Coaching Freshmen?

 

Quote of the Week

 

It is amazing how complete is the

delusion that beauty is goodness.

Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, a.k.a. Leo Tolstoy

New TISCA Site

 

I've just updated the link under "High School" for TISCA.

 

Visit the new site here

Quote of the Week

 

May the forces of evil become confused

on the way to your house.

 

George Denis Patrick Carlin

 

Success usually comes to those who

are too busy to be looking for it.

 

Henry David Thoreau

 

Quote of the Week

 

When you find yourself on the side of the

majority, it's time to pause and reflect.

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain

How'd We Do?

 

 

The final 4A swim poll of the 2022-23 season was sent out in January.

 

Here's how our committee's rankings compared to the team standings in the 2023 UIL 4A championships:

 

Girls Poll

 

1. Great Hearts Monte Vista

2. Decatur

3. Panther Creek

4T. Andrews

4T. Davenport

6T. El Campo

6T. Gateway

8. Burnet

9. Monahans

10T. Boerne

10T. Hudson

 

Also receiving votes:  Calallen & Tuloso-Midway

 

2023 Girls UIL 4A State Meet*

1. Great Hearts Monte Vista

2. Panther Creek

3. El Campo

4. Davenport

5. Gateway

6. Andrews

7. Decatur

8. Burnet

9. Boerne

10. Hudson 

 

Boys Poll

 

1. Andrews

2. Tuloso-Midway

3. Decatur

4. Alice

5. Davenport

6. Great Hearts Monte Vista

7. El Campo

8. Burnet

9. Wichita Falls

10. Gateway

 

Also receiving votes:  Boerne, Hudson, Monahans, Pecos, Ranchview, & Stafford

2023 Boys UIL 4A State Meet*

1. Andrews

2. Tuloso-Midway

3. Decatur

4. Wichita Falls

5. Alice

6. Great Hearts Monte Vista

7. Boerne

8. Davenport

9. El Campo

10. Ranchview

*Bullseye!

 

Quote of the Week

 

The possibilities are numerous once

we decide to act and not react.

 

 George Bernard Shaw

 

Quote of the Week

 

Fortune knocks but once, but misfortune

has much more patience.

 

Laurence Johnston Peter

 

 

Quote of the Day

 

Mountains are like the great equalizer.   It doesn't

matter who anyone is or what they do.

via Jimmy Chin

Jimmy Chin

Quote of the Day

 

Fear urged him to go back,

but growth drove him on.

John Griffith "Jack" London

Quote of the Day

 

Intelligent men are cruel.  Stupid

men are monstrously cruel.

John Griffith "Jack" London

Quote of the Day

 

To be able to forget means sanity.

John Griffith "Jack" London

Swimming Against the Tide

 

In case y'all haven't gotten the memo, our fall TISCA clinic is no more.

 

The reason we've been given?

 

Weekends in September are inconvenient for water polo coaches*.

 

How did this happen?

 

It's possible (probable?) that polo coaches filled out the Google Form and chose the April option, while non-polo coaches didn't give a hoot.

Why does it matter?  What is so important about a fall clinic?

• Coaches are eager for ideas to train swimmers & divers for the upcoming season.
• New coaches may be desperate for help in planning their practices & season.
  
• TM & MM issues are often discussed, helping us smooth out the tech side of our sport.
• In-person votes for district & region reps are held.
• New NFHS & UIL rules are discussed.
• Coaches with gaps in their schedules are often able to fill in those open dates.
• Quality speakers are offered in swimming, diving, and water polo tracks.
• Vendors demonstrate & take orders for equipment, suits, warm-ups, parkas, etc.
  

Those are just a few reasons a fall clinic is critical for swim & dive coaches.

 

There's little doubt in my mind that TISCA founders put our clinic in September for good reason.  Moving it to April is going to hurt our organization and our athletes.

 

In the short-term, I suggest swim coaches take advantage of the ASCA World Clinic in Dallas this September.

 

Long-term?  If our membership doesn't come to its senses and bring back a fall clinic, it might be time to change our acronym to TIPCA...

*There's also a move to force our coaches into a THSCA-run clinic.  In recent years, THSCA has begun to form a monopoly** of sorts, bringing "minor" sports into their "fold".  We're their next "victim".  No fall clinic for you swim/dive coaches?  Come to our mega-all-sports clinic in the summer!

 

**Remember what you learned back in school, kiddos:

 

MONOPOLY = BAD

 

Episode XXXVI

 

 

 

Time for another episode of SwimTalk A2B.  Another former swimmer of ours, Andy Korda, chatted it up with us.

 

Andy wasn't like most swimmers...those who wonder:  "What's wrong with those guys?  Who would ever want to be a swim coach?"

Episode XXXVI:  Andy Korda

 

 

Quote of the Day

 

The Wild still lingered in him and

the wolf in him merely slept.

John Griffith "Jack" London

Episode XXXV

 

 

 

In the latest episode of SwimTalk A2B, we reconnected with a former Katy age-group swimmer of ours, Lawrence "LD" Romine.

 

Lawrence dropped out of our sport at a young age, but is now showing off his swimming skills on the triathlon circuit.

Episode XXXV:  Lawrence Romine

 

 

Quote of the Day

 

When a subject becomes totally obsolete,

we make it a required course.

Peter Ferdinand Drucker

Quote of the Day

 

I was court-martialed in my absence, and

sentenced to death in my absence.  So I

said they could shoot me in my absence.

Brendan Francis Aidan Behan

 

TISCA Awards Nomination Deadline

 

Get your nominations in for the following awards ASAP:

 

Theron Pickle Lifetime Achievement

 

Craig Nolder Diving Lifetime Achievement

 

TISCA COTY

 

TISCA Assistant COTY

 

Nominations close April 15.  Links are on TISCA site here.

 

You'll also find a state meet evaluation form there as well.