TEAM NEWS ARCHIVE ...

September 4

TRY-Outs: Saturday 9/8 9-10:30am

The Empire coaching staff will have an open try-out at the Hackley pool this coming SATURDAY MORNING.  Swimmers who are interested in joining the team should come between 9:00am and 10:30am.  EMPIRE swimmers should be already (or almost) 6 years old and should also be able to swim comfortably across a 25 yard pool.  Have QUESTIONS - call us 949-2342 or send us an email (click).  We look forward to seeing you.

* SWIMMERS WHO HAVE ALREADY REGISTERED DO NOT NEED TO COME TO A TRYOUT!

August 16

Dry Off

Ilan has returned from his two week stay in Indy.  US Nationals and Junior Nationals are over and we're taking a break for the rest of August.  A break from swimming, that is.  How do we spend those extra hours?  This is a great time to cross-train.  Running, biking, hiking... do it!  And, of course, keep on stretching.  Sharon (coach mrs c?) will be glad to see a stronger, more flexible you when we get rolling again on September 10th.  Don't wait, these next few weeks are an important time for you to make or break the first half of the upcoming season. Will you be ready?  Scratch that, of course you will.  I think, "how ready will you be?" is a much better question.

August 2

Ohmaha Goodness, that was fast!

Kaitlyn Ferguson qualified for the 2008 Olympic Trials!  Her 1:04.20 in the 100m Backstroke (Wednesday at USA Nationals) earns Kaitlyn a spot at her 2nd consecutive USA Olympic Trials.  At Long Beach, CA in 2004, Kaitlyn swam in front of Ilan, Kevin, several Fergusons and thousands of spectators and had a great meet.  Kaitlyn is heading into her junior year Penn State University.

July 29

Updates

Summer practices are over.  Ilan heads to US Nationals in Indiana with Aleksa Akerfelds, Jackie Pangilinan and Brian Koizim.  The following week Blake Preston and Jim Flannery will join for US Junior Nationals.  Follow the meet through the USA Swimming web site (link).

Some recent additions to the site:

• the Empire team records page has been posted

• coaches bio page has been added

• directions page is updated with info on Manhattanville College

July 21

Starting up

The 07.08 REGISTRATION is underway.  THOSE WHO PLAN TO BE ON THE TEAM THIS YEAR SHOULD SIGN UP NOW.  

• Returning swimmers - download & complete the forms on the REGISTRATION page and mail them to us with your deposit.  We encourage you to do this AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! 

• NEW SWIMMERS - please download & complete the forms on the REGISTRATION PAGE.  Contact us to arrange a try-out!  This is an important step in enabling the coaches to place athletes in the appropriate groups.  PLEASE CONTACT US WITH ANY QUESTIONS - 914-949-2342 or coach@empireswimming.com  Don't delay, we'd love to hear from you as soon as possible!
   

Wrapping up

Practice at Saxon Woods ends Saturday, 7/28.  The remaining workouts will be from 6:30 to 8:00!  We will still have dryland on MWF @ 7:30.

Hackley practice will run through Friday, 7/27 and will continue to be from 8:00 to 9:30am.  We have lots of EMPIRE swimmers competing in Westchester, Rockland and Fairfield County championships.  Go get 'em.

July 17

Registration

Registration forms are up!  You can be the first to join the EMPIRE.  Download the REGISTRATION & WAIVER and send them in the mail with your deposit.

Programs

Program descriptions, practice schedules, team fees for 2007.2008 are being posted.  They're coming up one by one.  Each group will have has it's own page, accessable through the PROGRAMS link on the home page.  The meet schedules on each page will help swimmers & parents jump quickly to the information relevant to each group.  As always, click the Empire logo on the top of the page to return home.

July 13

Results

The senior team is in Ft. Lauderdale swimming at the Sectional Championship meet.  Follow the real time results (link) - our swimmers are listed as "Una East-MR", the  120 days are winding down.  Also the links to results for last weekend's meets are on our MEETS page.   The group at the meet in Rockland had a great time.  Several team records were set.  Yeah, it's true some were 1st time swims in certain events, but we swam even faster than we had in Florida back in June in many races.  And
(drum roll...) another historic swim came on Saturday afternoon.  12 year old SHIERI  SUZUKA became the 1st Empire swimmer to win an event as she took the gold medal in the 100 meter freestyle in the first 11-12 event of the weekend.   It was a great race, a dramatic finish and personal best time, but still 3 seconds shy of the team record set in Florida by Melissa Fulenwider.  Kristen Lane finished the meet Sunday by taking 1st place in the last 11-12 event & setting a new team record in the 200 freestyle.  Her 2:25 was 3 seconds faster than the previous time set by Melissa Fulenwider.   A complete list of the new EMPIRE Long Course Records will be on the web site soon.

July 5
Sharks meet Update

The afternoon session times have changed!  Warm up will be 12:30, start time is 1:30pm.  This is for the 11-12&Open session.  The morning (10&u and 13-14) remains 7:30/8:30

Be Prepared

Ilan has pull buoys, hand paddles, t shirts, caps and brand new EMPIRE TOWELS available for sale.  Speak to your coaches if you're interested in purchasing any of these items.

Setting up for September

OK.  "I"s dotted, "T"s crossed - the Hackley and Manhattanville facilities have committed pool time for the upcoming season.  Look for updates in the next few days for Group/Program descriptions and 2007.2008 practice schedules.

Registration for the 2007.2008 season will begin this month.  You can secure your spot for the upcoming season.  Details will be posted shortly. 

June 28
Calling all seniors

No, not you folks who just, graduated - this is for the swimmers entering their senior year in September, 2007.   ALSO THEIR PARENTS!!!   Some of you younger people might want to get a jump start as well.

This article (link) may help you better understand the process of looking for & contacting a college swimming program.  There are teams out there for swimmers of all levels.  Think.  Research.  Talk to your guidance counselors, your coaches AND your teammates.  Many of our current college swimmers are around during the summer.  Don't hesitate to ask questions about their experiences in choosing the right school and team. 

June 26
Updates

Yes, it's hot out there.  Are we still in Florida?  The best news is the water at Saxon Woods will certainly be warming up.  Summer practices started this morning.  Those attending the SENIOR practice should bring sneakers for dry-land on Mon, Wed and Fri.

The Florida meet, as usual was fast.  Several US & International Olympians and other World-Ranked swimmers - including Jessica Hardy, who holds the current American Record in the 50m & 100m breaststroke - competed, making finals a great opportunity to watch and learn.  Here's a summary from the meet director:
 

Cool side note - an organization called DSISO keeps track of swimming records for people with Downs Syndrome.  We watched Andres Mirares break the World Record in the 400m Freestyle! 

History Written

Congratulations to Stacey Rogers - the 1st Empire swimmer to compete in a USA-Swimming sanctioned race.  Her historic 400m IM finished 7th.  Another noteworthy event was Caroline Poleway's 200m freestyle.  She was the first Empire swimmer to compete in a Final.  She also finshed in seventh place.  Hmm...

June 20
Entries

Entries for the Sharks meet & Sr Mets are posted.  The Sharks meet info is a little bit confusing.  The first set of events listed is the JO meet, which is included for checking the time standards.  Scroll down to the bottom (page 7) and you'll find the actual meet info.

Florida Meet:  We'll have an Empire tent at the "stadium course" pool.  It will be in front of the stands.  Meet us there.

Swimmers arriving on Wednesday -
meet Ilan at the pool on Thurs. at 9am for a short practice
Swimmers arriving on Thursday -
come to the pool for warm up at 2:30.  If you arrive after that, come to the pool for warm up as soon as you can.  If you're after 8pm, we'll see you Friday morning.
Swimmers arriving after 8 on Thursday -
see you at "the tent" at 7:05am

Remember your sunscreen and your water bottles! 

June 19
Tuesday
What is the significance of Tuesday?

• we start our summer schedule next TUESDAY (June 26).

• it's the day after we were hoping to finish the entries for SrMets & the Sharks meet.  Still have not heard from many of you - please let us know by practice tonight

• here is another inspirational movie.  Did you watch the last one?

June 14
Into the woods
Empire Swimming received some good news today!  Our Senior group will be able to train at Saxon Woods this summer, giving us a chance to swim in the "longer" course pool.  Workouts will be from 6-8am, Monday through Saturday, beginning on TUESDAY, June 26.
The younger groups will train at the Hackley pool from 8-9:30am, Monday through Friday - also beginning on TUESDAY the 26th.

Sectionals

Those attending the Sectional Champs meet in Ft Lauderdale this July should quickly make hotel reservations.  Many have already done so and there are only a few rooms available at the Bahia Mar.  Call Lori Rogers at 704-987-3377 if you need assistance.

June 13
Payment
Please make sure to bring payment before the end of practice on Thursday, June 14.  Checks should be payable to Empire Swimming.   Team Fees

June 12
Links

The links page is up!  In addition to USA Swimming and Metro Swimming, there are links to many other web sites full of articles, pictures, videos and all sorts of swimming stuff.  Get informed!  Here is something else we recommend spending 3 minutes with - it's worth it for swimmers, parents, coaches and their friends.  Click Here To View The Movie 

June 12
Meets

Our first competition was the Empire State Games trials held at Marist College.   Several Empire swimmers qualified to compete in the Games which will be held in July in Westchester County.  The swimming will be at the Scarsdale Town Pool.

Upcoming meets -  entries for the FLA International Invite were distributed to the swimmers.  Let us know if you need another copy.

For the following meets: SR Mets / NYSharks / Florida SECTIONALS
Please send us an email ASAP if you would like to be entered.  Our email address is: coach(at)empireswimming.com.  Information on all 3 meets is available through our MEETS page. 

June 5
day 2

All went well yesterday.  We had a full pool of senior swimmers for our 1st workout.  We learned a few things.  All of us are looking forward to seeing the rest of the groups at their practices today.  Here is a link from one of our Tarrytown local families which lists some local restaurants you might want to check out.  Feel free to review these or add to the list.

June 4
first day

When you enter the Hackley grounds there will be Empire representatives showing you where to park, where to drop off and how to get to the locker rooms & pool.  See you there!

June 1
Making the News

Check this out... and this!  At last, after the longest month I can remember, June is here.  Registration forms continue to arrive.  We're looking forward to Monday.  Waivers & forms must be completed before any swimmer gets wet.  We will have copies at the pool next week.  Parents - if you still need to sign please arrange to stop in. 

May 25
bONNIE!

Siobhan Hopkins joins the Empire coaching staff.  Awesome.

Cool Stuff

The directions page has been updated.  There is a MapQuest form which you can use for directions to Hackley.  Type your starting address in the form, click Get Directions and you'll have driving directions to the pool.  The Campus Map will be up soon with details about where to park and how to get to the pool.

May 24

Changes!

The 8 & under practice schedule for June, 2007 has been changed!  We will offer practices on TUESDAY and THURSDAY from 6:30-7:30pm in addition to the SATURDAY practice from 9-10am.  We have removed the Sunday morning session for this group.  This change offers more pool time for the athletes, but there is no change to the cost for the summer registration.  We are excited to offer this expanded schedule to allow more weekend freedom for the families and provide more opportunities for them to swim.

Forms

If you're planning to swim with EMPIRE this summer, please complete the following steps:  (we appreciate having these steps completed before practice begins)

Registration form:
This can be downloaded, edited and emailed back OR printed, filled out & returned.
Waiver:
The release waiver requires signatures, therefore it can't be emailed.  Please print the form and return to us.
Transfer form:
Swimmers currently registered with another USA-Swimming team must complete a transfer form.  This should be completed, signed and returned to us.

All of these forms are available on our web site here

May 22

It's Official

Last Wednesday, Metropolitan Swimming officially recognized Empire Swimming as a member club.  We're listed on the Metro web site - here
We are currently working on the USA Swimming "Club Portal" and you will soon be able to find us there as well.  If you search for a club, you'll find us - just no info on the links yet.

Registration forms have been coming in daily - through email & regular mail.  Practices begin in less than 2 weeks.  If you're sending in the registration, please download, print and sign the waiver.   Since it requires signatures, we can't receive that one via email.  You can mail it or bring it to your first practice.

May 16

counting down

Thanks!  Many responses came in for help on the countdown.  All were appreciated. 

Later today, look for info on ESG Trials on the MEETS page.  Swimmers will need to enter and register themselves.  Of course suggestions regarding events and entry times are available on request!

May 15

REGISTRATION

The team is growing daily!  Registration forms are up (link) and many have already sent them to us.  You can download the form and either:
a) print it, fill it out, mail it back    or
b) open it in word, type your info in the boxes, save and email it back. 
 

There is a 2nd form with practice times and payment information.  The 3rd form is a waiver which will need to be signed by the athletes and parents.

20 days, 8 hours and 17 minutes from right now the 1st Empire practice will take place.  I was trying to make a countdown timer but couldn't figure out how.  Anybody with super-skills should feel free to share!

May 11

update

Practice schedule & monthly calendars are up.

May 9

schedules

The tentative meet schedule is posted!  Practice schedule is coming - actually practice schedules are coming.  The June schedule will run from June 4 until June 21.  The coaches will be in Ft. Lauderdale at the International Meet for the weekend and the summer schedule will begin on Monday, June 25.  Look for the June and July calendars which will be posted very soon.  Practices this spring/summer will all be at the Hackley School. (directions) The schedule for the 2007-2008 season is coming. 

REGISTRATION

EMPIRE registration forms are available to download, print and fill out.  They can be mailed to:

Empire Swiming
45 Montross Street
White Plains, NY 10603

Payment information will also be available.

May 7

Empire embarks!

Practices will begin on June 4 at the Hackley School.  Head Coach Ilan Noach welcomes Kevin Stone, Brian McClintock and Bill Natlo to the EMPIRE staff.  With over 50 years of combined coaching experience and a proven record of preparing athletes for success from local championships to Olympic Games, the Empire coaching staff is looking forward to setting the standard for training excellence - both in and out of the water.

At this time, the team will offer two workouts - one for swimmers age 13 and over, the second for ages 12 & under. (schedule) Additional times will be added as necessary.

Empire swimmers will compete this summer at the International Meet in Ft. Lauderdale, the Southern Sectional meet - also in Florida - and at the USA Nationals and Jr. Nationals in Indianapolis. 

Check the web site regularly!  Information regarding registration for the 2007-2008 season, as well as practice schedule and training groups will be posted soon.