Jersey Shore Summer Swim Team Releases 2010 Schedule

The Jersey Shore Summer Swim Team released their 2010 swim schedule and follows:

• June 29 - Tri-Town, Away
• July 1 - Mill Hall, Home
• July 6 - Troy, Away
• July 13 - Loyalsock, Home
• July 20 - Wellsboro, Home
• July 22 - Williamsport, Home
• July 25 - All Stars, Away (Tri-Town)
• July 31 - Championships, Away (Loyalsock)

All home meets are held at the Jersey Shore Borough Pool

Status of Williamsport Pools

Interesting article in the Williamspoprt Sun-Gazette, titled "Expensive Repairs, Upgrades Muddy Futures" where the article talks about the situations public pool are facing in our area.

In a previous post, I talked about pool closings and potential closings but did not mention anything about Williamsport. This article states "Unrelated to the law or costly repairs, a feasibility study is being done on the three community pools in Williamsport. The study will not affect the pools opening this summer season and is being done to judge what the community needs are, according to Laura Barnsley, YMCA aquatic director." Let's hope that another community pool is not slated for closing.

Jersey Shore Triathlon

Could a triathlon be coming to Jersey Shore? Some parents and local officials are exploring the idea as a way to bring people into town, showcase the Jersey Shore swimming pool, and provide some activity and entertainment for families.

Every year, several Jersey Shore families head down to Lewisburg to participate in the Lewisburg Area Recreational Authority's kids triathlon. The swimming leg starts in their newly renovated Lewisburg Community Pool, a bike ride to the nearby industrial park and finishes with a run on the paths in the Lewisburg Community Park. Their event is open to boys and girls from 7 to 14 years of age.

Their event is non-competetive and meant to introduce children to the sport and get them active at an early age.

Some local officials might be traveling down with the Jersey Shore families this year to get an idea on how this could be implemented in our community.

If you visit their webpage, they have a saying at the bottom that is pretty cool. “A Community That Plays Together...Stays Together”

Public Pool Issues

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has an interesting article on the problems with local communtiy public pools. To read more go here.

Local Pools Closing

There have been several local public swimming pools closing or coming very close to closing the gates forever. It is a disturbing trend that is occuring on a national and local level. There is an excellent article on the potential future of public swimming pools and that families need to get involved if they want to save this resource.

Let's look at the status of some of central Pennsylvania's public swimmming pools:

• Moutoursville - This pool in Indian Park has seen it's last days as the pool area will be filled in. Information can be found here and here.
• Mill Hall - It was closed last season due to budget problems but scheduled to open this summer with a shortened season. It's future is uncertain as it is an aging facility and is in desperate need of repairs. A dedicated group of volunteers are working tirelessly to make the pool a long term reality. Lastest info can be found here.
• Bellefonte - Kepler Pool was given one more year of life as a resident stepped up and donated the necessary money to keep it running. Unfortunately, they will probably run into the same issues next year with the threat of closing. More info here.
• South Williamsport - It appears that the pool near the Little League complex will probably close this year and the communtiy has been given a deadline of March 1 next year to raise the necessary funds to fix the pool. Additional info here
• Blossburg - Not sure of the status of this one but the pool at Island Park was in danger of closing this summer. On a positive note, the potential closing is due to a major renovation effort that might not be completed in time for the opening swim season.

Jersey Shore High School Swim Team Looks for New Coach

Long time Jersey Shore High School swim team coach, Lou Anne Gasperine, announced her retirement last month on a high note. She led her girl's team to a 13th place finish in the 2010 PIAA State Meet with a seventh-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay and a swimmer placing in the top 5 in the 100 yard freestyle.

With the retirement, Jersey Shore is looking for a new head coach. Information can be obtained at The Jersey Shore Athletics Web Page