It’s finally time to officially register for the Women First Swimming Winter program on 10 Saturdays starting January 7 through March 10 at West Austin Athletic Club at 1024 Patterson Road in Southwest Austin. The pool is heated and Coach Rachel will be back on deck waiting to put you through another session of great workouts!

Saturdays from Jan 7-March 10
Times:
Jan 7, 14, 21, Feb 4 — 10-11 am
Jan 28, Feb 11, 18, 25, March 3, 10 — 9 – 10 am

Send me an email to register officially for the class, and follow the payment instructions here.

If you are considering joining for the first time, read our Testimonials from veteran mermaids to get an idea of how Austin women have enjoyed and benefited from the Women First Swimming program. If you have feedback or a testimonial about your recent class experience we’d love to hear more from you – just send Lisa or Coach Sara an email.

We’re also on Facebook so feel free to add yourself to the group so our Facebook updates show up on your Facebook feed or to share the program with your friends and colleagues.

As always, Happy Swimming!!

Coach Lisa

News update for winter: after hounding Austin pool facilities to find something available that is heated for the winter, we are extremely excited have found a new winter home at West Austin Athletic Club for a 10 week Saturday morning program starting Jan 7. Registration info will follow once we finalize the details. If you are interested on being on the registration list, email Coach Lisa.

Summer Attendance Awards: Sharon Behringer and Gail Shevick were our summer attendance award winners. Longtime dedicated mermaid Sharon will receive a comp session to Women First Swimming and a waterproof copy of Swim Workouts for Triathletes – donated to Women First Swimming by my coaching friend Gale Bernhardt.  We also have a team copy for those who may wish to borrow it from the Women First Swimming ‘library’. For a free excerpt from the book, click here.  Newbie mermaid Gail will be awarded a $50 gift certificate for Jack and Adams Bicycles for her super summer commitment to swimming. Well done ladies.

p.s. Coach Sara gave birth to Sebatian Robertson Smith on Thursday Nov 3rd at 6:50pm. Her big bundle of joy weighed in at 9lbs an 5oz and is 21″ long!

The answer is somewhere in between. The popular triathlon portal Slowtwitch had expert swim coach Gary Hall, Sr give a well constructed answer complete with video clip.

Austin City council voted on budget items on Monday and unfortunately it looks like Balcones pool will be closed during the cold months. But fear not, we’re investigating new pools to keep the program going!

We are proud of these mermaids for pushing their swim endurance limits with this inspiring feat and supporting a worthy cause! Thanks to the other mermaids who provided support and contributed to the fundraising.

Last year, with the support of Colin’s Hope, the City of Austin and the YMCA was able to provide swim lessons to over 200 children from area schools free of charge. Colin’s father, Jeff Holst, started this organization when his son, Colin, drowned 4 years ago.  It is a tragedy that no parent should live through.  This organization is doing incredible work in the Austin community and surrounding areas. 

We are proud of Val and Whitney for pushing their bodies and hearts for a good cause. Just 6 years ago Val could not swim the length of a pool without gulping water. Whitney is also promoting the Colin’s CrossFit Challenge at CrossFit Lakeway, which will include a community workout happening in and around Backwoods, the outdoor retailer at the Hill Country Galleria.  Register here.

Cheer on the swimmers at 9:00 a.m. on September 2^nd.  The 8 mile swimmers will start at Emma Long City Park (tentative start place) and the 4 mile swimmers will start at the 360 Bridge, all ending at the Boat ramp just West of Abel’s on the Lake/Mozart’s/Hula Hut.

As well, mother/daughter swimmers Sharon and Alison Behringer deserve special recognition for their super enthusiastic dedication and near perfect attendence together, so we’ll be awarding them with a copy of my book Triathlon for Women. Sharon was our Mermaid Spotlight from last summer.

Keep up the great work Mermaids!

Diana Nyad, age 61, will be soon be attempting a 103-mile swim from Cuba to Key West. Check out the story on her amazing swim at NPR.org.

http://www.npr.org/2011/07/19/138170653/at-61-nyad-resurfaces-for-cuba-to-key-west-swim

Lisa Retrum began with Women First Swimming for regular swim sessions this winter after a running injury forced her to consider swimming. Since then she has gone on to show great improvements as a regular attender and even completed her first ever triathlon!

The coaches love Lisa’s energy and enthusiasm to keep improving that she shares with the other mermiads every Saturday morning. Read more about Lisa here.