The Gator Coaching Staff is trying to make it easier for our swimmers, parents and satellite programs to understand the basic drills
we do for each stroke. The drills and turns are briefly demonstrated by Coach Steve. There is normal speed and soon we will have it in slow motion.
I hope this helps our Gator family and all those visitors to the website. View the videos here!
GATOR GREAT TIMES MEET: The meet program, warm-up lane assignments, results and other important information are now available on the meet website.
GATOR BOX: There are many medals and ribbons from past meets that haven't been picked up from the Gator box yet. Parents, please take a look at your family folder and empty it periodically. The Gator box is usually on the pool deck by the revolving door--if you can't find it, please ask a coach or a lifeguard (sometimes they move it into the main office when there's an event happening at the pool).
ALLISON HOBBS NAMED SOUTHEAST MISSOURIAN PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Allison, a Gator who also swims for Jackson High School, "collected multiple individual medals and relay medals during a couple of impressive performances on back-to-back days." Congratulations, Allison! (Click here to read the article on the Southeast Missourian website.)
GATORS IN THE NEWS: Gator swimmer Allison Hobbs won the 500 Freestyle event at the City of Roses swim meet this past weekend, beating top-seeded Megan Popp from Rockwood Summit. The exciting race was featured in a Southeast Missourian article on Sunday. Allison, competing for Jackson High School, finished the race with a state-qualifying time of 5:19.87.
Click on the picture to read the article on the Southeast Missourian website. Other Gators named in the article: Lizzie Schmidt and Kyleigh Troxel.
FAST WINTER INVITATIONAL RESULTS: Another fine display of talent and dedication by our swimmers! The Gators finished 4th overall with 1,375 points, behind only Parkway, FAST and Columbia. Once again, our team had the highest number of points scored per athlete in a meet, with an average of 45.83 points per swimmer (Columbia was second with 37.30 and and Parkway third with 34.26). Our swimmers improved 54% over their seed times, not counting NT entries. We now have 24 Gators qualified to swim at the Ozark Short Course championships.
New Team Records:
Gabby Vieira lowered two of her own team records: 200 freestyle (1:59.21) and 500 freestyle (5:17.72).
Matthew Chandler achieved his first BB times in the Boys 10 & Under age group, in the following events: 100 free, 1:17.53; 50 back, 40.96; 100 back, 1:30.38; 100 breast, 1:42.41; 100 fly, 1:36.46; 100 IM, 1:29.76; and 200 IM, 3:14.02.
Brogan Davis achieved his first triple-A time in the Boys 10 & Under age group, swimming the 50 back in 33.81 seconds.
Phoebe Law got her first BB time in the Girls 10 & Under age group, swimming the 200 free in 2:58.24.
Helen Wojdylo achieved her first double-A times in the Girls 11-12 age group, swimming the 50 breaststroke in 35.75 and the 100 breaststroke in 1:18.02.
1st Places: Brogan Davis, Caitlyn Palmer and Gabby Vieira.
2nd Place: Kristian Troxel.
3rd Places: Caleb Coots, Austin Hobbs, John-John Kiefner, Kyleigh Troxel and Helen Wojdylo.
4th - 10th Places: Allison Hobbs, Elizabeth Kiefner, Morgan Maguire, Allison McDonald, Elizabeth Rorick, Lizzie Schmidt, Madeline Siefert, Matthew Snyder and Stephen Sugarbaker.
The Gator Times page has been updated with top times, time standard achievements, records and more.
Congratulations, swimmers!
GATORS IN THE NEWS: One of the great American distance swimmers of the past decade, Chris Thompson was recently interviewed by USA Swimming/Swim Network where he paid tribute to the most influential people in his swimming career. Among the few people named in the interview is our very own Head Coach Steve Franklin. Chris remembered his developmental years under Coach Steve as one of his greatest swimming memories, alongside his successes at NCAA and the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Click here for the complete interview.
GATOR ATHLETE EARNS NATIONAL RECOGNITION: Gator swimmer Gabby Vieira was recently named by USA Swimming in its National Age Group Recognition Program -Top 10 list. She received certificates for finishing the 2009 Long Course season ranked Top 10 in the country in 5 events: 5th place in the 200 and 400 freestyle; 6th in the 50 butterfly; and 10th in the 100 butterfly and 800 freestyle. Gabby was one of only 66 swimmers in the nation who ranked Top 10 in 5 or more events. Click here for the final rankings. Congratulations, Gabby!
GOLD AND WORLD RECORDS: Gator swimmer Susan Beth Scott
ended her stellar participation at the IPC Swimming World Championships with another world record, this time in the 100-meter freestyle (1:02.48). This was her second world record in the competition, following Wednesday's gold in the 400 freestyle with a time of 4:38.10. Click on the links below for more information and results.
All Gator swimmers are strongly encouraged to attend as many meets as possible during the season, so please consider signing up for the upcoming meets. Here are some very important reasons for swimmers to attend meets:
1. NEW SKILLS: Competing in meets gives us a chance to learn things that we can’t really learn in practice. Racing is a skill that must be developed, just as a good butterfly is a skill that needs to be developed. To do this we need to practice and the more meets we compete in the better we get.
2. TEAM SPIRIT: Going to meets as a team encourages us to get to know our teammates better and fosters team spirit. It also allows our younger swimmers a chance to watch, and learn from our older, more experience swimmers.
3. GOALS: Good goal setting takes practice too. By swimming in meets and testing ourselves to the limit, we learn just how far we have come, and what we need to improve on. Remember, we can learn just as much from our failures as we can from our successes.
4. REWARDS: Swimming is a sport that teaches us great life lessons. Particularly, if you want something bad, then you have to work for it. Participation in meets gives us a chance to be rewarded for all our hard work.
There are many more great reasons to swim in meets. The main idea is to realize that meets are a great learning experience. Just as tests that we take in school allow us to both monitor our progress and to learn from our mistakes. Meets are a vital part of any swimmers development and ALL swimmers are encouraged to participate in them, regardless of what practice group you are in.
"Excellence is certainly not ordinary. It is special. It is also however, for the most part, not a chance or accidental occurrence. Excellence results from consistent preparation, positive beliefs and attention to detail. Excellence occurs when we make it the standard for our daily routine."Continued.
Note from Coach Steve: Gator families, Because of problems arising with parent involvement during practice time, I am asking all parents to please refrain from talking with me or the coaching staff during scheduled practices. We will be available before and after practice if you have any questions that need answered. Preferably I would appreciate a phone call or email prior to any discussions at the pool. Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation. - Steve
GATOR SWIM TEAM INFO
JOIN THE GATOR SWIM TEAM - YEAR-ROUND OPPORTUNITIES - The Gator Swim Team is a parent-owned competitive swim team organized to teach swimmers of all ages and abilities. When a swimmer joins the Gator Swim Team he or she learns the values of sportsmanship, discipline, teamwork, and integrity. Swimming, through the Gator Swim Team, provides physical, emotional and intellectual skills that will last a lifetime. Find out more here!.
The Gator Swim Team is a regional parent-owned competitive swim team dedicated to teaching swimmers excellence in swimming and life through sportsmanship, discipline, teamwork and integrity.
ended her stellar participation at the 
