P.O Box 280 Stittsville, ON K2S 1A4

SPLASH

Volume 5; Edition 25 Thursday, May 11, 2006

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

"Do not be desirous of having things done quickly. Do not look at small advantages. Desire to have things done quickly prevents their being done thoroughly. Looking at small advantages prevents great affairs from being accomplished."

Confucius

UPCOMING EVENTS

Festival of Spring – Nepean Sportsplex - May 12-14– Platinum/Gold1/Silver.

Go Kingfish Long Course Invitational – Monpetit Hall University of Ottawa – May 27-28 - Qualifiers.

KSSC Distance Novice Meet – Kingston Military Community Sport Center – June 4^th – Silver/Bronze/Gold 2

PRACTICE CHANGES/CANCELLATIONS

Friday Morning May 12, 2006 – Gold 2 practice only.

Friday Afternoon May 12, 2006 – All practices cancelled.

Saturday May 13, 2006 – Normal practice for Bronze.

Thursday May 18, 2006 – Bronze practice cancelled due to mini-meet.

Monday May 22, 2006 – All practices cancelled due to Long Weekend.

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Fall Pre-Registration for all Bronze, Gold 2, Silver, Gold 1 and Platinum swimmers

Your swimmer's Fall Pre-Registration Package will be available for pick up during the week of May 15th at the pool.
Fall Pre-Registration will take place the week of May 29. More information to follow.

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COACHES REPORT

Head Coach Rob

Well done all swimmers who attended the Cornwall swim meet so many best times and some many first time swimmers.

This is going to be a buy time for us all this weekend Festival of Spring, Regional Training Camp next weekend, Go Swim Meet the next weekend then EOSA two weeks after that.

Head Coach

Rob

Coach Liliana

Last Sunday our Bronze and Gold 2 swimmers competed in the Cornwall Spring Meet. All the kids did very well, with some very good swims. This was a very good
experience for our swimmers, and prepared them for the next swim meets.

Congratulations to all of those who competed with some great improvement and most importantly super team spirit!

All the kids were happy at the end of the meet, as all got ribbons for
their efforts. This was a great reward for all of their hard work in preparing for the
competition and in the competition itself.

Parents, grandparents, coaches, and club members are proud of our swimmers. They deserve big congratulations for their work. Continue your good efforts and performance and results will happen!

Tip of the Week: Calming your nerves on the day of the meet

This week’s Speedo Tip of the Week comes from Ben Harlow, head age group coach for the ConocoPhillips Splash Club in Bartlesville, Okla. Last week, Harlow offered some advice on how to overcome pre-meet jitters. This week he writes about calming your nerves on the day of the meet.

Harlow’s Tip:
Now that all the preparation has been done prior to the meet, there are a lot of tips that can help you calm your nerves on the day of the meet.

Look around. When you get to the pool, look around and pay attention to the lanes, blocks, flags and distance. You will notice they are close to, or the same as, your home pool. It is never supposed to be different.
Crowd noise. If the crowd helps you, use it, but if it makes you more nervous, put on your headphones and tune them out. Use warm ups to get a feel for the pool and it’s dimensions.
Get comfortable with your lane. Stay in your own lane. Be one with your lane. It is yours. You can’t control uncontrollable matters, which is everything outside of your lane.
Make it feel like home. Think about this being your own pool. This way, you will feel more comfortable and may not even notice that it is not your regular “home” pool.
This is just another meet. You have nothing to lose, so go out there and just have fun.
Be confident. You have prepared for this race, and you know you will do well. Do not let others intimidate you. You deserve to be there as much as them.
Focus, but stay loose and relaxed. Try not to psych yourself out just before the race and get tense. Relax as much as possible, and just think about the race that lies ahead.
Do your very best. All you can ask for is your best effort. Always have fun!

You may be saying to yourself, “Coach, it is easier said than done!” That’s right, but if these tips are used over time, you can begin to get control of your emotions prior to swim meets and use them to help accomplish the task at hand. Give it a try!

Well-Meaning Parents Often Provoke Youngster Burnout!

Participation in an organized sports program can certainly have multiple benefits for the young athlete, including boosting self-esteem and motivation. Indeed, several research studies have shown that happy young athletes earn better grades, have fewer problems outside the classroom than their non-athlete classmates, drop out significantly less and have fewer absences. In addition, they tend to learn life skills, such as how to communicate, develop commitment and collaborate with coaches and peers.

What has become a distressing phenomenon among young athletes is burnout, which leads to psychologically, physically and emotionally dropping out of their sport due to stress. Essentially, burnout develops the moment that "the costs" of participating in the sport outweighs the perceived rewards. "Costs" include perfectionist needs, travel and practice pressures, feeling cut off from classmates because of the time demands of the sport and injuries. But the most consistent cause of burnout for the young athlete is parental pressure!

Specifically, young athletes describe parental pressure as the feeling that unless they continue to succeed in their sport, they won't be able to maintain a satisfactory relationship with their parent or parents. "For my folks, everything revolves around my sport" is a statement I hear too often in my sport psychology consultation with young athletes.

I certainly believe that most parents are well-intended with their young athletes. Becoming aware of the warning signs of burnout and preventive skills can go a long way toward eliminating the problem.

Warning Signs:
• high expectations and demands placed on the athlete;
• the athlete perceives these as excessive;
• the athlete becomes tense, anxious, and/or has difficulty sleeping;
• performance declines and the athlete seems withdrawn and fatigued;

Burnout Prevention Skills for the Parent
• recognize the warning signs and learn stress management skills you can teach your youngster;
• allow your young athlete to have some input into his/her training;
• help him/her set realistic goals for swimming performance and other life interests;
• communicate with and listen to your youngster frequently;
• minimize criticism...even innocuous parental remarks are frequently perceived by the youngster as critical.

Obviously, in sports, the athlete has enough challenges to overcome, including maintaining concentration and confidence while minimizing nervousness and fear. As parents, you can play a major part in your youngsters' success. Having your "radar" tuned into their needs and behavior is the best way to ensure that they will live up to their potential!

Article written by: BY JACK SINGER, PH.D.

Update from the Board of Directors

Dear Parents of the GAC,

As promised please find listed below the 5 people whom have volunteered for nomination to the Board of Directors for the 2006-2007 swim year. I personally would like to thank them all for their commitment to the Goulbourn Aquatic Club and its' future. The investment of their time in the health and fitness of our children and our community is certainly a worthwhile cause.

Carole Houde (current Secretary)

Mary Raphael (current Treasurer)

Joseph Elchakieh

Ian Lightbody

Greg MacPherson

Further information on these nominees can be found on this website under Board of Directors menu item.

Please consider the nomination of the above candidates and e-mail your nomination and/or questions or comments to Kathy White at gac@bellnet.ca. Elections will be held at a General Meeting of all parents (date to be announced by e-mail and the SPLASH) in early June.

The Goulbourn Aquatic Club Bi-Laws are under final review by the current Board of Directors and will be e-mailed to the individual families by the end of this week. The Bi-Laws will also be posted permanently on the website at csca.org/gac

Programs and fee structure of all GAC programs for the 2006-2007 will be posted with registration forms and schedules on the website at csca.org/gac within the week.

Make sure that you checkout the website as it is the GAC's main mode of communication. Also be sure to check that we have your up to date e-mail address. We will continue to forward all important information by e-mail but can not be responsible for incorrect e-mail addresses. If in the past three weeks you have not received any e-mailed notices from the GAC it is because our information is incomplete or incorrect. Please send us your correct e-mail address to gac1@bellnet.ca. (Please be sure to make note of your swimmers' name so that we can update their file)

All 'practice cancellations' and 'important notices' are posted on the website under those names on the home page. This should be checked weekly.

Thank you all and have a great week.

Kathy White

President

Goulbourn Aquatic Club - 2006 Long Course Schedule

Spring Invitational P1&P2 & Developmental - April 1^st & 2^nd

Olympic 50m pool – Montreal - Silver/Gold 1/Platinum

OYO Invitational Long Course Sprints – April 2^nd

Nepean Sportsplex- All Silver/Gold 1/Platinum not attending Montreal meet

Cornwall Spring Meet - May 7^th

Cornwall Aquatic Centre – Gold2/Bronze

NKB Festival of Spring - May 12^th & 14^th

Nepean Sportsplex- Silver/Gold 1/Platinum Qualifiers

Go Kingfish Long Course Invitational – May 27^th & 28^th

Monpetit Hall University of Ottawa - Qualifiers

KSSC – Developmental Meet – June 4^th

Kingston- Entry Level (Bronze/Gold 2)

EOSA – Long Course Regional Championships - June 9^th – 11^th

Nepean Sportsplex- Silver/Gold 1/Platinum Qualifiers

Ontario Junior Provincial Championships – July 6^th – 9^th

Nepean Sportsplex- Silver/Gold 1/Platinum Qualifiers

TEAM EQUIPMENT

In stock team equipment can be purchased by contacting Sheri by phone, e-mail, or at the pool on Saturday mornings from 7:30-8:30am. We currently have polyester suits and custom team bags in stock as well as two second had team jackets size 10-12 and 14-16. Please contact Sheri at 836-8235 or e-mail at s_coughlan@sympatico.ca

Parents may have noticed that the GAC caps and Team Suits are fading quickly, this is due to high chlorine levels as well as daily use. The caps are latex and will eventually break down, therefore it is suggested that swimmers keep their Team Caps and Suits solely for swim meet use and purchase training suits and caps for daily use. It is also a good idea to have an extra GAC cap on hand at meets in case of rips and tears.

Goulbourn Recreation Complex

Lifesaving and Leadership Courses for Spring 2006