Tara Classic (Last Chance Meet) @ Steve Lundquist Aquatic Center, July 5-7
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Bailey
50 Fly – Seed Time 38.31 : Cut Time 37.39 – Bailey started out this race looking better than she has all summer. She was low and strong, opening up a half a body length lead on the girl to her inside lane (so a faster seed time). He was cruising along until about a third of the pool left when her breathing was starting to occur too frequently. In fact, in my filming, you can hear me saying…stop breathing so much as I knew this was going to be close. The Bailey gets to the flags and breathes, then breathes again, but she was close to the wall, and I figured she’d finish strong – but NO…she takes a third breath as she’s reaching for the wall – finishing with her head still up, as she didn’t even have time to get it back in the water before she touched the wall. I thought that little trick had killed her chances…Her time
200 Backstroke – DECK ENTERED – Seed Time 3:13.83 : Cut Time 3:09.59 - Started out with a very strong kick in this one, and she and one other girl really opened a lead on the field. They pulled away, and it was pretty obvious early, that unless she got into the ropes or tightened up she was well under the cut pace. She faded at the end, and she admitted her legs were burning bad, but she posted a
3:01.64…and her fourth cut…
100 Freestyle – Seed Time 1:16.14 – Little to swim for, emotionally exhausted, and tired and hungry as this was the last event of the session, Bailey swam an uninspired
1:17.87
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Bear
200 Free – Seed Time 2:46.97 : Cut Time 2:44.29 – It was pretty obvious right from the start Bear wasn’t going to get this one. He fell way off the pace quickly. Initially, I thought he might be saving himself to have a strong kick, but he informed me that he just couldn’t get comfortable with his stroke. He couldn’t get his body into the good power position and because of that he never really got going. He ended up with a mediocre
2:53.70
200 Back – DECK ENTERED - Seed Time NT : Cut Time 3:19.29 – From the start Bear’s backstroke was UGLY. He’s really working to change his arm rotation to match the coaches’ instructions, because he’s had some shoulder tenderness and he wants to make sure he doesn’t injure himself. But he was so deliberate and so over exaggerated with keeping his are up straight, that he overreached across his head on every stroke, He also pulled very badly to his left and was swimming most of the race hugging a lane line. All that said, I could tell from watching the other kids and knowing their times in this event, that Bear still had a shot at the cut. Then coming down the last 15 to 20 meters, Bear seemed to relax some (probably due to fatigue) and he began to glide better and get a better grab, which sped him up considerably. He finished with a time of
3:14.17. So a third cut for Bear…
100 Free – Seed Time 1:19.76 – I knew Bear wasn’t going to get this cut, but after his 200 free I was afraid he might do poorly here. Initially, he looked very similar to his 200 free, but this time he did find his body position, with about 35 percent of the race left to go, and he closed quickly on the kids in his neighboring lanes. He finished with a personal best time of
1:18.65