Monday, December 16, 2013

Competitive, Precompetitive, Junior and Senior Fitness!!

COMP-PRECOMP-JR&SR FITNESS - We're back in the pool before the New Year! 

BELOW IS THE AMENDED SCHEDULE FOR THE FIRST WEEK OF SESSION II.  PLEASE NOTE I CAN SWIM DOESN'T COMMENCE UNTIL AFTER THE HOLIDAYS.  EVENING PRACTICES WILL RESUME JAN 6/14.

Competitive & Senior Fitness Practices:
Mon Dec 30/13 9:30-11:30am
Tues Dec 31/13 9:30-11:30am
Thurs Jan 2/14 9:30-11:30am
Fri Jan 3/14 7:00-8:30am
Want to get some lengths in between sessions? See the 'Competitive Corner' (tool bar on left side) for additional sets you can swim at adult swim.
 
Precompetitive and Junior Fitness Practices:
Mon Dec 30/13 10:30-11:30am
Tues Dec 31/13 10:30-11:30am
Thurs Jan 2/14 10:30-11:30am
 
There will be no practices on Sat Jan 4, 2014.
 
Masters - Mon Dec 30/13 and Fri Jan 3/14 during the evening adult swim.

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Upcoming FUNdraising Event



Bottle Drive Update


Hard work paid off.  Our bottle drive raised $580 to support the competitive team's trip to the DivIII team championships in Windsor in December.  Great job, team!

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Bottle Drive



The Candu Swim Season is well underway at the Deep River Community Pool.  Swimmers have been getting use to new routines, remembering the techniques taught last year, learning new skills and building endurance.  Our first local meet of the year is coming up November 10th, set your calendar for a great event. 

We have two special fundraising events planned to help our team attend the prestigious Division III championships being held mid-December.  This is a team event, and for many clubs it is an honor for a swimmer to be chosen to attend.  As a small club, we have space to send the whole team, but it is in Windsor Ontario.  So, our first fundraising event is coming soon:

Bottle drive in Deep River
         Saturday Oct. 19
          
       Meet after morning practice 
       (ends at 9:30) outside the pool.

         Swimmers, plus parents with 
     vehicles, are required.

         Community members, please consider leaving your bottles out 
      front for easy collection.



 
                      Thank you for helping a small town make big waves at Divs!

Monday, September 23, 2013

Time Correction

A previous entry gave an incorrect practice time for Friday Competitive / Senior Fitness.  The correct practice time is 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm.  We apologize for the misunderstanding.

Parent Evening This Week



Our very popular parent evening is back!
  • Tuesday 24 Sept 2013, upstairs at the pool
  • Meet the coaches and learn everything you need to support your swimmer
  • Pizza and refreshments for hungry swimmers (and parents)
  • I Can Swim parents at 5:15 p.m.
  • Competitive/precompetitive/fitness parents at 6:30 p.m.
  • AquaSport will be there - get help fitting goggles and other gear to your child, and enjoy our team discount - without the drive to Ottawa!
  • Participation in the parent evening is strongly encouraged!

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Registration is live!

Registration for Fall 2013 is open!  Simply click on the "2013-2014 Online Registration" tab at the top to get started.

For your convenience, the "Online Account Login" is now located in the tab as well.  Go here to update personal information, review registration details, print statements and make payments on existing balances.

Links to both are also listed under "Links" to the right.

See you on deck!

Saturday, August 31, 2013

The Candu Swim Club Is Ready For A Great 2013/4 Season



Want your child to learn to swim, develop endurance, improve their swimming, stay active, cross-train for other sports, or become an elite athlete?  Swimming with the Candus will achieve these objectives in a safe and fun environment.  Program information is being posted on-line at http://deeprivercandus.blogspot.com and we will be at the Deep River Community Registration Day at the Deep River Arena on Thursday, September 5, 2013 from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.  Questions can also be directed to our email at deeprivercandus@gmail.com.  Out of town participants are welcome.

New this year is the move from Thursday to Friday night practice for Competitive and Fitness swimmers, increasing practice time from 1.5 to 2 hours and making it easier to get those end-of-week school assignments completed.  The number of pre-competitive practices per week has increased from 2 to 3 with the option of Saturday morning to allow flexibility of scheduling.  A junior fitness program has been introduced for swimmers who like to swim, but are not ready to compete.  And, the Candu Club is pleased to offer regular video analysis for all swimmers, providing immediate deck-side feedback to the swimmer, an opportunity for detailed technique evaluation by the coaches, and a record of individual improvement.

The club is offering 5 programs.  Learn to swim with our popular I Can Swim (ICS) program for kids aged 6 to 10.  This program is currently offered 4-5 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursdays with Session 1 starting September 24th.  We are collecting expressions of interest (please email the club) for an alternative time (later Tues evening and Sat morning).

Continue to develop technique and endurance with our Pre-competitive program, generally for swimmers aged 10 to 12, those who have completed ICS, or as preparation before joining our competitive program.  These swimmers train 3 or 4 one-hour practices per week (Mon & Wed 6:30-7:30 pm, Tues 5:30-6:30 pm, Sat 8:15-9:15 am) and have the option of competing in novice-friendly swim meets at home and away. 

In our competitive program, swimmers are taught all aspects of swimming through the implementation of the Long Term Athlete Development Plan designed by Swim Natation Canada, training swimmers towards regional time standards as well as promoting elite provincial and national swimmers.  Competitive swimmers can train 5 days a week:  Mon & Wed 6:30-8 pm, Tue 5-7 pm, Fri 5:30-7:30 pm and Sat 7:25-9:25 am.  Competitive swimmers have the option of attending approximately 15 swim meets as well as regional/provincial training camps and the Provincial Festivals Competition.  

For youth not interested in competition but still wanting to swim, we now offer two streams to our Fitness Program.  New this year is a Junior Fitness program for swimmers aged ~10-13 who will attend the Pre-competitive practices, but are limited to only one swim meet per year.  Older swimmers can enroll in our Senior Fitness program and join the competitive swimmers during any two practices per week.  Senior Fitness swimmers can also participate in one swim meet during the year (typically our Blackfly in May).

Candus also offer a Master’s program for adults (>18 years) in cooperation with the Town of Deep River.  Stroke improvement and heart-healthy workouts are delivered Mon, Wed, Fri 5:30-6:30 pm and Tue 7-8 pm during Adult Swim and participants can enroll for 3 practices/week (Masters) or 2 practices/week (Master Light). 

The start date for all programs is Monday September 16th, except ICS which starts the following week on Tuesday Sept 24th.  Online registration starts 12:01 am on September 5, 2013.  Please remember to register at least one week before the program start date, or earlier to avoid disappointment (younger swimmer program numbers are capped).  Join us as small towns make big waves in the world of swimming!

End of Year Wrap Up



The Deep River Candu Swim Club wrapped up a very successful 2012/13 season with its annual Awards Brunch and AGM on June 15 2013.  It was a fun event, with food prepared by our dynamic group of coaches; Bingo enjoyed by the kids while 38 parents attended the AGM, and of course, the presentation of awards and recognition for a great year of swimming.  Special recognition was given to the following:

DEEP RIVER CANDU SWIM CLUB
AWARD RECIPIENTS 2012-2013




  • Best All Around:  Ecaterina Facina and Lauren Adams (Deep River)
  • Blimkie Best All Around 12 & Under: Noah Gallagher (Petawawa) 
  • Bonnie Harrison Award for Dedication and Excellence:  M.J. Lusty-Smith (Deep River) 
  • Snider Pharmasave Leadership:  Vincent Martel (Petawawa) 
  • Coaches Choice:  Connor Pike (Deep River) and Victoria Adams (Petawawa) 
  • Sportsmanship Award: Alexander Williams and Jodie Lance (Deep River) 
  • Rookie of the Year:  Kylie Smith and Raphael Guerout (Deep River) 
  • Leeson Rising Star 12 & Under: Breanna James (Chalk River) 
  • Top Score:  Ecaterina Facina (Deep River) and Vincent Martel (Petawawa) 
  • 4 A Award (Attitude, Achievement, Attendance, Ability):  Liam McKenna (Deep River) 
  • *New* Diane Davis Team Spirit Award:  William Miller-Muir and Hannah Williams (Deep River)


Looking back at the 2012/13 season shows the growth and progress of the club and its swimmers.  A total of 62 youngsters participated in our Sears I Can Swim (ICS) program, swimming 2 hours per week for a total of 30 weeks divided over 3 sessions.  Coach Heather Pentney led a group of coaches to deliver 54 basic skills that enable kids to learn the four major swim strokes and progress into competent swimmers, while having fun.  Four new coaches completed the ICS coaches training and all coaches received in-house training with a focus on stroke improvement and diagnosis as well as safety.  ICS swimmers had a chance to track their progress by participating in mock meets during sessions 1 and 2 and participation in Sundaes on Sunday, the Blackfly meet and our swim-a-thon in session 3.  During the 2012/2013 swim season, 8 swimmers graduated from the ICS program and began swimming with the pre-competitive team. Ten more swimmers have since completed the 54 skills during session 3 of ICS and were presented with a certificate at the banquet inviting them to move up our program.

New in 2012/13 was the development of a precompetitive program under the direction of Coach Mitch Blimkie which provided a stepping stone between our learn-to-swim and competitive programs.  Twenty-four swimmers trained for 2 or 3 one-hour practices per week and participated in an average of 3 meets (Great Harvest, Sundaes on a Sunday, Blackfly) and some travelled to away meets in the 2nd and 3rd session.  The swimmers were exposed to a variety of developmental activities including a stretch clinic, video analysis and some shared practices with the competitive program.  One swimmer (Noah Gallagher of Petawawa) graduated from the program and joined the competitive program for Session 3.

A primary focus of the Candu club is to produce swimming athletes.  We had 15 swimmers in the competitive program this year, and Coach Chela Breckon developed a strong program to motivate and train these athletes.  She implemented new and innovative training from the province, including new measurement tools proven to provide a tailored view of swimmers strengths and areas for improvement.  Her back to the basics approach produced cleaner swims and fewer disqualifications.  Training focused games were also a hit with the swimmers, keeping things interesting while they trained up to 5 times per week.  Video analysis during training proved a valuable tool and the club would like to thank the Town of Deep River for its financial assistance in purchasing the hardware, as well as Connor McKenna for his assistance with filming/editing.  The team competed at 11 swim meets, plus swimmers qualified for an additional 4 meets run by the Eastern Ontario Swimming Association or Swim Ontario.  Steady progress was made by all swimmers, achieving personal best times throughout the year, thus knowing their training was working!  Congratulations to all the swimmers.

The Candu club provided an opportunity for non-competitive swimmers as well.  Our fitness program had 17 participants who joined the competitive swimmers for any 2 of their weekly practices.  Several fitness swimmers took the opportunity to compete in our Blackfly Meet as exhibition swimmers and also were able to participate in the stretch clinic and video analysis.

The club’s 3 program leads mentioned above provided the structure for great programs throughout the year.  They were supported by each other and a large group of adult and teenage coaches, providing great variety of instruction for each swimmer.  A dedicated group of parents/grandparents on the Executive provided organizational structure for the club.  Parent’s supported the club and their swimmers.  And of course, the community supported our fundraising events.  Thank you to all!!

Planning is well under way for the 2013/14 swim season.  Stay tuned next week for an overview of the programs on offer (we are always evolving to meet the needs of swimmers in our communities).  Get ready for more: small town, big waves!