Quality

A while back, I watched an interview with Steve Jobs on netflix. Released in the buzz of his autobiography and his lionization in death, it was a glimpse into the past and one of the few recorded interviews he ever did. One part of the interview has stuck with me ever since. Jobs brings up the topic of "taste". In this context, "taste" is all about liking the best in any number of things: cars, food, movies and, of course, user friendly electronics. I think about this definition of "taste" when I coach swimming. I think we can all agree as coaches we want to see good quality practice. But what is "quality", in a swim practice? Well, it's a matter of taste.

"Training is for Kids"-- or, How the Viking Perfected the Old-Man Taper

Yup.  I am a professional athlete now.  I filled out a W9 and everything.  Haha.

I am sure that some of you out there saw that SwimSwam gave me a little love this December for my race at the Chesapeake Pro-Am.  I think it is time for me to tell the story.  (Sorry, Chris and I have both been a little absent lately.  Busy!  Bzzzy Beeezzzz!)  First, I have to say that Chesapeake is my favorite meet ever, not just because the prize money brings in the pro's, but because they run their operation with creativity and precision.  When the hotshots come to OKC, the host club really takes care of them and they plan cool events like visiting a children's hospital, autograph sessions and more.  The meet was huge this year and they had no timeline or operation issues.  An absolute class act.  This is why it surprised me that I was invited to declare myself a "professional athlete."

This Is The Way We Do It: Training Camps

When you live in Denmark, you should prepare to hear one phrase over and over again. At least certain variations of it:

"This is how we do it"

Or maybe

"We've always done it this way"

You'll get this response after you witness something that seems totally uncommon to you but entirely normal to everyone else. My first such exchange coaching here came just two days into my trip, when I saw that pace and sprint lanes were one and the same. And so it goes at most every meet.

This week I'm on training camp, it's own special brand of Danish repetitiveness. School is off in Denmark this week, and so most Danish swim clubs are abroad training away. Why not?

The Swimbrief Reboots

This is not the first attempt at writing this post. Over the past few months, I've stared at a blank page on this blog a number of times. This is, however, the first time I've actually known what I wanted to write. It's taken a few months and some searching, but I've finally decided what I want to do with this blog moving forward. It's time to reboot the Swimbrief, and I'm excited about it. But first I owe an explanation of how I got here.

What is The Best Age Group System?

It's no secret that Danish swimming is riding a high right now. With the European Short Course championships at home swiftly approaching, they can realistically expect to be among the top three in the medal counts in their home country, besting many larger continental rivals. Beneath the surface, however, there are signs for concern. Why aren't there more men along? Where is the next generation of female stars that will quickly need to come to the fore?

Why Optimism is the Key to Coaching Technique

What does it mean to be a good technical coach? What are the most important characteristics to have? To start with, a knowledge set of stroke fundamentals is important. The ability to communicate that knowledge is more important still. On a lot of coaches list, you'd be hard pressed to find a shifty psychological characteristic like "optimism". But I'm here to argue that optimism should is actually the most important thing you can have when teaching technique.

College Athletic Directors Knock it Out of the Park

A lucky swimmer gets advice from the human espresso shot, Brendon Bray

Every college swimming off season is a seemingly endless game of musical chairs. Inevitably a big domino will fall in the middle of April and the shuffling of chairs begins. With students back on campus, most (head coaching) jobs have been filled. The recent slew of hires confirmed for me a thought I had at the beginning of the game: college AD's really rocked it this summer.