents, you might also like to read these, so you can better understand the official rules as well as the drills that the kids are doing in practice.

GET THOSE FORMS IN!

Tomorrow is the last chance to get in forms and payment for the Raft Trip, Champs meals, and Champs program ads. Remember that proceeds from Champs meals benefit the league and help offset the cost of hosting the meet. And all proceeds from the Champs ads go directly to LPAC. It’s a great way to show your penguin pride and help support the team at the same time!

FUN EVENT UPDATES

The Ice Cream Social and Pool Party on Tuesday (July 1) will be from 3:00-5:00pm. Swimmers of all ages are invited to attend; the cost is $1 for Association members and $2 for non-members.

And Judy Seps negotiated a group rate deal at Golfland for the 8 & under trip on Friday, July 11. The cost will be $9 each (both kids and adults) for 3 hours of unlimited water slides and golf.

 

See you all tomorrow morning…GO PENGUINS!

 

 

 

 

 

LPAC: Wednesday update (6/25/14)

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.

 

LPAC: Weekly Update (6/23/14)

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.

Friday Reminders (6/20/14)

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!

LPAC Weekly Update (6/16/14)

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.

Friday reminders (6/13/14)

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!

LPAC Weekly Update (6/8/14)

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.

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