Article Contributed on: 6/29/2009 10:52:43 AM
They take to the streets early most mornings throughout June and July-the sleepy swimmers and their dedicated parents who are the Wheat Ridge Piranhas. Whether they are riding bikes to daily practice at Wheat Ridge's Anderson Pool or driving to swim meets at nearby Applewood Knolls, Mount Vernon Country Club or Five Parks, the Piranhas-like their namesakes-are a small but tenacious bunch.
The Wheat Ridge Piranhas is a community swim team with a strong emphasis on community. The approximately 50 swimmers come from Wheat Ridge, Lakewood, Northwest Denver and other parts of the metro area. They range in age from five-year-old Trinity Morin-whose tenacity and spirit has turned her into a crowd favorite at swim meets-to 18-year-old Nicole Lester. The older swimmers can often be seen helping coach and cheer on the younger set as they swim laps and practice dives from the starting block. "I love the coaches that come here," said Zoe Themm, 14, who has been swimming with the Piranhas for four years. "They make the swimming fun instead of 'Oh, you have to win.'"
"I think the coaches here are amazing," added Just'us Reid, 14, who started with the Piranhas last summer after feeling burned out swimming for another team. "You learn to work out the kinks in your strokes in a different way than other coaches would teach."
Indeed, having fun is part of the strategy. "I want the swimmers to do the best they can and perfect their strokes," explained CC Plummer, who is in her first year as Piranhas coach. "But, more than anything, I want them to develop a love of swimming." Plummer's co-coach is Lauren Williamson, who started swimming with the Piranhas at age nine and has been helping coach the team for six summers. "I love that our team is small enough that the kids know each other. The upper division takes care of the lower division, Williamson said. "There's a good sense of team."
The focus for the team is personal achievement and improvement. To join, swimmers need only to be able to navigate one length of the pool. Yet, after a few short weeks in the pool, each swimmer demonstrates measurable improvement. Whether they are swimming for a spot at the state meets, for a ribbon, for a personal best record or just to make it through the event without being disqualified, Piranhas swimmers bring heart and spirit to every race.
"At my first swim meet, I got kinda freaked out," recalled 8-year-old Caroline Storey, who is in her first season with the Piranhas. "After a while, though, the coaches and other kids really make this feel like home."
"I have always wanted to be on a swim team," chimed in 7-year-old Will Storey. "I just like that you get to get in the water and swim a lot. It's very fun."
The Wheat Ridge Piranhas are always looking for more swimmers and more fans. Come see the hometown team in two upcoming meets-on July 11 and 18-at Anderson Pool (4355 Field Street, Wheat Ridge). Meets start at 7 AM. For more information, go to www.go-piranhas.com.