Juniors Wrap-Up

It was an amazing week here in Palo Alto. Kyra finished 89th in the 100 backstroke, from 111th coming in. She also made her second Junior National cut here in a 50 Free time trial.

But the week was far more than that. She got to see, and swim with/against the best 18-u swimmers in the country. The meet has been extremely fast, with a number of meet records falling this week.

I'm extremely proud of how she handled herself this week- she kept calm, was very aware of her surroudings and handled herself with a lot of poise.

This is just a small step in a long journey for Kyra and Exeter Swim Team. Next summer, I'd like to come back with a girls relay. The next year, I'd like to bring some boys along as well. The goal should be to have 6-10 athletes here every year.

For me, the pace of the meet is the most amazing thing- there is little to no rushing around. The meet is well run, and with 2.5 hours to warm up in the morning, we are able to get ready and eat a good breakfast and come back to the pool and race. Here is a typical day here at Juniors-

6:00am- wake up
6:15am- drive to pool
6:30am- 1,200m warmup (most days, Kyra shared a lane with Kelsey and they had a whole LC lane to themselves)
7:00am- grab food from ATHLETE hospitality (bagels and fruit) and head back to hotel for breakfast and a nap
(9:00am)- prelims begin
9:30am- head back to pool
9:45am- get back in for another 800y of warmup in the warmup pool
10:15am- put racing suit on, start getting mentally ready for the race
10:30am- hop in for a quick minute to cool off in the suit
10:45am- RACE!
10:50am- warm down 800y, eating and hydrating during breaks.
11:15am- grab some more hospitality and head back to hotel
12:00pm- get another nap in if you make it back to finals or leave for a day trip to (San Francisco, Santa Cruz, etc.)

I still don't think I'm doing the pace justice- it's a great meet that I cannot wait to return to with more swimmers!

Greg