Hello Polo Players and Families,
It was fantastic to see many of you this last Friday for suit fitting and apparel ordering. A big thanks to Eliza for hosting again this year as well Lori who has done a great job communicating about the upcoming season. Another thank you to Anita and the crew of dedicated players who have been actively recruiting new polo enthusiasts. It looks like we will have a great new group of student-athletes and are looking forward to a wonderful season.
As I'm sure everyone knows the schools have been hit very hard with budget cuts this year. As a result there have been rumors about the Metro League collapsing, polo being eliminated, etc. As many of you are also aware, we are very fortunate to have a program that thrives because of a dedicated group of parent and coach volunteers, a supportive booster club and the MAC club who donates our practice time at their pool. This means that our overhead is very low and our team will continue for years to come without the concern of school funding. After our Oregon High school Water Polo meeting last night Jeff and I feel comfortable in saying that the Metro League will continue as it did last year. There may be significant fee increases at other schools, but it looks as though things will move forward. If, and this is a very slim chance of happening, the Metro League were to dwindle the only ramification would be that our league alignment would change. The good news for Lincoln polo is that we are preparing for 2009 to be the most successful season yet and we can't wait to get started. Jeff and I will also be supporting the coaches from the Metro League as they continue to move forward to promote their programs.
So, where does this leave us? Practice, Practice, Practice. Here are the initial thoughts for the season:
Official, mmandatory practice will begin on August 19th. I am still waiting to hear back from the MAC regarding practice times but you can anticipate a similar schedule to last year with morning practices from 6 - 8 am and then evening from 6 - 9pm. It is absolutely essential that you arrive in top swimming and running shape. We aren't joking when we say that you will be expected to swim no less than 30 - 100's on the 1:30 starting on the 19th as well as eggbeater with your hands out of the water for 500 yards. Additionally, you should be able to run at least 3 miles without stopping. Finally, each and everyone of you should be throwing the baseball or softball with your parents or friends to prepare your shoulders. We have attached some potential swim sets to help you prepare.
The Bend Training Camp is on again this year and will prove to be the most challenging and fun yet. Jim Claypool has been busy planning the trip for us (THANK YOU JIM) and the dates are as follows: Jamboree August 28th - 30th and training from the 31st - Sept. 4th. We understand there may be school registration the morning of the 28th so plan to leave around noon that day. This year we will be increasing our pool time as well as dry land training so again, be prepared.
Finally, we would like to address the very real concern over early release from school. In order to make this season possible we have come up with the following solution. We have a lower number of female athletes this year so JV girls games will be cancelled. This will allow the boys JV to start approximately 30 minutes later. Additionally, any qualifying female athlete who would like to play in the boys JV games will be allowed to do so. Finally, in order to ensure playing time for all female athletes we will attend a JV sanctioned tournament. This is our proposal and would certainly love your feedback.
One additional note. We will be holding a team meeting on June 9th at 4:30 pm at Chapman Elementary School. Both teams should attend.
As always, we are thrilled to be your coaches. We were reminded last night just how awesome it is to be part of this team and we thank you for the experience.
Go Cards!
-Anna and Jeff
Water Polo Swim Sets
No comments:
Post a Comment