| There are no upcoming events. |
|
Men's Swimming & Diving Training Blog
January 8 - Nathan Taylor So by now I basically have no recollection of what life is like outside of Florida training camp. I am pretty sure that I have spent my entire life or at least the entire year here in Florida getting myself prepared for some faraway meet in some faraway place (Big Ten Championship in West Lafayette or something like that). I've been told that there are only a few days left here and we are going back to the cold. I vaguely remember leaving a cold climate for Florida, and now since there is a permanent feeling of summer any attempt to visualize snow or dreary landscapes is spent in vain. I have a faint recollection of being a student at a place called Purdue University; but before you call me crazy, I say this only because I find that I always seem to have official Purdue Swimming and Diving gear on. Strangely enough, all of the people I have been hanging out with on this trip have similar looking articles of clothing which might be the reason that I am so attracted to them. Black and gold looks so refreshing in the midst of all this blue and orange gator business. It is difficult to describe what one particular day is like here in Florida with a Purdue training camp mentality as every morning when I wake up I feel like Bill Murray from Groundhog's Day. So I suppose I will begin about 24 hours ago. At this time everyone was full and happy from an IHOP adventure which was almost as brutal to our bodies as the workout that preceded it. On this particular evening we had an opportunity to recover without a practice and everyone seemed excited to go out and enjoy this land called Florida. Unfortunately there are few places that a responsible Boilermaker Student Athlete could enjoy late at night here. As part of tradition the seniors were able to miss a practice the next morning to go out and enjoy themselves as mature adults reminiscing of times of old with teammates they have known the longest. This is cute, but it left the rest of us stranded with no vans in a wonderful hotel on a pristine beach. Argh. Alas, we were able to keep ourselves entertained as best we could playing cards, making multiple trips to Winn-Dixie, getting free num-nums from Dunkin' Donuts upon closure and chatting about swimming, school, and what one would put in their kangaroo pouch if they had one. Sometime after the sun went down I took an eight hour nap and woke to the earth greeting me with a friendly `helloooo' (with a voice similar to Johnny Depp's). My roommates were still sleeping so I grabbed a bite to eat and headed down to the beach to do some early morning reading from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I am at a part in the book that was a bit difficult to wrap my square, engineering mind around when I was delightfully interrupted by Dan Ross making faces and sticking out his tongue through the window at the individuals sitting on the patio. Oh shenanigans. After chatting with teammates who were getting up and out on the beach to catch some early rays, I didn't get any more reading done and prepared for practice instead. Today's practice was a kind of flush out preparing us for the night's practice. I've heard rumors that there are only three practices left until we go `home', but I won't believe it until I feel that icy northern wind. It has been certainly nice getting my brain blown out by just swimming these past couple of weeks instead of swimming and ME courses but I suppose I will have to adjust very shortly. But lucky for me, our coaches have just informed us that our `training camp' actually does not end until a week and a half after school begins, so I don't actually have to make huge adjustments to my daily schedule yet. Oh joy! Three days till we head home and by the way; we are all beach-magnets by now just in case you were wondering how that turned out. January 7 - Wyatt Hodges It seems the mornings here are getting shorter and shorter. January 6 - Ben Wachtel Recently, I reassessed my goals.
I'm not talking about my goals in the pool, however. The goals I set in my pre-season meeting still stand, goals which I plan to achieve by the end of the season. And I still feel like we can not only achieve, but even exceed our team goals.
This trip has reinforced my faith in this team in many ways. I know that parts of this trip would make excellent scenes for a training montage, and that soon we'll have a team-unifying moment like in every great sports movie. Our championship meets are closer every day, and I know this team is going to do something amazing. I would bet on it, but at the beginning of the year we learned that the NCAA is trying to tackle the issue of gambling, so I'll just promise.
Sorry to get off topic. The goals I have reassessed have nothing to do with swimming. They have everything to do with becoming a professional Mario Tennis player. For those of you that don't know, Mario Tennis is a video game for the Nintendo 64. I am very passionate about Mario Tennis. I am a very competitive person, so I sort of go into a steely-eyed trance while playing.
It's part of the daily routine for my Florida household, which includes myself, Albert Miller, Bill Arzner and Michael Hedge. Each day we play some old-school video games before our morning workout, then return to the hotel for naptime and shenanigans. These shenanigans usually involve me wrestling one or more of my roommates, which results in a Ben Wachtel victory via a move I call the Squeezebox. Michael has probably endured this the most, but that's because he always must be taught a lesson. That is one reason why you should never mess with the Purdue Boilermakers.
I believe that another member of the team already wrote about the enormous beast that invaded the pool during our workout time, but I feel further explanation of the incident would help to enlighten the millions of Purdue Swimming and Diving fans that flock to the team website to read our travel logs each day.
Some would try and tell you this creature was an iguana, but I disagree. First of all, iguanas do not stand ten stories high and breathe fire. This creature was none other than a Stegosaurus, a monster that is thought by many to be extinct. They are incorrect. This beast leapt almost fifty feet to scale the barrier between the swimming center and the outside world. It then stared each of us down from the corner of the pool area. Many bystanders cowered in fear or even ran, screaming in terror. That's when I devised a daring plan. The villain was ready to eat Matt Stewart, but just as it moved toward him, I challenged him to a 200-meter freestyle time trial. Sorry to gamble again, but I told it that if I lost, he could eat the entire team. If I won, he had to vacate the premises.
Needless to say, he was too scared to race me. He wouldn't even race Greg Franzen, because even Purdue's managers are impeccable athletes and capable of swimming valor. Instead, the monster clung to a lane line, too scared to even swim away. He was so scared that he forgot how to swim.
It's time for my nap and shenanigans; I have to recharge after this morning's sprint group workout. I hope you enjoyed reading, because I sure have enjoyed the last fourteen minutes, which is how long I spent writing this.
Only 109 days until Arbor Day! January 5 - Ryan Dafforn HOLA from Florida!! As a student-athlete who speaks fluent English being in Miami (aka: Ft. Laudy, aka, the 305, aka, Dade County) is helping me become fluent in Spanish as well, since there are so many Spanish-speaking people and signs here in southern Florida. Anywho, Ft. Laudy (and yes, that's what some locals call this Tropicana (no not the orange juice)) is surely treating the Purdue Boilermakers well! First, let me tell the bad news: yesterday it rained for the first time for 30 minutes at 6 pm. No worries, this rain did not interrupt any sun bathing or ocean-swimming time, because by 6 it is about dark here (just like in West Lala (we're in the same time zone)). Last night, a few of us ventured to a restaurant recommended by the chief food connoisseur himself, Mr. Daniel P. (I'm not sure what he real middle name is, but I'd put a bet on it being Purdue) Ross. It is known to locals as the Raw Bar and is apparently a local seafood favorite. Located near downtown Ft. L, to say the least, this place was splendid! Just ask Tim Watts, (who by the way is one of the most immaculate drivers probably on the face of this Earth) Wyatt Hodges, AJ Boeh, Sean Davis, or Travis Smith. They accompanied me on this maiden voyage and from it we took many memories such as; our waitress teaching AJ how to eat oysters and crab legs, and "446" minutes later, he learned and finished his meal!! You could also ask Sean, Travis, or Wyatt how awesome their dolphin (not the "Flipper" kind, the mahi mahi kind) sandwich tasted; `cause they will tell you it was...well, awesome! Or ask me about how the waitress thought I was in middle school I say she really had a secret crush on me. All-around, the Raw Bar was a fantastic time! Today began just as any other: wake up at 9:30 head down to the beach (where it is already a beautiful 75 degrees) grab some breakfast, relax on the beach, and then wheels roll promptly at 11. I ride in the Dan Ross (our head coach) van. Our van consists of (assistant coach) Jeremy Agnew, (he doesn't like being called Jeremy, so we refer to him as "J") Andre Koop, Travis Smith, Chad Dillon, and Kyle House. We're a fun bunch, and riding in the van with Dan is an adventure in itself. Dan is very good driver, and he cares about his passengers. For example, en route to the Pine Crest pool, we travel on a stretch of pavement that had "speed humps" on it. Right before he goes over each "hump" Dan prepares us by saying "bump." Dan also tells us many stories from years past. It is neat to hear about all the Purdue Swimming history. The only negative about our trips with Dan is the music, he and J like some old tunes, I miss Britney, "Fiddy", Dave, Kanye, Chris... you get the picture. I need an iPod. We had a tough 30 minute workout of abs, coached by J, followed by a 2 hour swim. On a personal note, I currently am recovering from mononucleosis, so I am not able to practice as long and as intense as the rest of the team, but I am improving every day. When I am finished I help Chad or Greg or the coaches with practice, or I help the team getting times on sets they are doing, it depends on the day. Everyone has been working extremely hard, and I know this team is heading in the right direction. Today was especially fun because Sam decided to swim with us. Sam (named by Dan Ross) is our new team Iguana. He stands at about 3 to 4 inches tall, and is about 2 feet long. As part of his dryland workout he loves to climb fences, swim bags, and take long walks on the beach. He is an extremely fast swimmer, although swimming on the surface proved troublesome due to lane lines in his way, Sam is like a torpedo underwater, I took notes. Sam hung around with us for most the afternoon, but, like me, got out about 30 minutes early. I hope Sam can make it to practice tomorrow. This afternoon was a typical afternoon of relaxation, sun, ocean, and food. Tim Watts and I share a love for a place called Jamba Juice (sadly, not located in West Lafayette, or many places for that matter) currently has accepted 15 dollars and 75 cents from me, and I plan on giving them a lot more money in turn for their out-of-this-world smoothies (just ask Wyatt how magical they are). Now, back at the Ocean Manor resort, I will rest and watch television in preparation for the day's second practice, for which wheels roll at 7:30. So with that, as the traditional saying goes: all good things must come to an end, so does this blog. Adios!!
This morning started like any other here in Fort Lauderdale. I woke up to the sun shining around the shades and the hum of the air conditioner turning on and off. My three other roommates were still asleep (I'm kind of an early riser in comparison to most at 8:15 am). I grabbed some quick breakfast and to the dismay of my fellow roommates finished my morning ritual by throwing the shades aside, letting the morning sun burst across the faces of Sean Davis, Kyle House, and Drew Wolfred. I think Sean and Drew have become accustom to this morning awakening, but House still seems to not enjoy it as he grunts and sends rude gestures my direction. Several of us congregated down on the beach for our morning frolic in the ocean waves, but I sat on the sand to ponder the previous night's practice. The main group had completed a dive set and shown what they were truly capable of doing. Andre Koop led the way for the backstrokers doing repeat after repeat with incredible speed. The distance boys did a long freestyle set where props truly need to be given to Sean for the final times he posted. Back at the beach, Brendan Joyce has completed his morning popping of the beached man o' war (the numbers of which are increasing each day) using his trusty "popping stick", and at about 10:45 am, most of the group leaves the beach to prepare for the days practice at noon. Dan has already sent out numerous text messages giving us a countdown to the start of practice and its breakdown. We all get to the vans filled with excitement and laughter (apparently bad boy basketball player Dennis Rodman is staying at the hotel) and ride to the pool. The only practice for the day is pretty light since the last two full days of practice have been brutal on everyone's bodies. We head to the weight room to complete our "Curls for the Girls" as Bill Arzner likes to call them. Coach J. works on his beach-body with his daily pull-ups and practice is over. Some of the guys are going to visit the nearby Swimming Hall of Fame this afternoon. I have chosen instead to put my feet up for a bit, relax, watch a little playoff football, and rest up because Dan has already sent out an afternoon text message describing tomorrow's brutality of a workout.
Boiler Up! At 8:30 am. I woke up next to my roommate after a long night of wrestling for the sheet in our cozy room with a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean. The loser of this epic battle was Wyatt Hodges, and he might have gotten upset, but this morning was particularly easygoing as we are finally going through our first full cycle of 2-2-1 a day workouts, and everyone is a little worn out from a late 10 o'clock practice the night before. Some don't like the late practices, but I am really enjoying the late starts and big breakfasts. After eating way too much and paying way too much for a shave (which you can't get anywhere in Lafayette) we stormed to the pool in our golden chariot with Tim Watts at the reigns. I hate to brag, but we currently are the reigning champions with most wins to the pool from the hotel parking lot. We pull out all the stops and with a determination similar to Speed Racer; we race everywhere to get ourselves mentally prepared for practice. Today practice was as difficult as one could imagine, but I will not bore with all of the details. Just know that today during practice Dan was quoted singing "Shlieben schloben, schlieben schloben" to the beat of Bad Boys. Oh shenanigans! The afternoon is spent eating, hydrating, and I've substituted laying out on the beach and playing in the waves for sleep. Later on we will head back to practice for a dive set which is sweet, except it gets pretty cold here at night, around 65 or so... brrr. I am not sure how much everyone knows about Florida - I know for sure I didn't know a lot - but I have learned a lot on this trip as I like to keep myself sharp both mentally and physically. I have learned lots about the pace of life, climate and local wildlife thanks in part to John Schmitt. We have had quite enjoyable weather since we've been here. You know, 80s, breezy, no clouds ... the works. The weather has been great and we are all working quite intensely on our tans. As mentioned before, we have practice from around 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 8 to 10 p.m. Dan says we have these practice times because other teams took the pool at times that would be "more appealing." However, I think this was part of J's master plan. We have some elevated goals this season and hoped to avoid any distractions from them on the beach in sunny Fort Lauderdale, but I am a goal setter myself and have communicated these ideals with my coaches. Although our long-term team goals are prominent, they have been pressed to the back of my mind this upcoming week as I strive for something of greater importance. My mission on this trip, as I have been elating to others, is to become a beach magnet. Why else would we train in Speedos in the best tanning time of the day? So for those on the team who are not accustomed to our training times, I apologize, but we are doing this for everyone's own good. There will be no denying who the Purdue men's swimming and diving team is when we get back to campus ... the best-looking men there. By now we are a bit too tired to be edgy with each other and are approaching a mood similar to when you've reached 4 a.m. studying for your last final of the semester, which makes for incredibly entertaining conversations and situations. So with that, I've taken too much time slacking off inside writing this bit and need to head back out to the beach to carry on with my grueling regiment of sunbathing my back and front. I bid you adieu from the land they call Florida.
It's beautiful in Fort Lauderdale. And when the day starts out with waking up at one's own leisure to beautiful, temperate Florida, something is going right for you. The past few days have been excellent in that regard. Today, after a relaxing evening with no practice yesterday, we had a relaxing morning. Many of us spent it lying on the beach. At 10:50 (or a few minutes before, in the case of the van driven by Tim Watts) the vans left for Pine Crest pool. We arrived at the facility, and had a few minutes to change into workout clothes and stretch before the practice began. Promptly at 11:15 we began our dryland exercises. One station, ran by Coach Agnew, consisted of four sets of pushups, quick-paced medicine ball passes with a partner and finally jogging followed by wheel barrels with a partner. The other station, ran by Coach Ross, was made up of some jogging, quick sprints and core exercises. I found the dryland to be challenging, I know that I am starting to feel the cumulative effect of the practices we have done so far on the trip. I see my teammates around me are feeling it, too. We just have to keep reminding ourselves of the goals we set this season. None of us set goals that will be attained without work. To stay motivated, I have to keep reminding myself of what I want to see on the scoreboard at the end of the season. I also see the guys around me working their butts off. It makes me want to redouble my efforts, so I can contribute to the team. These two things are what keep me going. At noon, we jumped in the pool for our water workout. When we arrived, the first few practices were done, for the most part, as a team, with no splitting into specialized groups to train to the races we will compete in. Today was the first day practice we split up. The IM workout was the one with the most participants. It was not the most challenging workout on its own, but the workouts of the past few days left us sore. It took me a very long time for my muscles to loosen up. Most days there are a few people who have to struggle a bit through warm up, and today I took that role. There was a gradual progression In the intensity of the workout, which was nice. It allowed for some time to get the muscles ready for the set of 200 IMs at the end of the IM workout. The last sendoff was a 200 IM max effort. Talking to people about the set, it seemed to have gone about very well for the team as a while. There were some quick times. It seems we are all making the adjustment to training while we are more sore and tired than we have been all year. After practice, everyone is usually pretty excited to go out and get food. Each van of people chooses their own place to go. Tim's van went to a local deli close to our hotel for lunch, where we stocked up on calories via sandwiches and fries. I was impressed with the quality, and the quality, of food we got for the price. I am sure we will stop there again before the trip is over. After practice, it is very satisfying to get some good food. It is even better when the service is as good as it was at this particular deli. When lunch is over, the vans head back to the hotel to enjoy a quiet afternoon before evening practice. We all recover in different ways. Some try to squeeze in the longest nap possible. I am a part of this group. Some spend their time out on the beach, enjoying the beautiful weather. Some, such as my roommates Nate and Andrew, are out doing things like spending time with family or friends, or grocery shopping. No matter what each person does, we all try and get in some sort of recovery for the practice that lies ahead. Tonight the main group is doing a threshold set. So far, that's all the information we have been told about the workout. I try to think about it as little as possible. It doesn't do any good to worry about it. I know that, as a team, we will get in tonight and do whatever we can to get better. We all have lofty goals for this season, and we are working to achieve those goals. But it is said that it's not the destination that matters, it's the journey. In the first few days in Florida, the journey is proving to be a lot of fun.
The Purdue men's swim team recently braved an arduous voyage to a place called "Florida," a place we currently occupy. Before I got here, I didn't know what to expect. I had heard rumors that Florida was somehow warmer than West Lafayette, but as West Lafayette is widely regarded as the greatest city the world has ever seen, I doubted that Fort Lauderdale, Fla., could impress me in any way. I am a hard guy to impress. I had some ideas about what Fort Lauderdale would be like, though. I expected high stone walls lined with guards. I expected a moat filled with metal poisonous alligators forming a perimeter around the city. I thought there would also be a trading post, just like in the game Oregon Trail. Little did I know that Fort Lauderdale is not an actual fortress. The reason we are here in this oceanic utopia is to train super hard and bond as a team. Both of those things are extremely important, as are our two secondary goals of getting sweet tan lines and checking out the scenery. The super-hard training is going very well, thank you for asking. It is as super hard as the name suggests, and there is the always present threat of the super-hardness level escalating. I would hate to give away the coaches' mastermind plan for ultimate training optimization, so I will give vague details so rival teams are rendered incapable of shady behavior. Spies from Michigan, Texas and Auburn, please stop reading now. Thank you. This morning, we dove in the water promptly at noon. The water at Pine Crest, our training dojo, is perfect in every single way. The pool reminds me a lot of swimming in the ocean, because it tastes like saltwater. Also, the sun is very bright, which fills each and every swimmer with joy upon soaking up its rays. This morning was filled with milestones, as it was the first of 2009; also because we swam several miles. Our practice began with a brisk warmup, which was enjoyed by all. You could see the looks of excitement and enjoyment on everyone's faces. We then grabbed our trusty kickboards for a nice, long kick set. After our 36-minute kick set was over, we begun a second kick set. Believe it! Our legs are now stronger than ever before, and it's not ridiculous to claim they are 10 or more times stronger than the legs of an Olympic stair climber. Possibly the most exciting part of the team training trip, for me, is the time spent in our rented Nissan Pathfinder, which is an extremely high-class SUV. It is literally unstoppable, and no barrier or obstacle in its path could hinder its forward movement. Driven expertly by Bill Arzner, it has allowed us to see many exciting things and to carry out various types of shenanigans. For example, today we were traveling to our amazing team dinner at Zuckerello's, and we were stopped by a drawbridge that was allowing some type of water vehicle to pass through below. The Pathfinder could have climbed the 89-degree incline and spanned the gap easily, but since it's a rental we decided to be considerate and observe the rules of the road. That's the type of lesson that Purdue Athletics imparts on its athletes - that we are not better than others just because we participate in athletics, and that we should conduct ourselves with class and respect at all times. I ate possibly the best meal of my life tonight, and we even got to enjoy an evening out of the pool. We will be ready to go after it again in the pool in the morning, though, and every day until we return to West Lafayette, and then every day until our championship meets.
|
 
 |
 |
 |
