My Race Club Experience

For years, I have enjoyed watching the Race Club coaches, Mike Bottom and Jon Olsen, create workouts for their swimmers that are out of the box….I mean way out of the box. Coming from an era of hard yet predictable workouts, it is refreshing to watch swimmers train where they don't have a clue what might be coming next. And to be truthful, I don't think the coaches always know either. Depending on how the group looks, feels, acts, there is always room for a lot of improvisation. Often it seems like crazy stuff…pulling with weights wrapped around ankles, kicking with a cinder block pressed against the abdomen, out of the water for a boxing session, a sprint session with a stretch cord wrapped around the waist, back out of the water for a few dunks on the basketball court, then back in for more sprints. The only thing predictable about these workouts is the result: fast swimming. And the swimmers never get bored.

Last month, for the first time, I got to be a participant, rather than an observer. I was truly excited. I signed on for a week camp at the Race Club with two very good swimmers, Hodding Carter, from Maine and John Fields, from Atlanta. Hodding is in his early forties and John is nearly fifty. Both were accomplished swimmers in college and both are in better condition today than I am. After all, if I am supposed to help run these camps, I'd better know what it is like to go through one. I soon learned that participating is even more fun than watching.

It was a little unusual to have such talented swimmers as Hodding and John participate, since we gear the camps for any age and ability. It was great for me as they pushed me beyond where I might have gone without them. One example was in our weight room session where our strength coach, Andy Deichert, timed us doing an isometric exercise with his infamous Ab wheel. He delighted in seeing us oldies get into it as we each clenched our teeth, turned red and tried to outdo one another. I had the ultimate humbling experience when my daughter, Bebe, aged 28 and manager of The Race Club, beat her old man in an Ab-off contest.

Each day was a new adventure. I discovered more drills in a week than I ever knew existed. For the first time in my life, I came to the startling realization that not every stroke in the pool has to be done at maximum effort. In fact, during the entire week there were very few max efforts. What is more important, I learned that every stroke should be done perfectly, and that we should invite more of our body to participate in our quest to zip to the other end of the lane. My hips, for example, took on a whole new role in life, as I learned to rotate and pivot my way down the pool. I thought they were there just to keep my pants from falling down.



Make no mistake. There is no substitute for hard work. Nor are there any real short cuts. The Race Club experience is not about trying to find them. They don't exist. For me, the Race Club coaches made me realize that if I just slow down a bit for 90% of the workout and think….and I mean really think about what I am doing in the water; hands, hips, head, streamline, turns…then, when I do crank it up for the 10%, I really can swim faster than I thought possible. Even at the ripe age of 54, an old dog can still learn a few new tricks.

-Gary Hall Sr.