Meet of Champs July 23rd, 2011 at UALR

Are you ready for the last swim meet of the year? The Meet of Champ(ions) for the Central Arkansas Swimming Leagues was held on Saturday the 23rd of July at the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. All four of our children that were on the swim team qualified for the meet, but we didn't know that Spencer had qualified, so we didn't have him participate. [In our defense, as kids drop out of participating in the meet of champs, they adjust the numbers and keep a certain number of lanes filled by adding more children into the available lanes. Spencer got moved in way late in the week, and we never realized it, so we didn't bring him to the meet. Oh well. He was the very last one to qualify in his age group for backstroke and had the slowest qulifying time.] Kammie and Zack swam in the morning and Jordan swam in the afternoon. It made for a long day. (Kate had to work in the afternoon, so she had to ride her bike up to the community center pool.)

Zack got bumped from the relay team, because a kid got a faster time than him by less than a second the week before. We told him that, so he'd be aware that he wouldn't be participating in that event. Mom was bummed about that, and Zack was too. There was a chance that if he swam well at the meet of champs that things could change. Well, after that he was trying too hard and it affected his swim. Coach Sarper asked Kathie on the Friday morning practice if Zack knew that he wasn't on relay. She said yes. Coach Sarper said he could see a difference in Zack's stroke and it wasn't for the better. We tried talking to him, but I guess all we did was cause more stress. On the way to the meet in the morning, Kammie said: "It should be called the Meet of Cold." Because the water is cold and with the air conditioning in doors, the swimmers are cold when they are wet. Zack said: "It should be called the Meet of Stop Encouraging Me." I guess he was sick of all the pep talks and encouragment he had recieved. In the end he had a rough meet of champs. He went from being a gold swimmer time wise to getting bronze times. His freestyle stroke was crazy with him twisting in the water.

Morning session of the Meet of Champs

Zack getting ready to start...
Kammie on her mark for freestyle...
Kam freestyle...
Zack on his mark for backstroke...
Zack backstroke start...
Zack backstroke finish...
Kam backstroke...

Zack on his mark...
Kam on her mark...
Kam (butterfly?)...
Zack IM start...
Zack IM butterfly...
Zack IM backstroke...
Zack IM freestyle...
Kam IM...
Kam IM back...
Kam IM breast...
Kam IM free...
Kam waiting for relay...
Kam fuzzzy relay...

Jordan's afternoon session of the Meet of Champs

Jordan on her mark for her breaststroke start...
J breaststroke...


J IM on her mark...
J IM back...

J IM breast...


Results

Zack
25 freestyle 22.97 Bronze time
25 backstroke 27.66 Bronze time
25 butterfly 28.42 Silver time (his best time all year)
100 IM 2:02.70 Silver time
{In the end the kid that bumped Zack off the relay team got bumped by another kid that swam faster that morning. One kid when he saw me (Kathie) was kind and said: "I wish your son was swimming on our relay team today." That was nice that he noticed that Zack was usually participating with them. It made me feel good anyway. And their relay team took second place.}

Kammie
50 freestyle 37.14 Gold time (this was her best time all year)
50 backstroke 50.11 Silver time
50 butterfly 48.42 Silver time 4th place (just out of medals contention)
100 IM 1:48.90 Silver time
100 Freestyle Team Relay 1:07.17 - they took 2nd place

Jordan
50 breaststroke 48.36 Silver Time (her best time all year)
100 IM 1:39.37 Bronze time

Swimming is great exercise and we enjoyed watching the kids improve their skills.