Intro to Nitro
Cedar Park: Josh Chandra
Josh is such a hard worker and great competitor. It does not matter what we are doing but Josh has to come in first. Over the last couple months Josh has worked very hard on his butterfly stroke, making sure to always ask questions about what the correct technique is. This past week Intro focused mainly on the timing of butterfly and Josh was soaking up every word. Josh demonstrated really awesome butterfly arms and a strong butterfly kick. This week Josh showed his coaches his best butterfly yet. Awesome job this week Josh, keep it up! —Coach Hannah
Bee Cave: Rishi Yarlagadda and Avery Hua
This past week, Intro focused on butterfly; Rishi and Avery knocked in out of the park. Focusing on the rhythm of butterfly, both swimmers perfected the “kick-reach, kick-breathe” drill. Rishi demonstrated a strong kick taking a low breath. When it came time to work on the arms, he really focused on tall arms over the water. I can always count on Avery to work hard and focus on the skills, all the while with a big smile on her face. She focused on being tall with each kick and getting her head under her arms. In addition, Avery’s underwaters are always superb! Way to go Rishi and Avery! Keep it up! —Coach Raven
Bronze
Cedar Park: Taylor Stephenson
Bronze had 3 focuses this past week, all of which Taylor knocked out of the park. First, she refined her backstroke catch to make it more powerful and efficient. Then, Taylor showed off her long and strong breaststroke. Taylor finished off a great week by making the back-to-breast turns look easy. Taylor has really pushed herself to become a great swimmer! Keep it up! —Coach Adam
Bee Cave: Tatum Green
Some really big changes coming from this young lady, tall arms on her butterfly, a quick snap with straight arms has made all the difference. This week the balance of Tatum’s fly has fallen into place, the quick straight arms coupled with a dropped forehead have turned her stroke into a smooth long stroke that will be the start of a great IM! Its all about changing the feel and Tatum is learning that feeling the stroke is just as important as seeing the stroke. Great job young Lady! I can’t wait to see the 100 IM in a meet. —Coach Chuck
Technique and Fitness
Cedar Park: Kelly Lui and Ben Proulx
Kelly did an amazing job this past weekend with her backstroke technique. Especially with her underwater streamlines and strong finishes. Kelly has been with Nitro for some time and she is always up to the plate to demonstrate, has a smile on her face, leading her lane and more or less representing a polished Nitro swimmer. Ben did a great job this past week remaining cool and focusing on his backstroke. The spin drill looked AWESOME and really added to his timing on his entry and exit of his arms. He also never forgot to kick. A huge part of the backstroke. Great attitude as well. Always good with the one liners! Great job you two thanks for being a part of the NITRO family and we’ll see you at the pool. —Coach Stephen
Bee Cave: Adam Kristoff
Adam has been doing a lot of growing lately. I don’t mean physical growing; but rather, learning how important teamwork and lane-etiquette are in every practice. This week Adam made a big step forward! Coach Nick and I have been helping him vary his speed. Adam knew one speed – fast. He sprinted everything all the time no matter what. So, we’ve been helping him understand when it’s appropriate to go fast and when to slow things down a bit. For instance, when we do drills, or are learning something for the first time, it’s always best to take things a little slower so we can focus on doing it right instead of rushing through it and sacrificing proper technique. This week, Adam did just that! I’m so proud of him and how far he’s come. Now I can count on him to make those around him better – especially in his immediate lane! —Coach Jonny
Silver
Cedar Park: Chloe Issa
Chloe did a great job this week as we covered backstroke. As we focused on rotation through the stroke and keeping the hips up as well, I could see Chloe striving to make her body longer in the water by these two skills. Usually when I present her with a challenge, Chloe’s response is a smile and a simple “OK.” But don’t be fooled by the sweet smile, she’s definitely a force to be reckoned with in the water. Awesome job, Chloe! —Coach Claire
Bee Cave: Connor McClune
Connor has made some leaps and bounds in his swimming since joining Silver, especially in his butterfly. He used to come way out of the water for his breath, so high that I could almost see his stomach out of the water! Now, he keeps his breath low and chin close to the surface, a much more efficient and aesthetically pleasing stroke. He’s also been more punctual to practice, which is great to see. I’m so pleased with the effort Connor has put in recently, and I’m excited to see that continue! Great job, Connor! —Coach Peter
Advanced Silver
Bee Cave: Jared Guerra
Jared has been a great athlete in the water and at dryland, leading the way in practice. His consistency is impressive with four very strong strokes, along with superb listening and application skills. I have also been impressed with his kicking strength and speed. Watch out this summer for Jared, an upcoming superstar! —Coach Paige
Gold 1 & 2
Gold 1 CP: Olivia Valdez
With some of the changes in the group over the last week, I was looking to some of the veterans to step up and lead the group. Olivia was definitely the shining star in that regard. She was patient with some of the freestyle technique work we did, working hard on her catch, core stability, and underwaters. Olivia also showed off her endurance, swimming the furthest in a 10-minute swim, and posting some fast times in a 200 free, short course and long course! I’m looking forward to the season ahead, keep working hard Olivia! —Coach Adam
Gold 2 CP: Liam Riley
Liam made some huge improvements last week on breaststroke DPS and getting rid of a foot flex that snuck its way into his butterfly. His effort level is very consistent – no picking and choosing when he works hard. Liam has been rocking it so far this season and I can’t wait to see how performance on this week’s IM challenge set. Great work, Liam! —Coach Alex
Bee Cave: Braydon Angie
Yea Braydon!! I have seen a huge difference in Braydon over the past week alone. I always knew he was a racer, but we have been working on training details, and making sure we are doing the basics of pushing off from ready position or streamlining and working our underwaters. This past week I saw a commitment from Braydon to all of the little details and it made a huge difference in his overall performance throughout the week. I am hoping this SOW is encouragement and excitement for Braydon to continue the hard work! —Coach Allison