Jersey Shore Freshman Sets New School Fly Record

The Jersey Shore High School girls improved their season record to 3-0 with a 122-28 win over Mt. Carmel last night.  In the process, freshman Emma Butzler set a new school record in the girls' 100 yard butterfly with a time of 59.05.  High school record board can be viewed here.

Both the girls and boys won every relay and individual event on the evening.  The boys also won with a score of 60-32 to up their record to 2-1.

Williamsport HS v Athens

Lock Haven YMCA v Clarion Swim Results

Last weekends meet results between Lock Haven YMCA and Clarion can be found here.

Lock Haven YMCA Swimmers Crack Top 10 Middle Atlantic Times

USA swimmers out of the Lock Haven YMCA were able to crack into the Top 10 Middle Atlantic database.  Simon Lins in the 50 yard backstroke (here) and Emma Butzler in the 100 yard butterfly (here).

Lock Haven Y Swimming Apparel Now Available

Jersey Shore HS Girls Win Over Bellefonte

The Jersey Shore High School girls won their dual met over Bellefonte, 114-41 to up their record to 2-0  The boys fell 101-55 to go 1-1.  Nice write-up in today's Lock Haven Express here.

Shore's Luke Engel (lane 4) was trailing the Bellefonte swimmer for most of the race in the 500 yard freestyle.  He continually closed the gap throughout the race and finally overcame the deficit in the last 50 yards to take first.

Williamsport HS Boys Open Season With Win Over Central Columbia

Jersey Shore HS Swimming Over Shamokin

Boys Jersey Shore 77, Shamokin 32

Girls Jersey Shore 105, Shamokin 60

Lock Haven YMCA v Brookville v Bellefonte Results

The Lock Haven YMCA was able to get their first meet of the season in this past weekend where numerous swimmers made YMCA District times.  Full results can be viewed here.

2015 YMCA All Star Meet Info

More information can be viewed here.

Swimming Fan and AD to Step Down in Jersey Shore (or We Are Looking for a New AD)

After the Jersey Shore boys basketball team upset Loyalsock (#1 in the state in pre-season ranking), one of the local newspaper reporters commented that there has been a “great run in Jersey Shore sports last few years, excelling in just about everything”.

There are many factors that have produced this excellence such as dedicated student-athletes and parents.  Another significant factor in Jersey Shore’s rise has been the steady hand of the athletic director Bill Mincer.

There are times where the AD’s job may require the mundane such as setting up the athletic calendars, making sure there are referees for upcoming games, or keeping the ‘Dawg Pound’ in control (that is the student body cheer section).  But there are also times where patience and interpersonal skills are needed to deal with the student-athletes (we are dealing with teenagers after all) and at times confrontational parents.

Finally, the AD is instrumental in procuring new coaches for the variety of school sports offered within the school district.  It is the hope they all work out, but circumstances at times prevent the best intentions.

Bill Mincer handled all the tasks with professionalism and the student-athletes’ best interest in mind.  The swimming community and others will miss him and wish him luck with his next life adventure.  Below is the job announcement or it can be viewed here.

NLAC Winter Fest Results

Results from the Nittany Lion Aquatic Club's Winter Fest are posted here.  Below is Ethan Dale's 50 yard freestyle which was his personal best (he is the top swimmer in the video, lane 2).

Flashback Friday - Jersey Shore YMCA v ELY, 2008-2009

Several years of blogging have occurred at the Jersey Shore Swim blog with over 900 stories and articles posted.  With that in mind, the Jersey Shore Swim blog will occasionally pull out an occasional favorite or interesting item from the archives to share with readers (plus some interesting old stuff never posted) in a series called Flashback Friday.

The Jersey Shore YMCA swim team has a scheduled meet against East Lycoming YMCA tomorrow.  Today's Friday Flashback looks at the match-up from 2008-2009 season.  Meet results can be found here.

Jersey Shore YMCA Over Hollidaysburg

The Jersey Shore YMCA swim team defeated Hollidaysburg 6 - 4.  Fifteen Jersey Shore swimmers already qualified for Districts in over 30 events.

Jersey Shore v Mt Carmel Swim Postponed

This evenings swim meet between Jersey Shore and Mt. Carmel has been postponed due to weather conditions.

Finishes Can Be Very Important

A race is not just the turns, the underwater pulls, or between the flags but the complete package; including the finish.  Below is the video of Lock Haven Area Y swimmer Emma Butzler (Lane 4) with a close finish over Oliviah Rachael (Lane 3) of Elizabethtown Aquatic Club at the Nittany Lion Aquatic Club's Winter Splash meet this past weekend.  Teammate and LHAY swimmer, Rachel Marek, in Lane 1 (top of video) comes in fourth.

Flashback Friday - Jersey Shore v Mt. Carmel (2009)

Several years of blogging have occurred at the Jersey Shore Swim blog with over 900 stories and articles posted.  With that in mind, the Jersey Shore Swim blog will occasionally pull out an occasional favorite or interesting item from the archives to share with readers (plus some interesting old stuff never posted) in a series called Flashback Friday.

The Jersey Shore High School Swim Team opens up their season on Tuesday, December 9, against Mt. Carmel.  Below is a newspaper clipping from the 2008-2009 meeting between the two teams.  Clippings from the Lock Haven Express

Williamsport and Lock Haven USA Swimmers Gear Up For NLAC 2014 Winter Splash Meet

Several Williamsport and Lock Haven USA Swimmers Gear Up For NLAC 2014 Winter Splash Meet this weekend at Penn State's McCoy Natatorium.  Psych sheets can be viewed here.

PIAA District IV Swim Qualifying Times

It is still a long way to go to the PIAA District IV swim meet in February but Jersey Shore swimmers have times they can shoot for in order to qualify.  See below.

Susquehanna Transit Company Provides the JS Swim Team with New Scoreboard

The Jersey Shore High School swimming pool will have a new scoreboard for this upcoming season.  Big shout-out to the Susquehanna Transit Company for making this a reality.

Get Your Jersey Shore High School Swimming Gear

Get this seasons latest Jersey Shore High School swimming gear by contacting your local Jersey Shore swimmer.

Jersey Shore High School Swim Meet Schedule Set

A good number of home meets this year. The Bellefonte High School meet will be held at Penn State University. Some of the tougher meets, like Central Columbia and Bloomsburg, are scheduled toward the end of the season.

Lock Haven Y USA Swimmers at West Shore Y Thanksgiving Meet

Several Lock Haven YMCA/USA swimmers traveled down to the  West Shore Y Thanksgiving Meet this past weekend at Messiah College.  Full results can be viewed here.

Dubois Pentathlon Results Are Posted

Several local swimmers took part in the Dubois Pentathlon this past weekend.  Results can be viewed here. 

Jersey Shore High School Pool MIGHT Get New Equipment

2015 YMCA Pennsylvania Districts Qualifying Times

These qualifying times apply to all three PA District Championships - East, Central and West  see below or here.

Jersey Shore Swim Blog Addresses Anonymous Comment

On July 8, 2014, there was an anonymous comment left on the blog posting dealing with Mill Hall’s Community Pool (go here to see article).  The comment on the posting was as follows ‘If this is a blog for Jersey Shore swimming, why are you posting Mill Hall and Lock Haven articles.’

Good question and let’s see if we can shed some light onto the matter.  When one reads the Williamsport Sun-Gazette newspaper, does the reader only get news about Williamsport? Not really, the Williamsport paper covers all types of events from Jersey Shore to Hughesville to Blossburg.  Check out examples of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette, here and here, covering……. Jersey Shore swimming

Same with the Lock Haven Express.  They cover more than events that occur within Lock Haven.  Check out this Express article (here) on…….  Jersey Shore swimming.  Should the anonymous poster send a letter to the Express editor and ask for coverage of Jersey Shore swimming to stop?

Not sure why the geographic title in any type of media should limit the coverage of a topic to that specific area. 

A few years back, the sub heading under the Jersey Shore (PA) Swim blog title was changed to ‘This blog is designed to promote the sport and activity of swimming in central Pennsylvania (Jersey Shore, Lock Haven, and Williamsport swimming communities).’

Kids from Wellsboro come down and swim on the winter YMCA and summer recreation team.  Williamsport athletes come over to Jersey Shore YMCA to swim.  Is the Jersey Shore swim blog to ignore those swimmers as they go back to their community and compete for the respective high schools?

Why not showcase area swimmers to each other?  Jersey Shore swimmers compete all over the area.  Could it be that Jersey Shore swimmers and parents would like to see what is going on in the surrounding area? 

But even more important is the exchange of ideas.  How is a community dealing with a pool closing? Could Jersey Shore swim leaders get ideas from other communities that are banding together to fight off pool closures?

This anonymous poster must be going nuts with all the Jersey Shore football coverage in the Lock Haven Express of late.  That darn paper should only be covering Lock Haven football!

Lock Haven YMCA Swimmer Recognized for National Top Time

Turns Matter

It was a very successful weekend for Lock Haven Y USA swimmers with some dropped times and age group winners.  Great start for the beginning of the season.  Full weekend results can be viewed here.

It is also a good way to gauge strengths and weakness to determine where some fine tuning needs to be done.  For example, Lock Haven's Emma Butzler did fine between the flags in the 100 yard backstroke.  From the wall to the flags (and just a little beyond) was a different story.  Watch the video to see how she (lane 4) lost yards on her turn to the Nittany Lion Aquatic Club's Ashley Carper in lane 3.

Lock Haven Y-USA Takes Top Spot in 13-14 Girls 50 Freestyle

Rachel Marek swam the girls 13-14 50 yard  freestyle in the first heat at the Nittany Lion Aquatic Club Kick Off Meet since she had no time.  She had to wait until all other 26 swimmers finished to see her final placing.  Check out the video below to see the mornings top 13-14 girls 50 yard freestyle time.  She is the swimmer in the top lane.

Results can be found here.

Lock Haven Area Y USA Swimmers Open Up Swim Season This Weekend

Several USA swimmers from the Lock Haven YMCA are set to compete this weekend at the Nittany Lion Aquatics Club Fall Kick Off meet at Penn State's McCoy Natatorium.  The psych sheet can be found here.

Lock Haven YMCA Swim Season Set to Start

CENKEY League Swim Schedule Set for Winter

The CENKEY (Central Keystone) YMCA Swim League is all set for an intense season of winter swimming. Tentative schedule is below.

Fall Swim Clinic at Jersey Shore High School

One Step Closer to Saving Williamsport's Outdoor Pool

Major Donation to Williamsport's Pool Renovation

Learn to Swim or Swim Like a Fish

Jersey Shore Pool Used for Disaster Training

Bellefonte's Kepler Pool May Never Reopen (or Public Swimming Pools Disappearing in Central Pennsylvania)

To the east of Jersey Shore, Williamsport's East End Pool is closing for good (see here) with the city's other pool (Memorial Park) in serious funding trouble (see here).  To the west, it appears that Bellefonte's Kepler Pool may never reopen again.  See here for the story.  It appears that public swimming pools are set to disappear in central Pennsylvania.

Someone Needs to Herd the Cats

It does take a community to support a public swimming pool to make it accessible to youth and families year in and year out. Businesses, government officials, parents, and volunteers are critical cogs in the process of making things happen for the local pool but someone needs to take the lead and be point person for all these efforts.  The Community Pool at Mill Hall has the great benefit of having Kelly McGhee, a tireless advocate for the pool, leading the way.  Below is a letter to the editor she wrote for the Lock Haven Express to say thank you to everybody for their efforts this year.  The Jersey Shore Swim Blog recognizes her and others like her across the state of Pennsylvania that make things happen.

Jersey Shore YMCA Winter Swim Team Sign-ups

Flashback Friday - Celebration of the Montoursville Swimming Pool (or Pushing Up Clover)

Several years of blogging have occurred at the Jersey Shore Swim blog with over 900 stories and articles posted.  With that in mind, the Jersey Shore Swim blog will occasionally pull out an occasional favorite or interesting item from the archives to share with readers (plus some interesting old stuff never posted) in a series called Flashback Friday.

In 1974, community leaders saw the need for a swimming pool to service the youth of the Montoursville area (just east of Williamsport).  Lack of vision and commitment closed the pool a few years back (see here and here). Below is a plaque honoring those leaders that were committed to the community.  It still remains in place on the abandoned bath house.  Could this be the future of both of Williamsport's community pools?

The outline of the Montoursville Swimming Pool can still be seen (concrete walkway around the pool).  Clover is now pushing up in the center where the water used to rest.  The abandoned bathhouse is in the background

Apathy Might Sink Williamsport’s New Pool

A few weeks back, Williamsport’s mayor welcomed hundreds of swimmers of the Greater Susquehanna Valley Aquatic League (GSVAL) Championship meet to the East End Pool and invited them back next year to the new pool at Memorial Park (East End is scheduled to close at the end of this summer, see here).  A few days later, the Williamsport Sun Gazette wrote an article describing how disappointed the mayor was in the community’s effort to assist in some fundraising for the pool (see here).  Now the editorial staff of the same paper (can be viewed within the blog posting) has also chimed in and is wondering if a pool is even necessary or wanted because of the community’s poor support and effort in this project.

A few comments on the editorial and more….

·         The paper makes the comment that private pools are more plentiful as a possible reason for the muted fundraising response.  Private pools are great for those who 1) have the monies to buy and maintain a backyard pool and 2) have the space.  For those that don’t have monies and space, it appears you are screwed.  Go jump in a puddle!

·         What is up with this end of Williamsport?  First, the basketball hoops are taken down (see here,  here and here) and now some community leaders are questioning the need for a swimming pool (Williamsport, a town of 30,000 will be left without a public pool when the East End Pool closes the end of this summer).  For those that can afford a private pool, no problem.  Others will still need to find that puddle.

·         The Area Development Magazine listed Williamsport as a top 10 leader amongst small US cities in economic strength and recession busting (here).  That is great but what is the city going to offer or showcase to new families that might be tempted to move into the area to take advantage of this economic strength.  Current residents will already have the prime puddles marked out.

·         Williamsport’s community, businesses, and leaders open up their arms to the youth of the world as teams and their families pour into Williamsport during the Little League World Series.  Why aren’t our leaders and businesses opening up their arms to recreation for the residents of the city?

·         Where is Williamsport’s swimming community?  Some of the staunchest supporters of pools are swim team parents and are often the core of pool movements.  However, the lack of swim team parent action is not much of a surprise as Williamsport’s winter YMCA swim team (the River Valley Raiders) folded many years ago.  The summer swim team is a shell of its former self as it is now one of the smaller teams in the 13 team GSVAL (despite being the largest city in the league and central Pennsylvania).

Jersey Shore, just to the west of Williamsport, also has some pool issues (badly needed repairs).  Like Williamsport, the community has been asked to raise $50,000.  Jersey Shore, a town of 4,500 has collected just over $14,000 in cash and checks and has another $9,950 in pledges to the campaign.  That is just over $24,000 in two months (see here for more info on their fundraising).  Compare that to Williamsport (remember, a town of around 30,000) has only raised $3,000  in eight months (see here).  

Could it be that folks from Jersey Shore would rather not swim in puddles?

Flashback Friday - Senior Bios from 2006 BESL

Several years of blogging have occurred at the Jersey Shore Swim blog with over 900 stories and articles posted.  With that in mind, the Jersey Shore Swim blog will occasionally pull out an occasional favorite or interesting item from the archives to share with readers (plus some interesting old stuff never posted) in a series called Flashback Friday.

The summer swim season ended for most swimmers with the conclusion of the Greater Susquehanna Valley Aquatic League (GSVAL) Championship.  One of the traditions held over from the old Bald Eagle Swim League (BESL) Championship (merged with the Susquehanna Valley Swimming and Diving League to form the GSVAL) was senior recognition.

Below is a copy of the 2006 BESL Championship program recognizing seniors Trevor Bauman, Rachel Black, Mike Brown, Emily Cerrone, Andrew Cole, Elizabeth Gombosi, Vanessa LaBelle, Melissa Hostettler, Hyon Plants, Glen Richards, Bethany Sims, Rodman Walker, and Michelle Wheeler.

It is interesting to note that three teams listed on the cover of the BESL program no longer have teams; Troy, South Williamsport, and Montoursville.

Reason #9 On Importance of Learning To Swim – Rock Jumping Off Bluff Island

This is a continuing series in why everybody should learn how to swim as many activities take place around water.

Bluff Island, in Lower Saranac Lake, is known for its sheer cliffs.  Some are small and others are monsters.  The lake is dotted with islands and Bluff Island has rocks of all sizes to jump off.

Below are a few pictures of jumping off the smaller rocks.  It takes some guts to go off the 70 foot cliff and some brave souls have recorded their achievements here and here.

Photos of jumping the rocks of Bluff Island in the Lower  Saranac Lake
this past summer

 

Senior Bios For GSVAL Swimmers

In one sense, it is sad to see the older kids age out of swimming.  It seems they have been a fixture at the pool forever and become part of the pool itself.  They also serve as mentors for the younger swimmers and become great role models.   But it is also great to see them move on to their next stage of life. 

The senior bios in the Greater Susquehanna Valley Aquatic League Championship program tries to capture the past and future aspirations.  Below are the bios from the Jersey Shore and Lock Haven summer teams that include Paige Lorson, Evan Moore, and Tyler Sheets  For the bios of all the seniors in the summer league, go here (they include Amanda Getgen, Marissa Gombosi, Sam Payson, Catherine Dyer, Daniel Fertig, Alan Goecke, Josh Trump, Lauren Giordarni, Rachelle Boyd, Blair Carson, Alexandria Kurtz, and Olivia Owlett)

Area Swimmers Tackle Land Challenge

Area swimmers participated in the Lumberjack Triathlon this past Saturday with great results (which can be viewed here).  A few action photos of the event can be viewed below.

Swimmers lining up to enter the West Branch of the Susquehanna River

Most competitive swimmers don't experience the
thrashing of limbs between the lane lines

For those lucky enough to be out front, it is smooth sailing
as the waters are much calmer

Sprint to the finish

Jersey Shore, Lock Haven, and Williamsport Swimmers Defy Gravity (for a brief moment)

It's August and that means the annual trek over to Penn State to take on their high dives.  Several local swimmers spent a couple of hours on the high and low dives, Penn State Creamery, and Nittany Lion for a fun filled Sunday.

The high dives of Penn State

Jumping from the clouds

Gravity takes over

Group picture of swimmers after diving

No high dive is complete without a stop at Penn State's famous creamery

Before departing home, the girls got to hang out at the Nittany Lion Shrine