Coaches and Directors

Cuda Coaches

Coaching Staff
George Heidinger Head Coach
Shelly Drozda Head Age Group Coach, Gray Coach

Shelly grew up swimming for the Front Range Barracudas in Thornton, CO ever since 2006. She was a dual athlete in high school, competing both in track and swimming at the state level. She is excited to be back on the team she grew up swimming and competing for! During her time with Cuda’s, she was a National Top 10 ranked swimmer, National Select Camp attendee, 6 time high school All-American, and a 2016 Olympic Trials qualifier. In college, she competed at Indiana University for two years where she was a Big10 Distinguished Scholar; gaining Academic All-American Honorable Mention status. After Indiana, she completed her swimming career at Florida State University earning The Golden Torch Award and the 1A FAR Academic Excellence Award for her studies in Sport Management. During her time at Florida State, she accumulated several all-time top 10 times for the program before finishing her college career in 2019. 

 

Shelly is excited to help grow the Cuda community by providing foundational training for age group swimmers and by bringing an upbeat attitude every day at practice! Her experience working summer swim camps, coaching for Mountain Range and Thornton Master’s- along with her swimming career- has given her a diverse background working with swimmers of all ages & abilities. She is ecstatic to give back to the team that helped shape her as an athlete and into the person she is today!  

Nick Foster Lead Site Coach BCC Silver/White Coach
Nick has been swimming since the age 7. Growing up in Leawood Kansas, Nick was a member of the Rockhurst High School Aquahawks and Kansas City Blazers. In his high school years,   he helped bring home 4 high school state championships, qualify for Jr. Nationals, and become a Sectional Champ. Nick went on to swim at Xavier University where he continued to find success in and out of the pool, becoming a school record holder, conference champion, conference MVP, and the Xavier University Male Scholar Athlete of the year in 2016. Nick Graduated with a degree in Economics but couldn't stay away from the pool. He is excited to be a part of the Front Range Barracudas and coach the next generation of swimmers.
 
Chad White Red Group Coach

Chad has coached for close to two decades - he is an incredible addition to our team!. During his first tenure Chad coached everything from Developmental group up to Seniors, including being interim Head Coach. Chad has coached kids of all ages and abilities, including adults, and athletes for triathlons. The team went from 25 swimmers to over 200 in a few short years. Coach Chad has had swimmers go on to swim at some of the highest levels, including Olympic Trials, and All Americans.

Chad swam on the Broomfield Barracudas as a age group swimmer. Through his leadership, the kids not only learn correct stroke technique, but also develop a lasting love for the sport. Chad places great emphasis on the development of proper swim technique.

Married since 2003, living in Broomfield, he enjoys spending time with his two boys and wife camping and RC racing.

Perri Otto Developmental, Adv Dev and Maroon Coach

Perri is excited to be coaching with the CUDAS since 2018!  A Colorado native, Perri began her swimming career with the Westminster Flippers at the age of four and continued her swimming career as a member of the Legacy High School girls varsity swim team. In conjunction with her time spent in the pool, Perri began her coaching career at the age of 15 as an assistant coach with the Westminster Flippers and went on to serve as head coach for five years. She holds bachelor degrees in Speech Communication and Political Science and her Masters in Public Administration. In addition to coaching, Perri is a middle school history teacher and in her spare time she likes to paddleboard, travel, and spend time with her rescue dogs! Coach Perri is a firm believer that the coach-swimmer relationship is an equal partnership. She encourages her swimmers to swim every stroke, set and meet with purpose and to work with her to achieve the best versions of themselves, on and off the deck.

Clint Dierking Gold Coach
Clint has been coaching for over 10 years, this is his second stint with the team. He coached for the Cudas from 2012-2018 working as an assistant to all of the VMAC Coaches. He also swam with the Cudas, back when they were the Broomfield Barracudas from 2007-2011. After he graduated he attended Adams State University to swim on scholarship. He decided to move back home and started coaching for Cudas soon after. He also lived in Arizona, and spent 5 years as the Head Coach of Life Time Tempe. He worked with athletes of all levels, from learning to swim, to Futures qualifiers. He also helped grow the team from 50 swimmers when he started to nearly 90 when he moved back to Colorado. He is excited to be back with the Cudas, and to continue to help grow and develop the team. Away from the pool, Clint enjoys spending time with his wife Katie, and their daughter Emma.
Austin Fowler Black Coach
Alex Henderson Assistant Coach

Alex grew up swimming for Vortex Swim Club in Fort Collins, CO. After four years swimming for Whitworth University up in Washington he is happy to be back home and surrounded by the swimming community he spent so much time in. Breaststroke and Distance were his main events, consistently placing top three in the Pacific Northwest Conference throughout College in the 200 Breast. Alex loved investing in his team as a swimmer and looks forward to giving the same commitment as a coach.

Swimming has been a very formative part of his life and his main goal at Cuda is to foster the same love for swimming while helping the swimmers to reach their goals. He believes all sports teams should focus on making great people, not just great athletes.

Marie Chamberlain Assistant Coach

Marie spent her childhood in both Colorado and on Cape Cod, where she fell in love with competitive swimming. In high school, Marie was a 4-time State Champion and Boston All-Scholastic Athlete. Her hard work and dedication to both swimming and academics brought her to the collegiate level, where she competed on the varsity level for Indiana University from 2014-2018. While in college, Marie swam herself to both Big Ten and All-American honors, in addition to making the Dean's list for her studies in psychology and business. In 2016 Marie competed at the swimming Olympic Trials. After graduation, Marie moved to Summit County where she worked as a ski and snowboard instructor, swim instructor, coordinator of the Dillon Marina sailing school, Academic Advisor for the Summit Youth Hockey Prep Academy, and completed her Master's in Business. Marie currently lives in Broomfield and continues to compete in swimming and triathlon today, she also hopes to complete her PhD in sports psychology in the near future. 

Kaylie Bradley Dryland, Nutrition, Sports Psychology

Kaylie is a Colorado native who grew up swimming, playing volleyball, and running track. She went on to play collegiate and then professional volleyball with a brief stint as a collegiate swimmer. Kaylie swam butterfly in the 200 and 400 Medley relay, as well as a 200 fly individually. Aside from her goldendoodle, Gretzky, Kaylie’s favorite thing in life is to help athletes meet their potential. A degree in biology and psychology coupled with several other certifications including ones from NASM and USASC has helped Kaylie take an extensive list of athletes to the next level. Kaylie’s swimming background, ability to help athletes understand “the why”, and overall passion for the sport will without doubt help the Front Range Barracudas reach new heights!