The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Roughly 20 swimmers are looking to give their best as Aqua Jets this season. The club held its tryout and registration earlier this week in hopes of adding numbers to their roster. First time head coach Jim Aune, who has been involved with swimming before, says they are looking at an extra five swimmers who are interested in joining, so far. Though it is a competitive swimming club, the coach says it isnÕt all about having the fastest time. ÒAs long as they can swim the length of the pool on their own,Ó says Aune, Òthey can be Aqua Jets.Ó And for those who can swim but donÕt want to be competitive, there are different levels of participation. This year, swimmers who are interested in being competitive will be able to participate in a number of meets with other clubs. And on their first day, Aune could tell there were half a dozen swimmers who have the potential to swim in Provincials. New this year, to help keep the athletes motivated and competitive, Aune has introduced the Progress Point System. ÒIt helps to keep the practices a competitive atmosphere,Ó he says, noting it puts the Òonus on the kids.Ó Swimmers get points for coming to practice, their work ethic, beating their best times and workouts outside of swimming. ÒThe one with the most points at the end of each quarter will receive a reward,Ó he says, noting the point system is an incentive for the swimmers. ÒIt makes the practices competitive, just like the meets.Ó Though there is a lot of talk about competition, Aune says itÕs important to know thatÕs not what the sport is all about. ÒSwimming is not just about winning,Ó he says. ÒBut the harder you swim at practice, the harder you swim at meets.Ó As a first year head coach, Aune helped out on the sidelines last year. But he says he is on a learning curve this year and taking it one step at a time. And to help not only him, but the swimmers as well, Aune has introduced the bulletin board, which helps the athletes keep track of their progress. ÒThey can see where they are and where they need to be,Ó he says. ÒAnd what they need to get to their B time and Provincial time.Ó As the coach watches his athletes in the water, he says heÕs excited about this season. ÒThere is lots of potential,Ó he says. ÒThere are three or four new kids and they already are strong swimmers. ÒThis could be a nice looking club.Ó The team meets four times a week for two hours to practice at the Flin Flon Aqua Centre, but Aune says compared to other clubs, itÕs about half the time needed. ÒTo be in Swim Manitoba you have to swim at least eight hours a week. But compared to Winnipeg, they are swimming 10-12 hours a week.Ó And as Aune says, those clubs have full-time coaches, unlike the Flin Flin Aqua Jets. Provincials This past swimming season, the Aqua Jets were able to send four swimmers to Provincials Ð Garrison Aune, Emma Peterson, Jenna Bratvold and Kyla Suss, all of whom were first year competitive swimmers. From there, Garrison and Emma placed in the top seven of the province. Also, four swimmers were sent to Carmen this summer for the 2008 Power Smart Manitoba Summer Games. Attending were Garrison, Emma, Jenna and Nicole Storey. The Norman region upped their ante this past year as they walked away with 34 medals, half of which came from swimming. In the last games, the Norman region received only three medals in total. But this year, the region came out in third place. ÒThey (the Flin Flon swimmers) were all first years,Ó says the coach. ÒOne couldnÕt swim the length of the pool to start with, but moved onto Provincials and the Summer Games.Ó Aune noted a swimmer from The Pas was at a meet in Flin Flon and ultimately missed the Olympic swimming team by a quarter of a second. ÒIt just goes to show, it doesnÕt matter where you are from,Ó he says.
