COACH'S CORNER

A World Record Holder!
What would you do if you had to swim against the current world record holder in the 200m butterfly; not to mention a former Olympian? Well, Eric Skrabacz seized the opportunity at the NBAC Summer Championships in June. He might not admit it, but I'll bet the lump in his throat was bigger than normal. What most people didn't see was a young man overcome a great obstacle - fear of swimming with "the big boys". Michael Phelps and Eric Scrabacz shared the same heat in prelims & in finals in what event? You guessed it, 200m butterfly. What impressed me most was not that Michael Phelps posted one of the fastest 200m fly swims this summer, but that Eric rose to the occasion without panic, held his stroke, and completed the swim; achieving one of his fastest 200 fly swims to date.

More Reflections & Accomplishments:
2001 AAU Junior Olympics, Newport News, Virginia:
Twenty swimmers participated in the 2001 Junior Olympic National Championships. Two of our swimmers became Junior Olympic National Champions - Brittany Culpepper and Will Richards; which brings us to date with four JO National Champions in the last year. Our Top 16 finishers include: Davi Clark, Taelar Errington, Johnny Kitner, Eric Skrabacz, Steven Kram, Emily & Beth Dobson, Lisa Gabrelcik, Meghan Barber, Chris Brennan, Breanne Summers, and Allison Davis. Also participating in the meet were: Jackie Kitner, Jessica Davis, Jennifer Ray, Sidney & Harrison Lindblad, and Alex Kram. A good time was had by all. Start thinking about Knoxville, Tennessee for next year's Junior Olympic National Championships.

2001 Eastern Zone Long Course Swim Championships, Buffalo, New York:
Where in the world is Will Richards? Just look ahead of the pack in the 50 & 100m breaststroke events and you'll find Will winning not one, but two gold medals. In the process he set two Maryland State Records for the 11 & 12 boys age group. He also set two short course records earlier this spring, giving him a total of four Maryland State Records in his age group--the most ever held by a Southern Maryland swimmer.

Off to college and swimming - Diana Rhoades and Sean Cummings will be swimming at Lockhaven University and Frostburg State University, respectively. Diane Parker has signed a full ride to East Carolina University. We wish them all continued success in both athletic and academic pursuits.

I am very proud of the Chesapeake Bay Aquatic Club members who have stepped up to the next level. Let's continue pushing forward!

The Team of Tomorrow Begins Today ... for an assessment of your child's level and his/her future in swimming, contact Coach Chuck at (240) 725-0034, or via email at: swimcoachcbac@aol.com.

Calendar:

SWIM MEETS:
Sept. 22nd - MD Open Water Championship & Sunfest, Ocean City.
Oct. 13-14 - All Freestyle Meet, ASC, No time standards, 6&U, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and open.
Oct. 27-28 - "A" & Under Meet, CBAC, Slower than 2001 "AA" time standards, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, open.

Upcoming Events::
Oct. 5th - New Parents Meeting - for new and returning parents to take place during practice at SMC. Topics will include team structure, time standards, swim meet procedures, Maryland Swimming & USA Swimming, parental involvement, and more. Handouts will include USA Swimming's "Parents' Handbook" and the "Swim Parent Survival Guide".

Parent's News:

Please take a few moments to fill out the Swim Team Survey (distributed via postal mail). Included are questions about your swimmer's degree of interest in competition as well as how you might like to get involved.

Did you know that more than 20 million kids between the ages of 6 and 16 participate in organized sports? The top 3 reasons sited for that participation are (1) to have fun, (2) to improve or learn new skills, (3) to be with friends or make new ones. (Source: Nat'l Inst. for Child Centered Coaching & USA Swimming)

Several parents have already expressed interest in helping out on the new Parent Committees. Please let us know how you can help to make our swimmers' experience fun and rewarding!

Book Review:
(written by Liz Richards)

"Champions Are Raised, Not Born: How My Parents Made Me a Success", by Summer Sanders (published by Dell Publishing, New York, NY, 1999.)

Summer Sanders swam for the USA in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. In her book she focuses on the question most of us ask ourselves - how can I be a good parent? Ms. Sanders refers to her own experiences as a child pursuing the sport of swimming, as well as experiences of her Olympic friends, in sports ranging from archery to speed skating, throughout the book. She always comes back to the fact that her parents supported her without reserve and allowed her to make her own decisions and learn from them. She talks about how her parents supported her goals without imposing their own on her and also how her parents helped her handle both success and failure.

I enjoyed reading the book and found it fairly well written. It was interesting the way her parents provided support to her in totally different ways - her Father always stayed outside of the sport of swimming and helped her to not become too single-minded; her Mother learned everything she could about swimming and her daughter's achievements and goals and actively participated in the sport. Summer Sanders had tremendous success in swimming, and at a very young age, but with her parents' help she seemed to handle it quite well. I consider this book a worthwhile read.

Health, Nutrition, and Fitness:
(Submitted by Liz Richards)

Here is a Nutrition Tip from "Winning Recipes; Healthy Eating for Healthy Lifestyles", by USA Swimming: "Sports drinks are not required for any activity under 60 minutes. They do not provide a balance of nutrients and should not normally replace food. However, in situations where athletes are unable to eat, they can provide a useful source of energy (e.g., When exercising before before breakfast; between events; immediately after exercise.) " The following recipe is from the Portable Snacks section of "Winning Recipes" :

Berry Nutrition Bars

3/4 cup Buttermilk	1/2 cup dried blueberries
1 egg	1 1/4 cups granola
1/3 cup canola Oil	1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour	2 tsp. grated lemon rind
1 1/4 cups finely chopped strawberries	1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup chopped raisins	1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds	1/2 tsp. cinnamon
	1/2 tsp. salt

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  In a medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg and oil until blended.
3.  In a large bowl, combine flour, strawberries, raisins, almonds, blueberries, granola, sugar, lemon rind, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
4.  Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until well combined.
5.  Lightly spray a 9x13" baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour in batter.
6.  Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
7.  Cool completely. Cut into 24, 2x2" squares. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

Nutritional Analysis (per serving):
Calories	132	Protein	2.7g
Carbohydrate	21.3g	Fiber	1.8g
Sugar	10.3g	Fat	4.9g
Cholesterol	8.8mg	Sat. Fat	.4g
Vitamin C	8mg	Folate	9Ug
Potassium	140mg	Sodium	126mg
Iron	1mg	Calcium	40mg