Dear Parent and Swimmers,
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Hey eight-and-under parents! If your child completed the season by swimming at the state meet you are invited to our celebration, March 12th from 1:00 to 3:00. Please rsvp at the link below! This event is for swimmers and parents only….no siblings. The banquet for our 9 and Up swimmers and their parents will be held on April 19th. Please save the date!

CLICK HERE TO RSVP FOR 8 AND UNDER BANQUET
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We are in the midst of a thrilling championship season and we are looking forward to this weekend’s YMCA State Meet in Saginaw.
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As I said in an earlier post, nothing about swimming is convenient. Hosting a meet in Saginaw certainly isn’t, but the trade off is that the pool at Saginaw Valley is a great venue. (Saginaw Valley State also houses a museum dedicated to Marshall Fredericks, the artist who created the Spirit of Detroit Statue, the largest free-standing bronze statue since the Renaissance, the Cross in the Woods, the statue in Shain Park and many other works. Check it out if you have a chance.)
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I am extremely grateful to our board for taking this meet on, finding a pool that was suitable, and providing leadership for YMCA swimming in Michigan. Our meet managers, Dennis Jackson and Liz Solomon, have done a stellar job!
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When I began coaching Y, there were over thirty teams in Michigan, and now we have about a dozen. Some Y’s closed, some stopped sponsoring a team, there was a pandemic. Those teams that are left are trying their best to build the program as we know the huge benefits that the Y system gives our swimmers.
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While we have our championships, our high school boys are swimming their league championships and high school meet swimming for their schools. Two boys: Emmett Knudsen and Josh Harrison, swam times that qualify them for the YMCA National Meet if those meets were observed by U.S. officials. Whether they were or not, it is quite an achievement and we are proud of our swimmers!
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Finally, please note that we will offer a Spring Tune Up program beginning in late April. Please stay tuned for details and registration information. Current BBD families in good standing will have first priority for this program.
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See you in Saginaw!

Kevin

Dear Parents and Swimmers,
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The eight-and-under swimmers took Grand Traverse by storm!
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They scored 1629 points to second-place Flint’s 574.
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We won 21 events and five out of the six relays. This will certainly raise our swimmers’ aspiration levels and help them to set new goals for future seasons.
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Our first places include three new team and meet records set by Reid McCuiston in the 8 and under 25 free, 25 fly and 25 back. The freestyle record was originally set in 1985!
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Our other individual state champions were…
Emerson Hitchcock 7 and under 100 IM
Teddy Howe 8 and under 100 IM and 50 free
Luke Olsen 5 and under 25 free
Shay Kaplan 6 and under 25 free and breast
Emily Bailey 7 and under 25 and 50 free
Jake Brown 7 and under 25 free, 25 fly and 100 free
Leyre Bonel-Muras 8 and under 25 free
Ivy Uyeda 6 and under 25 fly
George Howe 6 and under 25 fly and breast
Catie Samouelian 8 and under 25 fly
Trip Anderson 7 and under 50 free
Grant Ley 5 and under 2, 5 back.
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I see a lot of new names here!! Several of these swimmers have extended their season by qualifying for Y 9 and up States, Zones and MAGS.
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Thank you to Jodi Iacco and Kate and Tim Bassett for the eight and under goodie bags. Everyone went home with a smile on their face. Thank you to Traverse City for hosting their first-ever championship meet. I think they did a very good job. I am VERY jealous of their pool!!
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Now we are preparing for our nine and up state meet. Our board, led by our meet managers, Dennis Jackson and Liz Solomon have worked overtime to put on a great competition. A great deal of the respect the program is accorded is due to the great meets we present. I am very grateful to our board for leading
this initiative.

Kevin

Dear Parents and Swimmers,
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We saw many fine swims this weekend and a great deal was learned.
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For those swimmers for whom it was their last meet, I hope you enjoyed the competition and your season and that you are fired up to continue your career after a break. The coaches hate to say goodbye to you. Know that you will be missed and we are delighted you spent your season with us.
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We scored a ton of points!
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Individual first places:
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Eight and unders; Teddy Howe (100 free), Lucy Iacco (6 and under 25 free and 25 back), George Howe (6 and under 25 free), Leyre Bonel-Muras (25 free), Jake Brown (25 free), Reid McCuiston (50 back and 25 fly), Caroline Daly (100 IM), Brady Swanson (100 IM and 50 free), Dominic Pescarino (25 back), Catie Samouelian (25 fly)
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9/10s; Beckham Leith (50 fly), Brody McCuiston (200 IM, 100 free, 100 fly and 50 free), Noah Matoian (50 back), William Quarrier (100 IM), Claire Tomasek (50 breast), Mary Bailey (100 breast), and Tyler Bassett (100 breast)
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11/12: Sully Jackson (400 IM ), Malin Murphey (200 IM and 100 breast), Lila Solomon (50 fly), Jack McCuiston (50 fly, 100 IM and 50 free), Lyla Collins (100 free and 100 IM), Allie Page (100 fly), Nolan Knudsen (100 fly), Catherine Howe (200 free and 100 back), JP Dohm (200 free), Will Schwab (50 breast)
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13/14: Charlie McCuiston (400 IM), Giorgio Matarazzo (200 free), Sean Kanary (200 fly and 200 back), Turner Worth (100 back and 50 free), Kassidy Collins (200 breast), Quinn Norlander (400 IM and 200 IM), Ben Bricker ((100 fly), Charlie Michael (100 breast)
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15/18: Calvin Meeker (400 IM), David-Marc Beatty (200 free and 100 free), Avery Anderson (200 fly), Angus MacDonald (100 back and 50 free), Luke Deighan (100 fly), Kelley Hassett (400 IM)
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We also had several swimmers performing well at the Michigan Open at Oakland University.
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As you can see we are building an incredible team. As you all know, swimming is an inconvenient sport. It takes incredible dedication on the part of athletes, coaches, parents and board members. We train at inconvenient times. We compete in all manner of pools in a broad area. It’s hard. We do what needs to be done day in and day out.
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The structure of our team is what makes us successful. I love the Cluster Meet because every swimmer on our team can compete. I know it is a different meet for our twelve and unders than it is for our older swimmers, but the coaches need the feedback from our swimmers to continue to craft our training to meet our swimmers’ needs. Our high school boys are training with their school right now and it is incredibly important to see where they are right now, especially because we excuse them from the Y State Meet because it is close to their high school championships.
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While swimming is also an individual sport, we are a team first and foremost. You are either on or you’re off. You can’t be important to the team only when you want to be or when it is convenient. Remember BBD trains you for five-six months (or year-round) as opposed to other programs. Please also remember your responsibility to your teammates. We are incredibly proud of what we have built and we hope you are too. Participation shows that.
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EIGHT AND UNDER STATE MEET:
We are very excited for the State Meet in Traverse City. The GTBY people are working diligently to give us a great experience and we are glad another Y team has stepped up to host a championship. Our eight-and-under program is without peer and we are going to bring the season to a distinctive finish.

PLEASE REMEMBER , THERE ARE RELAYS AT THE BEGINNING AND END OF THE MEET. THE TEAM WILL GATHER AT THE END OF THE COMPETITION ON THE POOL DECK. AT THAT POINT ALL OF THE PARENTS CAN JOIN US AS WE RAFFLE OFF THE CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY. Please do not deprive your swimmers of that special moment!

Have a great week!
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Kevin

Dear Parents and Swimmers.
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We are now embarking on our championship season!
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Our swimmers are ready for their best performances and I can hardly wait to see it.
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Please remember that “speed suits” should be reserved for a swimmer’s biggest meet. If a swimmer already has Y state cuts they should not wear them this weekend.
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There are relays at the beginning and end of each session so please do not leave until the end of the session!!.
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Swimming at BBD is a team sport. We value every swimmer and every performance. We know that every swimmer gets up on the block to do their best. Please remember to cheer and support everyone. Our team is a success because our swimmers have one another to push them to do their best. Our swimmers are surrounded by support.
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A swimmer’s season ends with their last meet. I was disappointed to see that some of our families did not enter this meet and did not reach out to the coaching staff to discuss and have ended their season. After six months of diligent effort these swimmers are deprived of their chance to shine. Championship meets are, and have always been required. This has been broadcast all season, and for as long as we have had a team. That structure has been instrumental in making us a top team.
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Good luck this weekend!!
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Kevin

Reminder – All practices on Saturday and Sunday are canceled this weekend due to Clusters and the Michigan Open.

Dear Parents and Swimmers,
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We are recovering from a very productive weekend. After the coaches spent almost thirty hours on deck over the weekend at the Indy Meet there is much good news to report.
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The team finished third overall and the boys were first.
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Quinn O’ Neill and Gus MacDonald earned Circle City individual high point awards in their respective age groups.
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Gus set two new meet records in the IM events and Charlie McCuiston tied a meet record.
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We have four brand new YMCA National qualifiers: Sean Lu (200 breast), Charlie McCuiston (100 freestyle), David Marc Beatty (50 and 100 free), and Joseph Wiater (100 breast).
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AJ Farner and Avery Anderson added new events to their national meet menu.
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Reid McCuiston broke two long-standing 8 and under records in the 50 fly and 50 free.
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We also had swimmers competing in Grosse Pointe who performed well. Jack Palmer won the 8 and under 50 fly.
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We also have an entire team working diligently to achieve their goals. Championship meets are on the horizon. Please be mindful of entry deadlines.

Nicely done, EVERYONE!!!

We will have a camera clinic at Covington on Thursday from 6:00-7:30 for 11-12s. All 11-12s have had the opportunity to participate so it is open to the first twenty 11-12 year old swimmers. Please register by clicking on the link to the sign up genius here.

Have a great week!
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Kevin