Living the Moment

This weekend for me was spent at the Davidson Invitational, coaching our fine athletes for a three-day competition against similarly talented southern schools ranging from Old Dominion (CAA men's power) to Limestone (Division II power.) This also marked Week 12 of our season, almost exactly the midpoint between our first Labor Day practice and the conference championships in late February.

The team was using this meet as a great opportunity to see how tough we could remain in a preliminaries/finals format, selecting 5 or more races per individual, and not resting or wearing faster equipment, unlike the majority of the competition. For Davidson students, this week and the days leading to the Thanksgiving break are quite strenuous with schoolwork - many papers, exams, and late nights. Logging 24 hours of pool time over three days definitely puts a dent into studying.

This meet, too, was probably the third to fifth most important competition of the student-athletes' season. There will be bigger races as the season unfolds and the monotony of being in the same environment for a month can feel bland and uninspiring. Yet, amidst fatigue, academic anxiety, and the sheer competitive environment, across the board, the team swam extremely well. I could write at length about each individual and their many successful races and has me very enthused at what awaits us in the coming months. But I want to hone-in on eight individuals in particular.

These individuals did all win (get first-place) at some point over the weekend. They are very dedicated workers, very competitive, very self-motivated. This is not to say that others on the team do not possess these attributes, because they certainly do. The proof in achieving best times is evidence of the former.

The separation, however, comes by living the moment.

John, our head coach, often uses this in describing someone who understands the stakes and embraces the challenge. Many athletes and teams are capable of winning, but to absorb the opportunity and capture the victory remains elusive, especially when the stakes are at its zenith. No, the stakes weren't incredibly high this weekend. The competition, though, was very good and not as beat-up from training as we were.

Opportunity.

We should not have broken any college records at the invitational, yet we broke three. Those three record-setting performances came from three individuals that anyone would love to root for. The other five victors, too, are high-character, hard-working kids that enjoy being Wildcats and are enthralled with leading their squads. They don't gloat, they don't cut corners, and they don't worry about what they can't control. They live for the moment. They embrace the challenge.

This is what made this past weekend so enjoyable and so profound. In ten days, we'll be in Gambier, Ohio against faster swimmers in a charged environment. Our plan has been to make this meet in Gambier our fastest of the fall. As a team, we have had a very successful twelve week run and our twelve weeks ahead look very promising. It certainly will be difficult to better the swims we've posted at this point in the season with little rest, the lengthy travel, and the burden of knowing finals await the kids when they return.

Opportunity.