The first week of practice ended on Saturday and the second week officially began this morning.  Last week was great.  I received numerous death threats from the team, at least 2 dozen "I hate you" messages, and even a hug.  The team has been getting ripped up on the gymnastics rings we are using in the weight room, and I can already see some people starting to put on some muscle.  Our leg circuit has people walking very gingerly around campus, and even thinking about using the elevator (but Wabash swimmers don't use elevators, they are athletes in peak physical condition).  We've come quite a ways in only a week as we've been working aerobically and getting to master some new stroke techniques for the upcoming season.  Our core workouts have been intense and mustered much yelling (but the team doesn't realize that yelling really won't help bring that 6 pack out).  And then we had the alumni meet on Saturday.  We had a strong turnout and we were lucky enough to have Gail Pebworth officiate the event.  We had alumni come back from as recently as last year's class to as far back as 1977 (the year Star Wars came out!)  Coming off a 2 hour practice, and then a wonderful breakfast of donuts, bagels, and even Cinnamon Toast Crunch, I was impressed with a number of swims.  Craig Vetor had a great 100 free, breaking the 50. barrier.  Evan Rhinesmith also threw out solid times in the 50 breast and the 100 IM.  We had some iron men participate in every event at the meet, and had a good number of flyers post solid times in the 50 fly as well.  And seeing the alumni put on Blue70s was a treat and it's great someone can still use them!  Getting to put some names to faces with the alumni and meeting new people is always special and I hope I get to meet more alumni over the course of the year.  There is so much promise and excitement in the air here at Wabash, and I'll do my best to nurture and fuel that desire for something greater.

Posted by Steven Barnes at 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The first few weeks at Wabash have been full of fun, but also hard work.  Swimming isn't in full swing yet but it will be soon and I'm extremely excited.  Balancing swimming and school is going to be tough work, but i know i can use all the upperclassmen on the team as resources.  They've all been in my position and they're bound to have excellent advice.  It's comforting knowing I'll have a support team there for me throughout college.  The guys on the team are loads of fun and i know the season will be full of fun and success.  From what I've heard from Coach Barnes we're going to be in the best shapes of our lives by Christmas break!

-  -Alex Beck '13

Posted by Steven Barnes at 08:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, as of 2 days ago everyone was back in the water as a group.  No, we didn't start practice yet, but swim lessons are here.  Remember those days?  You got to spend 30 minutes with a swimmer that was a collegiate athlete who was going to teach you all the secrets of the sport and help jump start your path towards Olympic stardom.  Standing on deck, it's exciting to see kids with huge smiles are their faces, arms and legs flailing as they anticipate jumping in the water.  You know that in their minds they're thinking, "OK, if I do well today, I can get at least 5 jumps off the board and 3 rope swings.  And then I'll make sure to grab myself a cookie before they're all gone" 

Yesterday, one of our younger beginning swimmers took the plunge off the 3M board.  That's awesome!  With the season only 11 days away, I hope the team is filled with the same anticipation and excitement to jump in the water on September 21st as all the younger swimmers were on Tuesday when lessons started.  So why I won't promise the guys time on the board (except for the divers), or swinging from the rope (unless it's part of a power circuit), and will promise them that if they work hard and give their best effort, that they can have a cookie if there are any left over once lessons conclude.

Posted by Steven Barnes at 01:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tomorrow, I will be sitting down with my visit campus visitor that is interested in swimming at Wabash.  The funny part is that is was only a little more than a month ago that I was in this young man's shoes.  In late July, I stepped onto campus to see if Wabash was place that I wanted to be to continue my career. From Dean Raters, our Athletic Director Tom Bambrey, our Admissions Director Steve Klein, the great coaching staff that resides above this gracious pool office, and Evan Rhinesmith, Hugh Vandivier, Craig Vetor, Pete Hewitt, Elijah Sanders, and Joe Reese as representatives of the team, everyone beamed with pride for Wabash.  Meeting with my faculty mentor, team members, and other individuals on campus, I have come to learn that the people are what makes Wabash special.  The whole campus community jumped to make me feel welcome and comfortable.  I've now been in Crawfordsville 3 weeks, and I still am getting an enormous outpouring of support from the community.  From Gail Pebworth's tutelage and vast network of swimming friends, to alumni calling and emailing about their excitement, the guys on the team always stopping in the office to hang out, everyone inviting me out to eat (gotta love free food!), the community has been nothing short of outstanding.  So how can a high school senior that is looking to find a community to foster an atmosphere of continual improvement as a person, student, and swimmer not fall in love with Wabash?  Wabash sells itself and welcomes everyone with open arms, and I've experienced the warm embrace first hand.  I'm looking forward to this year, this month, this day, tomorrow, to continue to unravel all that is great about this school and give as many other people the chance to be part of this great school as well.

-Steve Barnes

Posted by Steven Barnes at 09:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)