Swimming has been and is a big part of my life. Starting in 1958, I was invited by a friend to go to swim practice at Schofield Barracks Olympic pool. Within a week, I was swimming fly and free. Soon thereafter, I was doing the Individual Medley. What an experience for a young person going to meets singing songs on the bus, learning how to whistle, and gaining exposure to different parts of Oahu-city: country, hills, huge grassy areas. I don’t even remember my parents on the bus. My favorite number was three since I won all three of my events at each meet in the 8-10 age group. We moved to Northern Virginia and my mom signed me up with the YMCA in Alexandria, then the JCC in Washington DC. The big swim meet at the time was Jr Olympics AAU. That meet was the first time I experienced stress. We moved a few miles to the south and my JCC coach came to Starlit Swim Club (now a JCC). We swam summer and winter practice schedules with a two week break each year filled with calisthenics and running. When I turned twelve, it was discovered I could do backstroke very well. It became my stroke. I swam the local summer team too, and was invited to be on the elite diving team in DC, though my mother said I was doing too much, so we declined the offer. What I loved most about youth swimming was the camaraderie. We had great trips to Pennsylvania, New York, and San Juan Puerto Rico and Jamaica (after qualifying for the Trip City Meet.) What fun we had!

I stopped swimming as a senior in high school: the college I was going to didn’t have a women’s swim team (pre Title 9). Twenty-three years later, with some surfing in between (mostly paipo), as a re-entry student at American River College (1988), I was invited to swim on the women’s team. Of course I said yes! We swam three hours a day and had great workouts. We swam against other community colleges in Northern California, and again, the best part was the people. My husband wanted to live in a rural community and it became too far a commute to continue my studies and swimming. I reentered school again at Sierra College in 1998; took a swim class and was invited to join US Masters Swimming. I discovered open water swimming competition with the Rocklin Aquatic Masters and commuted from Pilot Hill to Rocklin every day to swim at noon when in school, then afternoons, and finally 5:30 a.m swims. In the summer we swam Folsom Lake on Saturday mornings. We camped or got motels at some open water events: Santa Cruz, Barryessa, Spring Lake, Folsom Lake, Russian River, Lake Natoma, Wiskeytown, Tahoe Relay, Donner Lake, Lake Sonoma, and Lake Del Valle. Exhilarating and fun to be with people who love to swim.

I finally moved to Weimar and discovered the Penguin Swim Team Masters. A different approach without a coach, yet the ease and friendliness of the swimmers was the impetus to move to Grass Valley. I have especially enjoyed my swim buddies after a hard and long Saturday swim as we sip coffee and tell swim and life stories.

Now I work as a mediator and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. While I love my work, I love swimming equally and hope to swim more with the warmer weather in local lakes and mornings with my swim buddies.