Trails Invitational & 60th Anniversary

The Trails Swim Team hosted its 26th annual Invitational swim meet at Lions Armstrong Memorial Pool in Algonquin on Saturday, June 17, 2023. The 10-hour event featured swimmers aged 5 to 18 from area teams, as well as an exhibition coaches relay, a highlight of the day. The Trails coaches pulled out a big W for the first time in many years!

Team scores included Trails with 489 points. First place went to Geneva River Rats 673, followed by Cary Barracudas 328, Elgin Cyclones 271, Huntley Stingrays 137, Dundee Dolphins 89, Lifetime IL 58 and Dolphin Swim Club 13.

The team is halfway through its 60th anniversary season with three home duals remaining, including an alumni night at the meet against Rockford YMCA Rays on July 11. All past swimmers, coaches or parents of swimmers are welcome! The Trails Swim Team is a community that has brought together so many people, and we hope to see many come out to cheer on the team for the meet as well as the coaches relay and alumni relay at the end. The meet will take place at Lions Armstrong Memorial pool on Longmeadow Dr in Algonquin, starting at 5:45pm. There is no entry fee and we will have concessions available as well.

The season will culminate with the Conference Championships on July 16 at Kishwaukee YMCA in Sycamore. Trails will compete against other NCISC teams: Cary, DeKalb, Geneva, Huntley, Lifetime IL, McGuire, Oswego, Rock River Valley and Woodstock. “Our swimmers have worked hard, rose to the occasion and performed extremely well at duals this year,” said Head Coach Ryne Quinlan, who swam on the team for 12 consecutive summers starting in 2000.  “I am extremely proud of their effort and drive, and I am so excited to see them perform at Dekalb again at the conference meet.” The rest of the coaching staff includes Fiona Lukes and Avery Mason, also former Trails swimmers, as well as Gabriel Niemi, who currently competes with the 13&ups.

Trails is officially the Trails Swim and Tennis Club Inc., and began as a country club in Cary on Cary Algonquin Rd in 1963. The swim team was incorporated in 1970. The Trails Swim Team is a tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization that provides a positive atmosphere for physical and emotional development for its members within a competitive swim program.

Team sponsors this year are Advanced Dental and Implant Care, Andersen Team, European Sports, Lions Club, On Top Ice Cream Shoppe, Cut it Out Scrapbooking, Hoffman Orthodontics, Kosta's, Ron McKinney Photography, and Smile Doctors.