Enhancements to the Senior Practice Groups

I wanted to inform you of some changes that will be happening with our Senior practice group as we start up the Spring/Summer season. 

The Senior group will be split into two groups – Senior National and Senior.  Since we feel it is important for our older swimmers to have their peer group together as much as possible, both groups will practice at the same time, same pool and will have the same “talk time” – there will be a separate lead coach for each group.  The main difference between the groups will be mandatory practice and a requirement of achieving a state qualifying time (or be very close) to be in the Senior National group.  The Senior group will function essentially the same as in the past.  Group descriptions will be updated, with Senior National requirements, prior to Spring/Summer registration.   There will also be an additional 10% increase for the Senior National group, over the base cost of the Senior group.

During the registration process you will have the option to select between the two groups.  If you have any questions regarding what group might be the best option for your swimmer, please feel free to contact me.   I will be reviewing the registration list prior to closing registration and will have to approve all swimmers who register for Senior National.  If I have any questions about the group someone has selected, I will contact the individual swimmer.

This change formalizes what has been the normal operation for the Senior group as the numbers have increased over the years.  The Senior group has been consistently split into different work out groups and coached by different coaches.  This change allows us to be more consistent with coaching for all the swimmers in the pool as we will “hire” Jamie Schnurer as the lead coach for the Senior group.  Coach Jamie has been us for the past 5 ½ years and I am very excited for her to play a larger role with our team and especially the Senior level swimmers.  She brings a wealth of knowledge with her as she grew up as a age group swimmer at the Fox Cities YMCA (I was fortunate enough to coach her during her last year of age group swimming), swam at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania prior to transferring to UW  Madison to finish her degree in Dietetics.  Jamie has been the head coach and assistant coach for Appleton North High School girls team for the past 7 years.

Our goal is create an environment that provides consistent support for all of our swimmers, meeting them at the level they are committed and also provide them the best environment to reach their goals.  

I know that many of you may have a variety of questions regarding these changes, so the Board has tried to anticipate what a couple of those questions may be, please see the frequently asked questions below. 

As you review these changes, please free to give me a call at 920-915-0573.  

Go WAVE!

Curt Beutler – Head Coach/Senior National Coach

Q&A

• What lead up to making this overall change?

There are several things that lead us to make this change.   First our senior group has continued to grow year after year.   Several years ago it was possible for Curt to care for the 20 – 25 swimmers in this group.  At this size it was possible to provide consistent feedback and support, but as the group size now has doubled it essential that we need to break the group into two to make sure all swimmers receive the same level of attention and coaching.  Having separate lead coaches for each group allows for more thought and appropriate workouts for the swimmers.

• Are there any exceptions to the practice requirements in either group?

It is possible there could be a few exceptions, but all those situations will need to approved by either Curt or Jamie.   They will take into consideration the swimmers overall commitment to the practice group they are in and their overall goals as a swimmer.   The Senior National group will require 100% accountability.  If a swimmer is going to miss a practice, the absence must be pre-approved by Curt.

• Can swimmers move up or down between the practice groups?

If a swimmer has improved on their time(s) to make a state cut during the season the current work has them moving in the right direction and a change is not necessarily the best option.    Generally, it would not be our intention to have swimmers switch groups mid-season.    Curt and Jamie will be working together to give each swimmer the best experience possible.  If a swimmer is not meeting the commitment requirements of the Senior National group they will be asked to move to the Senior group.

• Why is there an additional 10% increase in cost for the Senior National Group?

This group will have higher level of customized workouts because at this stage the ability to continue to improve is in the details of what each individual needs.   To make this happen there is additional prep time required for workouts.   This group will also be attending more away meets throughout the state, mid-west and even nationally.   There is additional coaching and travel expense to support this level of competition.