GWAC am I supposed to do with you?

When the HS pool went down at the start of COVID, we knew our frustrations were only going to begin. SMITH PARK has, for what ever reason, not been as helpful. We have deals to share district facilities and park facilities, but not the pool. So when the ERHS pool went down, I was not expecting to be able to swim there. But it still frustrated me! We are the only HS swim team in the city. They have the only other pool we could hold practice in. But it was either spend some money to temporarily fix the heater and help Pico kids, or start a long term project that would make the 80s Olympic Pool that was suppose to kick off a regional swim team, into two smaller pools. 

And for a short time, we did have the Tri-Cities Aquatic Team (TCAT) swim out of Smith Park Pool. It was one of the reasons why I qualified for CIF in my senior year. I even worked for the team, as an assistant coach, for a short period of time.

Then, we heard about the Greater Whittier Aquatic Center (GWAC) and we thought our prayers were answered. As soon as it was up and running, we were excited to make schedules and plan workouts for our swimmers, but what we got was roadblock after roadblock that kept us out... even though we pay good money. Last season, after a rough start, we finally got into a rhythm. Things were going well.  We had water time. Seniors did aerobics in the secondary pool. We even shared overlapping practice times with La Serna. We even had league finals at the GWAC.

So, imagine my surprise when our January schedule was not approved. I just lost 11 days of practice.

I've been told our new pool will be open in April. Early April will at least give us a few home swim meets before League Finals at the end of April. But if its late April... urgh... one more season with not enough pool time to get traction for our swimmers. Imagine training for a marathon with less than a month to practice.

I just forwarded the practice schedule for February to the Athletic Director. Cross your fingers that he gets a quick yes and we can start swimming on Feb 3.