Storm Forecast for October 29th, 2025

The Changing Leaves

A bit of this is plagiarized from the Head Coach at Delta Aquatics (with her blessing of course), but it could not be more appropriate.

We’re in that wonderful fall time now of peak fall foliage.  But when you look closely, trees of the same species right beside each other might be in totally different stages.  Some haven’t begun to turn, some are giving the beautiful oranges and reds that we love, while others still started changing long before the others. 

The same can be said for swimmers.  Some swimmers are still working on diving instead of leaping.  Others picked it up immediately.  Some swimmers are working through the bugs in an illegal breaststroke kick while others are aiming for zone cuts.  Some are moving up to a new group next month while others are staying put to develop further.  All are growing, all are changing, and all are exactly where they need to be.

Just like the trees, each swimmer’s journey unfolds in its own season.  The leaves themselves don’t worry about when other trees change, they simply do it when it’s their time.  It’s a gentle reminder that comparison is the thief of joy.  The life skills learned through these journeys are far more important than where they are compared to the other 8, 12, or 15 year olds on the team.  Please don’t forget to take moments to reflect on your swimmer’s growth in all facets: maybe they’re finding confidence to try new events, or maybe they’re initiating conversations instead of waiting for a peer to approach them.  Or even, maybe a really challenging set happened and they did the whole thing.  There are wins everywhere along the road, but they can get missed when looking to see how others are doing by comparison.

Tracking Progress & Making Goals

This week I handed out event tracking cards to Tropical Storm swimmers.  I’ll be doing the same thing with Typhoon swimmers next week.  These cards are designed to make interesting ‘side quests’ during the game that is competitive swimming.  It allows swimmers to chase IMR and IMX scores, set reachable sequential goals, and to look big picture instead of being solely focused on state cuts or brownie (I’ll be baking this weekend).  If you’re a Tropical parent and you haven’t already, ask your swimmer to show you their card and have them explain to you what they’re supposed to do after each meet.  The more we can make it something they want to do on their own, the more the sport will belong to them and the more we can support them in their journey.

Storm Store

We have a high number of swimmers missing equipment, primarily in the form of paddles and/or tempo trainers.  Please make sure your swimmer has what they need.  If their tempo trainer is dead, batteries are just a couple dollars.  If they don’t have what they need, the Storm Store has just about everything you’d be looking for.

Storm-A-Thon & Silent Auction

This year's big fundraiser will be a Storm-A-Thon (think Swim-A-Thon but without pesky copyright infringement). On Friday, December 5th Storm swimmers will race against the clock to complete as many laps as possible. In the days leading up to the event, we need swimmers (and families) to pound the pavement and find sponsors. Sponsors can donate either a flat amount or an amount per length. Family, friends, distant relatives you see at Thanksgiving—get them all to help! We're targeting a goal of $100 per swimmer raised to meet the fundraising needs.

The other half of this event is a silent auction. Items, experiences, crafts, you name it—we're going to try and sell it! One year I was lucky enough to be the high bidder on an aerial tour of Madison. Be creative! As a finder's fee, 10% of the selling price of anything you bring to the auction will be credited to your family's account. Families have until November 24th to get their silent auction item tagged and given to Coach Lake.

Packets will be sent to swimmers on November 3rd. Those will include details on the process and the prizes, which range from small items all the way up to tech suits and parkas!

If you have any questions in the meantime, reach out to me.

Winter Move-Ups

Coaches discussed move-ups over the course of the last two weeks.  Any swimmers that have been moved to a new group because of age or ability—those swimmers or families have been notified.

Practice Changes & Schedule

If a day isn’t listed below, assume that the schedule is as expected without change.  When in doubt, you can always check the Google Calendar.  Each group is synced to their own calendar.

Meet Signup & Details

JJ’s Dryland Signup

Use promo code: SWIMFAST25

Sign up for the class here

Instructions on signing up here