Bowdoin College Swimming & Diving

10 Things We Learned at 6:00 am Practice

2012-01-18T07:47:00.005-05:00

1. Raw spaghetti moves faster through the water than cooked spaghetti.
2. The pirates in Key Largo are retired.
3. Sometimes it's warmer in the water than out, even in Florida.
4. Swimming backstroke with clear goggles outside could be used as a torture method.
5. You can never have enough diet coke.
6. Brad is cosmopolitan.
7. Always DTF - down to Frosty 24/7
8. If you get enough sleep, you can wake up early and be a functional person.
9. Bowdoin swims on Dunkin.
10. The 'Cac calls earlier in Florida.

Hard Life

2012-01-17T22:38:00.003-05:00

Sunrise during practice in Key Largo... doesn't get much better.

Photo credit to Caitlin - Thanks!

Our new school banner has arrived....sweet

2011-12-15T12:50:00.001-05:00

Nice

The tricky part

Measure first

What's Sunny and Tropical and Tan all over?

2011-12-12T19:31:00.004-05:00

....Where we'll be in one month!

Key Largo Countdown commencing: T-30 days

Greatest Dining Service Ever and Good For You!?!

2011-12-01T09:43:00.001-05:00

We hear the rave reviews all the time. Training for a few hours has its benefits - you can eat almost anything you see in front of you and go back for seconds. It is good to know the swimmers here will take in the calories they crave but along the way those calories will be packed with nutrition. Link

Brunswick in the Boston Globe

2011-12-01T08:34:00.001-05:00

The Boston Globe has a great story about Brunswick. We know it is a wonderful town for Bowdoin students and Bowdoin is such a perfect school for a town like this. Link

"The downtown, full of grand old houses and specimen trees, sprawls between the old mills and Androscoggin River rapids to the ivy and tweed of Bowdoin College."

Turkey 500 - 2012

2011-11-28T16:05:00.001-05:00

The 11th Annual Turkey 500 was not as crowded as past years but the 14 competitors went at it strong. We score it like a cross country meet. Low score wins

Results
Better - 2nd & 5th = 7 pts
Endorfin - 1st & 3rd = 4 pts
Alpha - 7th & 8th - 15 pts
ROAR - 6th & 10th = 16 pts
Sloppy - 4th & 9th = 13 pts

Nationals!!!

2011-10-31T10:39:00.004-05:00

Your polo update as promised: On Saturday evening, the polar bears ousted Tufts in a thrilling 12-9 victory over the Jumbos, qualifying Bowdoin for the championship game on Sunday morning - the winner earns an automatic bid to the Division III Club Water Polo National Championship. Although the bears tragically fell to a talented Amherst team, the Jeffs elected not to attend the National tournament, ensuring Bowdoin's spot. The Tournament takes place this weekend (Nov 5-6) at Hamilton College in Clinton, NY. Follow your very own polo bears:
Nationals.

GO U BEARS!

Polo Bears

2011-10-29T14:04:00.007-05:00

2011 polo team

You would never know that water polo is only a club sport at Bowdoin given the sweat and blood our team has poured into the pool over the last two months. This weekend the polar bears are hosting the North Atlantic Conference Championships, attended by Colby, Bates, UVM, St. Michael's, Amherst, Tufts, UMass Amherst, and Coast Guard. The Polar Bears enter the tournament ranked first in the North division with a record of 8-0, led by team captains Noah Perwin '12 and Spencer Vespole '13. The team is made up of swimmers and non-swimmers alike. Watch out soon for more updates!

Seniors: Mac Routh, Nathan Mecray, Talhia Nunez, and Noah Perwin

Thanks for the photos, Mrs. Routh!

Pre-Season Swims - In the Ocean!

2011-10-08T06:36:00.001-05:00

Tamara, Christine, Sonia, Kelsey, Ryan, Catherine, Tricia & Bridget

Believe it or not the ocean is warm enough to swim in through September. On warm afternoons a bunch of swimmers will ride bikes, run (sometimes drive) a couple of miles to Simpson's point for an hour of swimming in the ocean. Here is the best case scenario...when the tide is out the sun warms up the mud, then when the tide comes in that warm mud keeps the water warm enough to do a mile or two without any wetsuits!

Who says we don't have engineering!

2011-10-04T22:09:00.001-05:00

Kelly Heyde's Brother

Keith Heyde only swam for three years in college. That is because he was only at Bowdoin for three years before he had to head down to Columbia where he is in his second year of graduate engineering work. Keith did a ton in his short time at Bowdoin and seems to be onto some bigger and better things. We are lucky that he still loves Bowdoin and comes up to see the campus, play polo and run the rivers on weekends. What else would bring him to Maine?

Shakespeare in the Pool?

2011-10-04T21:35:00.001-05:00

Last spring Zach Perez put on a play at the pool - the Azured Vault - scenes from five Shakespearean tragedies. His professor was dubious at first but after the performance was blown away that it came off so beautifully. Zach had to use swimmers who learned to act the parts and that made it difficult but much better than teaching some drama students to swim. Here are two trailers he put together. The full video will be posted to YouTube soon. For now enjoy...

Baby, why don't we go

2011-09-15T22:00:00.000-05:00

Where are we going on training trip???? Key Largo of course....January 11-18. Who's coming?!?

Summer in Maine

2011-08-23T13:17:00.005-05:00

Portland Head Light - Cape Elizabeth, ME

With summer on its very last legs and the incoming firstyears leaving tomorrow (!!!) for pre-orientation trips, I figured I would take any opportunity to deny that my senior year is less than two weeks away. And what better way than to reflect back on the glorious summer of 2011. I had the incredible opportunity to remain on campus working in our Admissions office, mainly conducting interviews with prospective students, but also learning the in's and outs of summer in Maine. Some highlights included blueberry and strawberry picking, hiking in Acadia National Park, and learning that a) there are sand beaches in Maine and b) you can get tan on them.

Acadia National Park - Is this real life??

Nathan Mecray '12 does the Maine workout

Reid State Park - where else do you see pine trees at the beach...

Polar Bears around the World!

2011-08-23T11:01:00.015-05:00

Wikipedia tells me that polar bears are native to the arctic circle (on that note, did you know that polar bears are also the world's largest land carnivore? Roar), but I've come across one that has been traveling across the globe this summer. Our very own Christine Rholl (class of 2014) chimed in about her own experiences abroad this summer (Ok and in fairness I've been off my game - this is from mid-July):

" I am getting ready for exams here in Spain. I have been studying abroad in Barcelona for the past 5 weeks, taking classes in Spanish, the history of Catalan culture, and photography. Before my program I traveled to Paris with my mom for a week. I have also gotten to do a bit of traveling around Spain to places including Girona, Cadiz, Tarragona, and Montserrat. Don't worry though, I have been swimming at an outdoor long course pool 4 days a week. It is super hot and humid here in Barcelona, so a dip in the pool always feels good. I will be sad to leave in a week and a half, but I must say that I really am craving some American food. I have been staying with a host family, and my host mom is a great cook. However, I have eaten some of the strangest things while over here, including caracoles (snails), whole fried small fish, horse, rabbit, octopus, and who knows what else (I stopped asking about what I was eating. It's probably better that I just don't know!)"

Barcelona

Tarragona

Montserrat - training trip, anyone?

Charlie Wins!

2011-04-08T09:15:00.000-05:00

Charlie Butt coached our swim team from 1961 to 2000 when he retired. At this point it seems like he retired so he could find the time to dominate the squash world. Charlie just won the national title again. Link

Way to go Charlie!

Swim Lessons

2011-04-08T08:28:00.000-05:00

What do the swimmers do in the spring? They stay active and teach swim lessons of course. This spring we have over 100 children in the program. Tons of fun and lots of learning!

Bowdoin Does Nationals!

2011-03-31T20:47:00.005-05:00

This past week, the NCAA DIII Swimming and Diving Championships were held in Knoxville, TN and the Polar Bears were well represented by our very own Nate Mecray. Nate's 50 free at NESCAC's (20.61) was not only a school record, but also the 11th fastest time swum in the country this year, ensuring him a spot at Nationals. Laurel and I decided we couldn't miss out, so we accompanied the fearsome duo (Brad and Nate) down to the Volunteer state. We ate at Cracker Barrel, stocked up on University of Tenn. apparel, and experienced the very best southern hospitality has to offer. I thought I'd share some of the moments along the way!

Nate's 50 free (finishing in 21st place):

Taking advantage of the UT bookstore:

How Brad does Nationals:

The Gang (minus Brad) taking advantage of Southern climates

Gas money: $60
Four night stay: $300
Meet Admission Fee: $40
A Weekend with the Boys: Priceless

Polar Bear Men's Swimmers And Divers Finish Season With Outstanding NESCAC Performance

2011-03-01T10:45:00.001-05:00

POLAR BEAR MEN’S SWIMMERS AND DIVERS FINISH SEASON WITH OUTSTANDING NESCAC
PERFORMANCE

Juniors Nate Mecray and Mac Routh and Sophomore Basyl Stuyvesant led the Bowdoin Men’s
Swimming and Diving Team to a 6th place finish at the NESCAC Conference Meet held 25-27 February at Bowdoin’s Greason Pool. The team scored 725.5 points --150 more than last year- -while surging from 9th in 2010 to 6th, Bowdoin’s highest finish since the launch of the NESCAC Championship in 2001. Led by Coach Brad Burnham, Bowdoin out-battled Bates and Hamilton, and narrowly lost to Connecticut College, in the heated four- team fight for 5th place. Perennial powerhouses Williams, Amherst, Tufts
and Middlebury nabbed the top four spots.

Mecray added to his outstanding career with three top- three finishes : 1st in the 50 Breast (pool
record 26.25); 3rd in the 100 Breast and 3rd in the 50 Free, earning All-NESCAC honors and making the
NCAA “B” cuts in the 100 Breast and 50 Free. Routh – returning from a semester abroad - earned All-
NESCAC with 3rd in the 50 Fly and placed 8th in the 100 Fly. Stuyvesant had outstanding swims in all
three backstroke events: 4th in the 200 Back, 6th in the 100 Back and 12th in the 50 Back.

Freshmen Chris Granata, Ryan Peabody, Linc Rhodes and Alex Tougas made solid contributions to
team’s record point total. Granata placed 8th in the 200 Fly and 12th in the 100 Fly; Peabody - 5th in the
400 IM making the NCAA “B” cut and tied for 11th in the 500 Free; Rhodes - 6th in the 200 Fly and 14th in the 400 IM; and Tougas - 16th in the 1650 Free and 21st in the 1000 Free.

Sophomore E.J. Googins had a breakout meet in the short sprints - 13th in the 50 Free with superb
freestyle legs in 200 Free and 200 Medley relays; and Junior Zach Perez also had a strong performance,
placing 18th in the 1650 Free and swimming strong relay legs.

Eight team records were set: Mecray (50 Free (20.76), 100 Free (46.66)); Stuyvesant (100 Back (52.13) and 200 Back (1:54.50)); Peabody (400 IM (4:06.80)); 200 Free A Relay (Mecray, Routh Googins and Wells) (1:24.88); 200 Medley A Relay (Stuyvesant, Mecray, Routh and Googins)(1:34.14) and the 400 Medley A Relay (Stuyvesant, Mecray, Routh and Rhodes) (3:27.00).

High point scorers were Mecray (86), Stuyvesant (65), Routh (56), Rhodes (46), Granata (41) and
Peabody (40.5). Divers Noah Perwin, Alex Edison and Spencer Vespole made an important contribution
to the team’s final standing, scoring a combined 66 points in the 1 and 3 meter diving events.

David Well led the six seniors swimming for Bowdoin. He placed 20th in the 1000 Free and also swam on the 200 Free A relay. Henry Berghoff – Captain (distance freestyle), Roger Brothers - Captain (back and breast stroke), Christian Hurst (IM), Matt Seward (distance freestyle) and Andrew Swafford (breaststroke) all had fine swims in their last college meet.

Congratulations to everyone on the team for a great meet and season!

School Record - 100 Free

2011-02-27T21:08:00.000-05:00

Nate Mecray led off the 400 Free Relay with a school record in the 100 Freestyle - he went 46.19

School Record - 200 Back

2011-02-27T20:21:00.000-05:00

Basyl Stuyvesant went a best time of 1:54.50 and that means school record in the 200 Back!

School Record - 400 IM

2011-02-26T20:09:00.000-05:00

Ryan Peabody swam an amazing race and broke the oldest school record on our books and finished 5th in the final. He went 4:06.80 - also good for an NCAA BCut.

School Record - 200 Medley Relay

2011-02-26T18:15:00.000-05:00

The 200 Medley Relay team of Basyl Stuyvesant, Nate Mecray, Mac Routh and EJ Googins dropped the school record to 1:34.14

School Record - 400 Medley Relay

2011-02-25T21:54:00.001-05:00

Basyl Stuyvesant, Nate Mecray, Mac Routh and Linc Rhodes shaved over 2 seconds off the school record to go 3:27.00.

School Record - 100 Back

2011-02-25T21:09:00.001-05:00

Basyl Stuyvesant led off the 400 MR with a personal best and school record of 52.17!

School Record - 50 Free

2011-02-25T19:49:00.000-05:00

Nate Mecray went 20.76 this morning in the 50. Best time and school record!

School Record - 200 Free Relay

2011-02-25T18:33:00.000-05:00

Nate Mecray, Mac Routh, EJ Googins & David Wells turned in a 1:24.88 for 5th place and a new school record.

NESCAC Pictures

2011-02-22T06:27:00.000-05:00

Awesome gallery of pictures from the NESCAC Championships

School Record - 400 Free Relay

2011-02-20T20:12:00.001-05:00

Capping off a great weekend with a final school record - 400 Free Relay - 3:35.09
Kaley Kokomoor, Christine Rholl, Allen Garner & Allison Palmer

School Record - 800 Free Relay

2011-02-19T22:54:00.000-05:00

Tonight a group of gutsy women broke the school record in the 800 free relay.
Sarah Hirschfeld, Christine Rholl, Caitlin Hutchinson-Maddox and Allen Garner went 7:54.81

School Record - 100 Breast

2011-02-19T19:45:00.001-05:00

Laurel Varnell went 1:07.01 for fourth place and a new school record!

School Record - 200 medley Relay

2011-02-19T18:21:00.000-05:00

New Record for the same group from last night - 1:50.17
Allen Garner, Laurel Varnell, Christine Rholl, Allison Palmer

School Record - 50 Freestyle

2011-02-18T00:35:00.000-05:00

Allison Palmer is the fastest woman in Bowdoin History - 24.24

Team Record - 400 Medley Relay - 3:59.49

2011-02-18T00:31:00.001-05:00

Allen Garner, Laurel Varnell, Christine Rholl & Allison Palmer

Colby Meet Pics

2011-02-11T06:43:00.000-05:00

Ken Rholl took a lot of fantastic photos at the Colby meet last weekend. Here is a link to the slideshow.

Diver Relay

2011-02-01T08:42:00.000-05:00

The divers put together an amazing display of versatility. A little rusty on some skills but absolutely full of heart! Well done!

Endrofin Takes the BEARS Victory

2010-12-10T10:19:00.000-05:00

We finished up the BEARS competition with a great round robin tournament of Rock-Paper-Scissors. This time each victory was worth a certain point value, which meant there were more points up for grabs.Each team started with 900 points and could potentially score up to 1020. In the end it was Roar taking the day with 995 points to second place Bitter at 983.

Endorfin scored 961 for third and that was enough to secure the overall team title. Sloppy came in with a score of 959, enough to hold onto second place overall and certainly the most improved team from last year. Alpha started the day in second place but a disappointing score of 940 meant they fell quickly to fourth place.

My apologies for the fact that we couldn't get the camera up and running before the game began so there is no video.

Rock, Paper, Scissors Points

Bitter - 983
Endorfin - 961
Alpha - 940
Roar - 995
Sloppy - 959

Final Standings

Endorfin - 959.56
Sloppy - 956.56
Roar - 955.00
Alpha - 954.44
Bitter - 939.78

Congratulations to all the teams and I am sure it will be even better next year!

Just Guess

2010-12-09T13:53:00.000-05:00

The next to last competition....

2010 Trackie Challenge

2010-12-09T13:44:00.000-05:00

In the winter we share the fieldhouse with the track team. It is largely a great relationship but every December we have a little race. Some call it an aquathlon but we like the name Trackie Challenge just as much. It started as a 500 swim and a 1 mile run but as you will see that is just utterly absurd for the athletes we have on this team.

Gaga, Goggles n Baskets

2010-12-03T12:01:00.000-05:00

Noodle Relay

2010-12-02T16:02:00.000-05:00

Fairplay by Sloppy wins the day

Scrumptious

2010-11-30T15:30:00.003-05:00

Couldn't resist sharing this morsel from the bus ride back from MIT last weekend. Maeve and Laurel, what's your favorite post-meet snack?

I'm sure there will be many more to come after the MIT invite this weekend, check back soon!

The 10th annual Turkey 500

2010-11-24T21:10:00.000-05:00

Filled with strategy, speed, brute strength and a little blood (just a little).

All Garner at MIT

2010-11-23T21:59:00.000-05:00

What an example of the things we work on everyday. Allen commits herself to making the changes and being ready to race anything anytime. Well done Allen!

Marshmallow Challenge

2010-11-22T22:14:00.000-05:00

Cheering at MIT

2010-11-22T12:00:00.000-05:00

The first team cheer of the season. Thanks Rob!

Hour of Power - Follow Up

2010-11-22T10:00:00.000-05:00

One of our Junior men, Mac Routh, is abroad this semester in Denmark. He has NESCAC company though so the five of them decided to convince their Danish hosts to get after the Hour of Power a couple of weeks ago. We believe it is the first international version. Well done!

Trivia Time

2010-11-17T13:24:00.000-05:00

3 Questions - Add up the three answers.

Rubber Duck Toss

2010-11-12T15:16:00.000-05:00

So for the second game of the year each team sent 5 competitors to the line. Each competitor had to toss a rubber duck into a lane they called out ahead of time. Each lane was worth its number in points 1-10. if the duck landed in the lane they called then they got the points. If it landed outside the lane it was zero. Kind of a long video but there are some gems in there.

Hour of Power 2010

2010-11-12T15:10:00.001-05:00

The 5th annual Hour of Power was a tremendous experience. It is always great to see swimmers put out that kind of effort but to see them do it 10 days into the season is just plain amazing. We are proud to be a part of it. Tons of information exists at the Carleton website

Endorfin draws first blood.

2010-11-09T11:46:00.000-05:00

The Endorfin team takes the first of ten competitions over the next five weeks. Congrats!

New Dryland Techniques

2010-10-26T22:06:00.002-05:00

With the season less than a week away, we're always looking for new ways to improve. During an impromptu poolside dryland session, Elly and Clara demonstrated how they stay in shape. I bet they sleep well at night.

On the water too!

2010-10-23T05:36:00.000-05:00

Senior David Wells has spent the better part of his life in Maine. Throughout the winter he is committed to training and racing.in the pool but anytime the rivers are flowing we can bet he is researching the flow rates and looking for some fun drops.

Moosefest 2010 from Tomfoolery Productions on Vimeo.

Ian Crocker & Maritza Correia in town!

2010-10-13T09:56:00.000-05:00

The Fitter and Faster tour came through town on Sunday. We are on break but a bunch of swimmers from the team stayed and had a fabulous time helping with the logistics and in water time.

Thanks to Roger Brothers, Sarah Hirschfeld, Allen Garner, Laurel Varnell, Megan Massa, Maeve O'Leary and Ryan Peabody for all the effort! - missing from the phote are Maeve & Ryan - they had to do the coffee run :(

It looks like Ian is still a little quicker than the average swimmer. A quick video of him racing a few boys in a 25 fly. How about a head start next time?

Fall Break

2010-10-09T10:17:00.000-05:00

Most of the team is away for break. This is always the break that signifies a real ramp up into the season. We have just finished a very successful session of swimming lessons and the clinic with Ian Crocker and Maritza Correia is coming up over break. A few swimmers are staying here to grab some down time before the academics build to a peak over the next few weeks. It is an amazing time to get out and see the sights. Like this view from a dock on our lake.

The First-Years Were Here

2010-08-26T06:22:00.000-05:00

Most of the first year swimmers arrived on campus Tuesday. They dumped their things in the dorms and then packed for a 4 night adventure into the better parts of Maine to get to know a small group of their classmates. The evening before the trip they got together with some upperclassmen for a little ice cream. Above are Laurel Varnell, Mara Chin-Purcell, Peyton Morss, Christine Rholl, Megan Massa, Alex Tougas, Maeve O'Leary, Linc Rhodes, Chris Granata & Ryan Peabody. I am sure they are having an amazing time right now and we look forward to their return to campus.

Tamara Cycles Across the US

2010-06-15T05:51:00.001-05:00

I spend parts of the summer thinking about solutions to big problems. We have at least a partial solution to the problem we face with our dependence on oil for energy. Instead of BP it is TP - Tamara Perreault! Tamara and four friends are only riding across the country in a few months. We can follow them at their blog http://www.biketobowdoin.blogspot.com/

When she gets to town I will resume experiments to essentially capture lightning.....oh wait, she is leaving for her study abroad program the next day....OK, after that.

Have Fun!

Team Photos

2010-05-17T12:40:00.007-05:00

Why do photos on land? When you are a water creature it only makes sense to drop beneath the surface to get an image of what the fish would think if they saw us under there.

Heather Perry set up her equipment for an afternoon, lights, backdrops and some great props; then the team got to jump in and show off their skills! It was as much fun to see what everyone would do with the props as it is to see the final shots. There are a lot more pictures here.

Heather Perry's website www.heatherperryphoto.com

We win!

2010-02-06T17:01:00.003-05:00

Both teams won their respective CBB crowns! It has been years since we beat Colby on the women's side. They always step it up for us and make us swim fast. It was really great to finally come out ahead on points this year. I am sure they will come out strong at conference too.

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Team cheer

2010-01-30T21:42:00.002-05:00

Govida, Govida Boom, get a rat trap......

2010-01-29T19:00:00.002-05:00

Nathan Mecray '12

Athlete of the Week

Click here for the article from the Bowdoin Orient

How Was Practice?

2010-01-29T10:05:00.003-05:00

Watch til the end.

Swimming in the sun

2010-01-06T16:45:00.001-05:00

We made it down to where the sun sets a little later and we can't see any snow.

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On our way to Florida...

2010-01-06T08:56:00.001-05:00

Gettin rest when we can.

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Trackie Challenge

2009-12-09T06:03:00.001-05:00

Posted via web from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Eating and sleeping?

2009-12-05T13:48:00.002-05:00

John Roger Brothers returns

2009-12-05T13:45:00.001-05:00

From Australia

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Hanging out between sessions.

2009-12-05T13:42:00.001-05:00

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Is this legal?!

2009-12-04T17:48:00.001-05:00

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Turkey 500

2009-11-24T17:58:00.001-05:00

Download now or watch on posterous

IMG_0386.MOV (3229 KB)

3 laps, anything goes on the widths, swim the 25's.

Alpha takes it by 1 point!

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Jumping

2009-11-13T18:45:00.000-05:00

At the hour....

2009-11-11T05:54:00.003-05:00

Download now or watch on posterous

IMG_0367.MOV (3276 KB)

Amazing. Such a great event. So proud to be a part of it.

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Half way

2009-11-11T05:54:00.001-05:00

Download now or watch on posterous

IMG_0366.MOV (1867 KB)

An amazing effort so far. Now is time to dig deeper.

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Hour of Power

2009-11-11T05:52:00.001-05:00

Download now or watch on posterous

IMG_0365.MOV (1360 KB)

Early minutes of the annual event.

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Water Polo Nationals

2009-11-07T11:12:00.000-05:00

We are hosting. Bowdoin hanging tough against Wash U.

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

Practice

2009-11-06T06:19:00.002-05:00

Posted via web from Brad's posterous

Trying on Halloween costumes

2009-10-25T17:51:00.000-05:00

Clara as a penguin?

Posted via email from Bowdoin Swimming & Diving

NYT: Food Rules from Michael Pollan

2009-10-09T18:53:00.001-05:00

With all the talk about supplements and sports nutrition I really appreciate when I read things that just make sense. Eat food, not too much, mostly plants. is the mantra of Michael Pollan. His books talk very directly about food and the benefits of sound decisions when it comes to eating. Less talk about nutrition or diets is a good thing. The New York Times magazine had a great list of "rules" that readers sent in about food. Food Rules

Posted via email from Brad's posterous

Men's Captains

2009-04-08T08:45:00.003-05:00

Here are the guys selected to lead the men's team for 2009-2010 and we could have done any better than these three. Christian Hurst (Beverly, MA), Henry Berghoff (Chicago, IL) and Matt Kwan (Pleasanton, CA) will have a tremendous impact on the way we swim next year. All three guys are solid in workouts and in the meets but their greatest qualities come out on land. I am sure both the men and women on the team will seek advice from these guys on a regular basis. I know I am looking forward to a fantastic year with them assuming the leadership here.

Wcaps

2009-04-07T05:36:00.002-05:00

Congrats to senior Christina Fish and Junior Allison Palmer for ther election as captains for the 2009-2010 season! Fish (yes that is her real last name) is truly the most organized person we have ever had on the team. She has spent the first three years of her career keeping people on task and I expect nothing to change. Her battles with injuries have kept her from performing at the leve she is capable but this looks to be the year Fish gets to show her skills in the pool. Allison on the other hand has accomplished a part of her mission here at Bowdoin. Her school record setting 100 Freestyle and relay record setting contributions are noteworthy but Allison is one of the most tenacious racers we have ever had here. She shows no fear and forces the men's team to work harder everyday. I am so excited to see these two in action next year. There will be no shortage of enthusiasm for Bowdoin Swimming.

Max earns a Watson!

2009-04-07T05:18:00.003-05:00

Max will be swimming in several locations around the world over the next year! His project centers around swimming across bodies of water that bridge two very different lands. Only 40 fellowships were awarded nationwide this year - even more selective than usual.

He hs promised to keep in touch over the year and he will write a blog for all of us to follow. It will be amazing to follow his adventures! You can read more about it here.

Congrats Max!

Men- Day Three

2009-03-02T02:16:00.004-05:00

I am writing this on the bus on the way home from the meet. Today was a rough day for the guys. We had a few great swims but more less than great. I am very happy with the effort of the guys as illness seemed on the brink for many of them. We only managed to put a few guys into the final so our point potential was low. I have to be careful because part of my attitude is due to the fact that the season is effectively over so I don't get to coach again until November - always my most depressing realization. OK, back to the highlights!

School Records

100 Free - Nathan Mecray(FSPro legs) - 47.06

400 Free Relay - Goldstein(brief), Kimball(FSII), Mecray(FSProLegs), Routh(lzr legs) - 3:10.57

1650 Freestyle

Another huge drop in time for these guys. David Wells dropped over 30 seconds from his best and Henry Berghoff found over 55 seconds for his new personal best.

200 Back, 200 Breast and 200 Fly

Many years these are some of our best events. This year things were a little rough for us. As the coach I am not sure what the reason behind that is but I will look into it over the next few months - that is for sure. Keith Heyde did turn in a best time in the 200 Back. Andrew Swafford & Zach Perez(brief) also swam best times in their 200 Breaststrokes - Andrew dropped 2.7 seconds. Max Goldstein (brief) only dropped a tenth but that was good enough to finish 12th. Those were our only points for the 200 Stroke events - you can see the disappointment.

100 Freestyle

The 100 Free was a great event for us in terms of time drop but not as much in point scoring. Nathan Mecray led the way with a best time in prelims (FSPro) - good enough for 12th place. Over the course of the season Nathan dropped from 49 flat to 47 flat. We don't tend to drop as much at the conference meet because we don't have the philosophy of pound and taper. Anyway, Mac Routh (FSII) swam exhibition in the morning heats only - he swam his best by 2.75 seconds. Blake Wheale (lzr legs), Jordan Villars(brief), Hartley Brody(Brief) and Colin Kennedy all swam their lifetime best times.

400 Free Relay

In the final event of the weekend I knew we were up against a wall point wise so we just held the same philosophy we had throughout the meet. Best time in Bowdoin history - fast splits - and the guys came through. If someone told me they would set a school record without two of the guys I planned to see on that relay I wouldn't have believed it. I was very proud of the way they approached the race.

All in all I was so proud to be with these guys. They fought very hard despite a couple of legitimate issues (suits and illness). I am sad to see the season end but I will be great to see the record board overhauled after the NESCAC meets.

Men's 2nd Day

2009-02-28T23:05:00.002-05:00

What a day! We had some amazing performances throughout and topped it off with a gritty performance in the 800 Free Relay.

School Records

200 Medley Relay - Kimball, Mecray, Routh, Wheale - 1:35.62

100 Butterfly - Mac Routh - 50.81

400 IM

This morning we kicked it off with a best time in the 400 IM from Max Goldstein (Aquablade brief) - good enough to qualify him for 9th place in the consolation heat. Keith Keyde also swam to a best time and qualified for the bonus heat. Christian Hurst and Roger Brothers both qualified for the bonus heats and were close to best times.

100 Fly

Mac Routh (FSII Jammer) swam a great prelim swim that up with a 1.6 second drop in the 100 fly to qualify 8th in 51.62. Colin Kennedy dropped over 2 seconds from his best in the 100 fly to 56.5. At night Mac lit it up with a 5th place finish and new school record of 50.81 - that was a 2.4 second improvement over his in season best time. When Mac arrived at Bowdoin in the fall his best time was in the 55 second range so that is a huge drop in one season.

200 Freestyle

This has been our most challenging event this year - we just haven't had anyone who really belongs there so everyone who does it for us is really looking at it as a second or third event. Josh Kimball qualified for 24th in the event. We did have some guys drop a significant time though - Blake Wheale swam 4.5 seconds faster than his best as did Hartley Brody.

100 Breast

It was a great event at the top end and a little disappointing for some others. Nathan Mecray swam a 58.09 in the heats to qualify 4th. In the final he swam. Andrew Swafford and Zach Perez had swum good times in the dual meet but had a hard time putting together faster swims today - both were left out ouf the night-time swimming. Like Mac Routh's fly, Nathan swam a great race at night, dropped another 6 tenths to a 57.53 - 3 tenths off the school record of 57.2. It was good enough for 2nd place and all-NESCAC awards. Nathan arrived at Bowdoin with a 59.99 so a drop of 2.5 seconds is fantastic.

100 Back

All best times for the guys but missing the school record will leave a bad taste in Josh's mouth for a while. Matt Kwan swam a lifetime best with a 57.28. Josh Kimball qualified 14th with a best time of 53.95 and Mac Routh finished things off with a drop of 1.2 seconds to a 54.17. Mac tied for 16th with a Colby swimmer so they had a swim off 15 minutes later. The Colby guy had too much for Mac (and a blue seventy suit) so we had to settle for the bonus heat. At night Mac swam another lifetime best (lzr legs) to 53.99 and Josh held onto 14th with a 54.05 - about 30 minutes after his 200 free final.

800 Free Relay

I have never been more proud of an 800 relay than this evening. The A team of Wells, Goldstein, Seward and Kimball swam their butts off to a 7:06.39. Not bad for 2 distance swimmers, an IMer and a backstroker.

All in all a great day of racing. Tomorrow will be a tough day but I am confident these guys will fight hard.

Day 1 Men

2009-02-27T23:14:00.001-05:00

Today the men got off to a good start. We set 3 school records and saw a bunch of best times.

In the opening events Mac Routh swam to a school record in the 50 Butterfly - 22.88 (FSII Jammer) and then followed it up with another in the 50 backstroke - 24.71 (FSII Jammer). In the finals Mac swam to a 4th place finish and another school record in the 50 Fly with a 22.67 (lzr legskin).

Max Goldstein swam a 1:56.26 in prelims, good enough to qualify for finals. In the finals he finished in a 1:55.22 (aquablade brief) for 5th place and a school record!

In the evening finals the relay of Nathan Mecray (FS Pro), Max Goldstein (Aquablade brief), Mac Routh (lzr legskin) and Blake Wheale (lzr legskin) set a school record in the 200 Free Relay with a time of 1:25.80. In a side note Mecray missed the school record in the 50 Free by .03 in the lead-off leg of the relay.

Other Best Times

50 Breaststroke - Nathan Mecray broke 27 for the first time in a flat start and David Swanson qualified for the consolation heat with his best time. Andrew Swafford swam his way into the bonus heat with his best time and Zach Perez all swam best times in the prelims.

50 Butterfly

Keith Heyde dropped .77 from his best in the prelims.

500 Freestyle

David Wells led the way today with a 4:46.84 in prelims - his best by almost 5 seconds - he qualified in 19th place for the finals and swam to a 23rd place finish at night. Henry Berghoff dropped over 7 seconds from his best for a 5:06.82.

50 Backstroke

A personal best of 25.41 for Josh Kimball landed him in 19th place.

200 IM

Zach Perez, Keith Heyde and Christian Hurst all achieved personal bests in the prelims.

50 Free

Blake Wheale dropped a second in the 50 free to 22.65 and Jordan Villars also went a best time of 23.33.

It was a good first day. It is a very different atmosphere with the technical suits dominating the finals. It was great to see Max swim a best time and finish 5th wearing an aquablade brief - everyone else in the final had a lzr or blueseventy suit. Dave Swanson is not feeling up to his best so far this weekend but it was good to see him put out his best effort to anchor the 400 Medley Relay at night - just missing the school record.

Women's NESCAC - Day 3

2009-02-22T22:25:00.001-05:00

The third day is a tough day but we held things together very nicely and finished the weekend with a ton of amazing times. We finished in 8th place - just ahead of Wesleyan - a great effort since they beat us by quite a few points in our dual meet this season.

The 200 Strokes continue to be tough events for us but we had a few great swims to build on. Kathryn Engel swam a great 200 back - dropping 2.7 seconds. Liz Dann and Emma Chiappetta both swam best times in their respective strokes of Breatstroke and Butterfly.

The 100 Freestyle was an impressive event for us! Allison Palmer swam a school record in 52.55 - good enough to qualify her 3rd. Megan Sullivan qualified 13th with a best time 1.5 seconds faster and Allen Garner found her own second and a half to qualify 20th. Jessie Small, Zoe Harran, Sydney Miller, Aurora Kurland, Catherine Johnston and Caroline Sholl all swam best times as well - and all by significant amounts

Lindsey Warren-Shriner really got everyone going with her amazing 1650. Lindsey had been a little disappointed in her 500 and 1000 free times to this point but she more than made up for it. She dropped 35 seconds off her best time. Her last 1000 was almost a best 1000 time and her last 500 was faster than she swam on Friday.

To finish the meet the 400 Free Relay of Sullivan, Small, Garner and Palmer set a new school record of 3:35.28.

All in all it was a fantastic meet. I am happy we swam fast and we seem to have hosted a very good championships for all the teams. I am really looking forward to the men's meet now.

Women - Day 2

2009-02-21T22:54:00.000-05:00

Saturday is always a great day. The nerves are reduced but the fatigue hasn't set in fully yet. This year I was looking forward to this day because we have people who love events we swim today. This looks to be a short post because I am exhausted. Hosting and coaching make for an interesting but tiring weekend.

The opening 200 Medley Relay was fantastic - a school record - same combination of McAuliffe, Callahan, Sullivan & Palmer for this one.

The 200 Freestyle was the highlight of the day. Allen Garner - fresh off her 500 success dropped over 4 seconds from her best time to a 1:54.8 for a spot in the final heat at night. Megan Sullivan also managed a huge drop of 2.2 seconds to a 1:55 - in January Megan went under 2:00 for the first time in her life so that makes for a drop of almost 5 seconds this season. Jessie Small also swam a lifetime best by 1.4 seconds for a 17th place finish. Aurora Kurland & Caroline Sholl rounded out the best time affair each dropping over a second.

In the 100 Strokes we saw best times from senior Liz Dann in the Breaststroke, Kathryn Engel in the Backstroke and Emma Pyle in the backstroke.

The final event of the night was the 800 Free Relay. Traditionally this is a tough event for us. Tonight was a great performance from three women and an amazing one from one in particular - Zoe Harran! Zoe made it known that she wanted a spot on the relay team and she absolutely earned it! Her best relay split before this was 2:04 and tonight she split 2:00 flat.

Women's NESCAC - Day 1

2009-02-20T23:01:00.001-05:00

The Debut of the Suits

We knew the suits would be an issue but I was not prepared for the number of technical suits we would see at the NESCAC conference meet. They were littered throughout the prelims and seemed to make a big difference in the 500 freestyle more than any other event. This evening we saw some more fancy suits and some more extreme time drops. Compared to the last 4 years the short stroke events were not much faster - nor was the 200 IM - but the 500 was. The winner of the 500 went the same as last year but to qualify 8th it took a time 4 seconds faster than ever before, 16th was 6 seconds faster and 24th was 7 seconds faster.

We had a great morning session. Only a couple of disappointing swims in the whole group. It is always a bit of a mystery until we get a couple of swims under our belts.

50 Breast/Fly

We saw a bunch of best times in the 50 Breast and 50 Fly. Liz Dann, Allison Palmer and Melissa Locke all swam lifetime bests. Annie Chisholm swam the first race of her season with a 23rd place in the 50 Breast. I am in awe of Annie. She was told by lots of doctors that she wouldn't swim this year and she did it. Basically kicking her way back and forth. Eileen palmer swam her best 50 fly of her career. At night we scored big points in the 50 Breast. Caitlin Callahan finished 2nd, Liz Dann 12th, Allison Palmer 16th and Annie 23rd.

500 Freestyle

Allen Garner wore a regular suit in her heat and paid the price with only a 1 second drop over her in season best for 23rd place. At night she wore a blueseventy and dropped 10 seconds to a 5:06.9. Some of that is suit and some of it was the fact that she just swam a better race. Senior Caroline Sholl dropped 2.5 seconds off her best. Lindsay Warren-Shriner, Jessie Small and Rachel Gang both seemed very nervous and very tentative on their swims.

50 Back

Erin McAuliffe, Kathryn Engel and Emma Pyle all swam lifetime bests in the 50 Backstroke. I was impressed with these three swims because they all made significant drops during the season as well. They do get a lot of practice with the 50 Back as an event because we do several 200 Medley Relays during the year.

200 IM

Molly Homoki worked very hard this year but things just didn't come together for her. Backstroke seems to be a very high energy stroke and often that will sap the energy from an IMer. Catherine Johnston did have another big drop in her IM - over 3 seconds.

50 Free

We graduated a very solid group of sprint freestylers last year so I wasn't sure how this event would go. Allison Palmer was just a few hundredths off her best time but managed a 6th place for her efforts - wearing an FSII suit. Megan Sullivan, Tamara Perreault, Aurora Kurland and Melissa Locke all swam best times in the morning with Sullivan dipping below 25 for the first time ever. At night Megan Sullivan and Allison Palmer scored 13th and 6th respectively.

Relays

The 200 Free Relay is always exciting. Our B team was the best B team we have ever had - they averaged 25.8 - all women who swam 26+ in their 50's! The A team missed the school record by less than a second - next year for sure! The 400 Medley Relay did set a school record - the same team from last year McAuliffe, Callahan, Sullivan & Palmer - re-set their record by 1 second.

Bates

2009-01-17T22:11:00.001-05:00

It was a tough weekend but we came through it in impressive fashion. We flew in from St. Croix on Friday, spent a few hours on campus and then traveled over to Bates for our first dual meet of the semester and first serious competition since December. We all knew the travel would affect things but the other tough part was the transition from long course to short course. The team fought through and posted some great swims.

Lindsey Warren-Shriner continued her time dropping ways with another 11 seconds off from her best time in the 1000 Freestyle and Caroline Sholl found 7 for herself. Hartley Brody matched that with his own 12 seconds in the men's 1000. The men's 200 free saw all three entrants each drop over a second to some best times.

OK, more than the times I just want to emphasize how great the team attitude was. The seniors really took on a leadership role. It was great to see that they understood how tough the racing would be and they helped others find a way to put it aside and race.

Probably a highlight for the team was the way Ian Wandner stepped up to dive in the meet. Ian has battled shoulder trouble for most of the season so it was a huge step for him to get up on the board. Not only did Ian contribute - he is a legit diver.

Finally, I was also very impressed with the progress that Bates has made in one year. Coach Peter Casares certainly has that program moving moving forward in dramatic fashion.

I am looking forward to next week when we travel up to the tundra of Orono to compete against the University of Maine.

Training Trip

2009-01-15T10:42:00.006-05:00

We are filling our days with swimming, sleeping and sunshine down here in St. Croix. Many of the kids on the team think this is our best destination ever. It is 84 degrees everyday and the island is really beautiful. The training is going well - we have the whole pool and the local team has been so accommodating. A couple of days ago, after 6 days of double practices we took a trip to Buck Island. It was great! The underwater National Park held our attention for an hour. After that we went to a beach on the north side. Everyone walked around to the other side to see the lemon sharks feeding on the coral reef - it was very cool to see all of the fins just feet away. It will be tough to go home but we will remember this place forever.

On our way....

2009-01-08T05:45:00.001-05:00

6:00 am, Logan Airport
We are heading out for our annual training trip. This time to St.
Croix. Everyone is fired up for the sunshine. We are leaving the cold
and snow behind for the week.

Old Pool/New Pool

2008-12-18T09:04:00.003-05:00

A neat article from the Boston Globe Sunday magazine appeared last week and it captures very well the process Bowdoin went through to renovate the old Curtis Pool into a fantastic Music Hall. I have been to a concert there and it was an amazing experience. Our current pool opened in 1989 for the men's nationals that year and it continues to be one of the best facilities in the area but I have to say that I am so impressed with the way the pre-Greason pool alums talk about the old pool. it had an apartment above it where the swim captains usually lived and I have heard many stories from those days - the far-away look in their eyes as they tell the stories says that those were special times. But we move forward with the times.

A link to the story in the Boston Globe Magazine.

Here is another story with some pictures from the Bowdoin Website

A link to the architect's site with more pics from inside.

Of course you can see a picture of our pool at the top of the page on the right.

Nathan Mecray - NESCAC Performer of the Week

2008-12-18T08:58:00.005-05:00

Congrats to Nathan. His times in the 50 Free, 100 Free and 100 Breast - along with the contributions to many relays earned him the award. I am especially proud because this was the week most teams swam in December invitationals - traditionally a time when everyone wants to see what they have heading into winter training. Link to Bowdoin Website

2008 Trackie Challenge

2008-12-10T09:32:00.000-05:00

Tuesday, Dec 9th we raced the track team - we call it the Trackie Challenge - the track team calls it an Aquathlon - either way it is a wonderful display of athletic versatility by one of the teams - the swimming team! 6 years ago we started with the concept that we would put up a few people to race 500 yards and then right into a mile on the track - that didn't go so well. The swimmers earned all of the top spots.

Since then we have dropped the swim distance to 225 yards and kept the mile run. We score it like a Cross Country meet where the low score wins - this year the women won 21 to 46 and the men won 24-46. Jessie Small won the women's race. A runner won the men's but the men gathered the next 6 spots.

Next year we will drop to 200 yards of swimming. I hope we don't get to the point where the competitor take a shower and then run a mile. :)

MIT Invite II

2008-12-08T08:22:00.001-05:00

What a meet. Our second trip to Cambridge in two weeks was a great one. It was also our second time swimming in this December Invitational and I hope to keep going because it provides a great opportunity for the kids to race their best events against very similar competition - races all over the place. Full results here.

We began practicing as a team on November 1st so it is always a mystery as to how we will perform at a multi-day meet. It probably has as much to do with attitude as fitness and the team displayed a fantastic attitude all weekend. I am sure the night away from campus and distractions was a great boost to things as well.

The seniors performed very well in the pool but were so great about connecting with the other swimmers on the team. Dave Swanson swam in season best times in both the 100 and the 50 freestyles and a lifetime best in the 200 Free. Max Goldstein swam a heck of a 200 Fly at the end of the meet for a best time and Blake Wheale swam lifetime bests in the 100 and 200 Free. Melissa Locke swam a Bowdoin best in the 200 Breast.

Our junior class is small but makes their presence known. I am very proud of the way they influence the rest of the team. Linsey Warren-Shriner continues to drop time in all of her freestyle events - swimmng lifetime bests in the 200, 500 and 1650 freestyles. Our sophomores, on the other hand make up a huge class. Andrew Swafford dropped time in all of his best events, Henry Berghoff dropped over a minute and a half in the mile and Jessie Small actually went a best time. I think she was the only national champion in the pool this past weekend - hot off the field hockey team's win just before Thanksgiving - only 2 weekd in the water.

Nathan Mecray led the first-year class with some impressive swims and lifetime bests in the 50 & 100 free as well as the 100 breast. Mac Routh also continued to swim well in the 100 fly and relays. I can't wait to see these guys develop over the winter training camp.

For now we are heading into the most intense part of the semester. I am sure I will see everyone at the pool but we will keep things simple for a couple of weeks. After that we will really focus on the winter training and I am confident these guys will work very hard to prepare for the rest of the season.

MIT Invite

2008-12-05T15:29:00.002-05:00

We are on our way to MIT for the second time this year! This time for
a two day invite. We are excited to swim fast, learn a ton and have a
great time getting to know each other. Updates soon.

Hour

2008-11-10T09:53:00.002-05:00

On Thursday we had the chance to participate in our third Hour of Power to honor the memory of Ted Mullin and raise awareness for Sarcoma research. It is an extra challenge to the NESCAC schools because we are 6 days into our official season but the team has always done a great job at pushing that aside. This year was phenomenal. They went full speed from the beginning and never let off the gas.

Former New Trier swimmer and recent Bowdoin grad Jess Horstkotte was on hand to remind everyone of all the great things Ted brought to practice everyday. Almost 6,000 swimmers from colleges and club teams from all across the country participated in the event during the same hour of the day. That is a huge step up from the 15 schools that participated the first year.

I was proud to just stand there and cheer everyone on as they left everything they had in the pool. We can't wait for next year.

Hortkotte Earns Award

2008-05-21T12:27:00.003-05:00

Graduating Senior Jess Horstkotte was presented the Community Service Award at our annual awards banquet on May 10th. Jess has absolutely dedicated herself to helping others here at the college from the day she arrived.

"Jess makes the world around her a better place. It is clear that serving the community is a way of life for Jess and the rest of us have learned a great deal from her. Jess found ways everyday to make her teammates feel good about themselves and encouraged us all to reach out beyond the safety of our own little worlds to help others. We will miss you Jess."

That was the quote from the introduction but it isn't completely accurate. Jessica has taken a job in the Bowdoin Community Resource Center so she will be around for the next two years! Woohoo!

January in St Croix

2008-05-21T12:21:00.003-05:00

Every winter we take a training trip to somewhere fun but somewhere we can train very hard. The winter break for Bowdoin is very long so we take our trip a little later than most colleges. It is great because we can pick better destinations and still find great pool time and lower airfare because we avoid the holiday rush.

This year we are headed to St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands. It looks to be a wonderful trip. We will be there January 8th through the 15th. For the 10 days before the trip we will train here at Bowdoin so I am sure everyone will be dying to get a little sun.

New Fitness Center

2008-05-16T13:03:00.002-05:00

Bowdoin has begun construction on a wonderful new fitness center. Read about it here

NYT - Best Dining Services

2008-04-09T12:44:00.003-05:00

More praises for the dining service here at Bowdoin. Every school in the NESCAC has great professors and we all take academics very seriously but Bowdoin also treats the student life with equal importance. A place to live and three meals a day are not just 'other' details when choosing a school. We tell recruits all the time about how great they are in dining services and this opening paragraph really highlights it.

THE smell of a curried butternut squash soup wafts through the air as you walk into the dining room. At long tables of dark wood, beneath windows soaring 20 feet overhead, customers dine on vegetable ragout over polenta, spicy orange beef, Dijon-crusted chicken, cheese quesadillas, vegetarian pho —Vietnamese noodle soup — and spinach sautéed with garlic and olive oil.

If it weren’t for the trays, and the fact that most diners are under 25, you’d think it was a restaurant. But this is Thorne dining hall at Bowdoin College here.

The food is great but I really think the people make the experience special. They listen to comments, know you name, smile, say hello - just make it special. Of course it is still food for a large group of people but there aren't many, if any, who do it better!