Whale swim season underway at Freedlander; home opener is Wednesday

  • brian questel
  • June 8, 2011
  • 282
                        
061311 Freedlanderswim Promo: School’s out, which means Freedlander’s outside swim season is heating up Whale swim season underway at Freedlander; home opener is Wednesday By Brian Questel For four decades, it’s been a draw for not only Wooster and Wayne County, but for much of Northeast Ohio. “It’s something we’ve got going on every year,” laughed Wooster Parks and Recreation swim coach Larry Smucker a week into the program’s outdoor season. “We started last week, last Tuesday (May 31), so we’re into the second week of summer practices. It looks like we’re going to have around 120 kids and that’s a pretty decent number.” The Wooster Whales and Freedlander Pool have been longtime fixtures in the Northeast Ohio swim circles, thanks in part to one of the unique long-course pools in the state. That, in turn, has helped draw attention to the program and allowed it to help served as a critical feeder program for the high school program. That is again the case this year as the program has attracted solid numbers throughout the team. “We have 28 in the 8-under girls – we’re well represented there,” said Smucker. “Overall we’re looking pretty good and I’m happy with how things have turned out.” Smucker is joined on the staff by Wooster High head girls coach Chris Matthew and College of Wooster head swim coach Rob Harrington. “Just the three of us are running the show this year,” said Smucker. “It’s not like we’re a couple of new kids – we’ve been around swimming a long time. That’s a big help right there. Things are looking up. We have great participation by the kids, a good turnout and great cooperation from the parents.” Although the team is based at Freedlander’s, it opened indoors in preparation for its two-month dash to the outdoor championships. “We had preseason for three weeks at the indoor pool at the natatorium at the high school to help us get ready,” said Smucker. As Smucker noted, the outdoor season is enhanced by Freedlander’s 18 lanes, a plus few other pools have to offer. “I don’t know of any other coaches that have 18 lanes to practice in,” said Smucker. “I have eight, Rob has five and Chris has five – it’s a good situation to work with the kids. We have plenty of room and we’re able to utilize it. “The advantage is we don’t have turn anyone away. We can have 4-5 kids in a lane and it works out well,” he added. “If we took 18 lanes and squeezed them in, it would be tough to sacrifice six or eight lanes or even cut it in half. That would be tough. This way kids have room to work on their skills and you have time to spread out and watch kids individually. That’s a huge advantage for us to have that kind of setup. “I’ve been the novice coach 26 years,” Smucker added. “All the beginners will come through me. Rob has the two most experienced age groups and Chris has the middle kids. I’m excited with how it’s working.” Wooster will host its first meet of the season Wednesday, June 15, against Medina and Coshocton, with another meet Thursday against Salem. “It’s a 6-week dual meet season and it goes fast. We swim a lot of people and that’s the good part,” said Smucker. “Freedlander is July 8-10, which is the big one. The league (Mid-Ohio Swim League) championship is here and then the East Central Swim League is the last Saturday of July and then we’re done. “Teams are coming here because they want the 10 lanes we have with the bleachers and scoreboard, which no one else has. Plus, we have great parking and no admission fees. There are a lot of pluses coming to our pool.”


Loading next article...

End of content

No more pages to load