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MGM Dives Into Mid-Season

It's hard to believe that there's only two months more of competitive short-course swimming left this season (not counting Nationals), but it's true. Unless another meet pops up we've only got three more before State Championships towards the end of April. Here's what's in store:

MGMShirts-Embroidered.gifFirst up: The Elgin Blue Waves Meet on March 14th. A handful of us went to this meet last year, and it's highly recommended. It's a bit of a hike from the South Side, but the facility is really nice. Remember to send in your entries soon, unless you want to pay extra for deck entries. The site information is now posted on our site, along with an entry card.

Next: Fenwick on March 28th--always fun. Lyons is said to come next on April 11th. There's still no information about the specifics of that meet but check back soon for updates.

Finally, the 2010 ILMSA State Championships, April 23- April 25. The registration for this year's State meet is already available online right here .

Team Notes:

There is No Practice tonight at Ag School, due to Pulaski Day in Chicago. (Follow link for full explanation, and a picture that for some reason reminds me a little bit of Dan.)

Rachel is in charge of this year's Team Swag, which is said to be arriving any minute now. Thanks, Rachel! Stay tuned!

 

 


Thoughts on P90X

This season we've had a number of swimmers try out the P90X workout system as a supplement to their normal in-water training. Since it appears that times are significantly faster this season among this group, it seems to have really helped our swimmers, at least in terms of conditioning. (For the most part, they look better on deck, too --and as we all know that's the most important thing.)

baconcheeseturtleburger.jpgAnyway, a big group of swimmers started the program in November, meaning that they're entering the final week(s) of the three-month program. Earlier, Dan sent a message asking how the program should be used for the rest of the season, and whether or not is would be advisable to lift on off-days (Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays) rather than on the in-water training days. There's a lot to think about here: Is it better to lift and swim on the same day? Should there be a two-week break at the end of the P90X program before starting it up again for the rest of the season. (As advised by the book?)

Finally, when can we start eating the Bacon Cheese Turtleburgers again? (That would be a burger topped with cheese, wrapped in a shell of woven bacon, with arms, legs and tail made from hot dogs.)


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Season starts fast, gets faster

Hi, Everybody: Just a few quick notes about MGM: 

lattoff-sm.jpgFirst: Our Latoff meet went really well with some unbelieveable times for such an early part of the season. By some measures, we are posting race results that are about what you'd expect in March, or even at the State meet.

The team is looking strong right now: It's great to see newcomer Dan Campione posting some amazing times, Rachel Dickman and Karen Scobbie (pictured left) posting personal bests; Chad, John Javorski and Lonny hitting on all cylinders, while Mary Moore and Marilyn and John Miller are dominating their age groups. Really fun to see. It's amazing how much this team has evolved over the last few years – from basically a social group to a competitive team that has to be treated seriously at every meet.

Speaking of meets, it's not too late to sign up for the Evanston meet coming up this Sunday. You have until Thursday to register by email for the meet. Details can be found on our web site. (Go to  and download a copy of the Evanston Masters January Meet Detail sheet.)

Finally, a ruling came out today from USMS saying that speed suits will be legal for lzr-racer.jpgShort Course Masters Swimming until June 1, 2010. That means that for the rest of this season, you can still wear a full-body suit that make you feel like a seal at Lincoln Park Zoo. After that, they're gone forever.  If you have never worn a suit, but want to feel at least a little bit like Micheal Phelps must feel all the time, you can still pick up a greatly discounted suit -- but HURRY, John Javorski checked with Blue 70 today, and they told him that they were almost completely sold out, and have no plans to redevelop them. Here's a link, if you're interested: http://www.blueseventy.com/store/us/product.php?productid=20&cat=0&bests...

 


All About the MGM Twitter

twitter64.pngNew to the website this season is Twitter, an online service that lets us post fast-breaking information to the site and to each other. You'll find this section throughout the site--it contains information about the team, schedule changes, meet results and random comments.

If you aren't familiar with Twitter, don't worry, you don't have to do anything different. (No need to create an account or download a special application or visit any particular website.) For most people, all you'll really need to know is that the most up-to-date information about the team will likely appear in the "mgmtwitter" section of the web site first.

But for those of you who have smart phones, or just want to be able to take part in the ongoing MGM conversation, I highly recommend downloading a Twitter application and following our team news feed. (They are available for all kinds of phones--Twitterific on the iPhone; TwitterBerry on the BlackBerry. Google for your phone's particular flavor.)

Once installed, you'll be able to receive instant team updates, and –coolest of all–even post your own comments to mgmtwitter section.(That's one of the great things about this service--any team member can add news or comment on another post. Did you just swim a personal best? Post it to our site through Twitter. Get to the AgSchool and find out the pool is closed? Tell other members about it through Twitter so they don't have to drive all the way over.)


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