Newsletter - June 2006

Hi all,

Well, another month has passed and it’s time for a catch up.

Last month we invited Canberra North swimmers to Tuggeranong for a Sunday evening training session followed by a drink and dinner at the Club. Some 15 members came across and we all agreed combined training sessions are something we should definitely do more often in the future.

Many members are taking a break from competition (and training??) after the Nationals although it appears Steve Walker has regained the ‘racing‘ bug and headed up to the Wett Ones carnival a couple of weekends ago. Richard (who is actually a member of Powerpoints in Victoria but trains with us more often than most members) also went up to Sydney to fly the flag.

The good news is the next local meet will be the ACT Long Distance Championships. It will be a one day event this year and will take place on 9 September, competitors will be able to enter a 400m, 800m and a 1500m swim of their choice. The bad news is Tuggeranong has offered to host the meet so we will be looking for lots of help (and of course enthusiastic competitors.)

With only 2 weeks to get our Bunbury swims in approx.12 members have completed at least 2 of the 3 swims. It looks like we will have some good results again this year. Jane Lindsay is coordinating the entry and, remember, you can come to the pool at 5.00pm on any Sunday during June to complete the swims.

Aerobics

The aerobics program continues in full swing. In the past couple of years there have only been 2 club members vying for ‘madman of the year award’- I think you all know who they are! However, this year there are any number of members committing strange feats on Saturdays and Tuesdays for the sole purpose of keeping Jane happy and moving the club up the Aerobics trophy ladder. By the way, what thoughts go through your head when 350m into an 800fly your cap comes off and your goggles break??? especially when you have already done your 400fly for the month so stopping after the next 50 is not an option…….believe it or not it’s “thank goodness I went to the hairdresser this morning and got my fringe cut” followed by “I’m going to sue whoever made these goggles” I’m pleased to say that the swim was finished within the required time – and I will thank my hairdresser next time I see her.

If anyone wants to look at who from the club is doing the program, and maybe get inspired for the second half of the year, there is an aerobics worksheet that is updated regularly on the club web site.

Club Survey

Now that the Nationals are well and truly done and dusted (with the exception of a few lingering administrative issues) the committee is able to return its energy to club issues.

Many members kindly filled out the club survey at the beginning of the year when they renewed their membership. Last meeting we took the opportunity to review the results.

Overwhelmingly members agreed that the best thing about training sessions was the variety and appreciated the coaches we had. Some individual comments were made regarding specific preferences such as stroke correction, more focused training and training for competitions. It was also interesting that despite the moaning and groaning frequently heard at the end of the pool, overwhelmingly members were looking to be challenged and to learn at training sessions. Only a couple of respondents wanted the training sessions themselves to be more social, although many members enjoyed the social opportunities offered through club activities.

The most common reasons for not training more often was predictably the lateness of the mid week sessions (unfortunately something we can’t change.) Old age, laziness and those pesky family obligations also featured.

On other activities members enjoyed; the aerobics program, the annual surfing weekend, competition weekends away and the Xmas party featured highly. Suggestion for other activities included; time trials, cross training, more open water swimming and more social activities.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to complete the survey which helps the committee better understand what members want from the club.

AGM

The club AGM has been scheduled for Wednesday 27 September, the location is to be confirmed. A number of committee positions will become vacant at this meeting. At this stage we will definitely be looking for a new President (after 3 years as President and many more on the Committee it is time for me to handover to someone with fresh ideas) and it is important that the new President be supported by a Secretary, a position that wasn’t filled last year, although Gillian helped out with meeting minutes. Please think about how you can support the club and consider putting your name forward for a committee position.

ACT Branch

The status of the ACT Branch has been the subject of discussion for many years. This issue has once again come to a crunch. A Branch committee meeting was held last week to look at a way forward. A number of options were discussed but without a significant increase in the number of members prepared to contribute to a Branch Executive it was considered the most logical step is for the ACT Branch to disband and for the two ACT clubs to affiliate with another Branch. The final decision on this issue, however, rests with members of the ACT Branch and requires a vote at a Special General Meeting. There are a number of issues to consider before making this decision and we are proposing the following steps:

The next Club meeting to be held on 10 July will be a General Meeting at which this issue will be discussed at length. I encourage anyone who has interest in the future of the ACT Branch to attend this meeting. The venue of the meeting will be confirmed later.

A date for a Branch General meeting to vote on this issue will set for early September.

An AGM will immediately follow the General Meeting. Depending on the outcome of the General Meeting a new Committee will be elected either to wind up the Branch or to continue normal operations for another 12 months.

On a happier note it appears wedding bells are well and truly in the air amongst club members. I hear on the grapevine that Barbara Jesiolowski married her long time partner a couple of weekends ago and next weekend Liz Lillie and fiancé Gerry will tie the knot.

Congratulations and we wish both couples every happiness.