Rodger Bivens Former two-term president of the SaddleBrooke Swim Club, Phil Simpson, has had a remarkable swimming career at SaddleBrooke. Just recently, he achieved a highlight in this career when he won his age group at the Arizona Winter Distance Invitational Swim Meet held at the Oro Valley Aquatic Center on Feb. 25 and 26 for the…
Karin Bivens On Feb. 25 and 26 the 7th annual Winter Masters Distance Invitational was again sponsored by the SaddleBrooke Swim Club. The meet was held at the newly renovated Oro Valley Aquatic Center’s Olympic-size pool. What was particularly challenging, however, was Mother Nature’s surprise winter storm that arrived on Sunday, dropping temperatures and bringing snow,…
Lori Lyle If you’ve swum at the DesertView pool in the last year, there’s a good chance you’ve met one of the most friendly and energetic new members of the SaddleBrooke Swim Club: Susan Bryant. Susan, aka Susie, joined the Swim Club last year after her partner Mike Schwarz taught her to swim freestyle. Susie…
Terese Butler Have you always wanted to learn how to swim but didn’t have the chance? Or maybe you gave it a try but found it difficult and didn’t think it was for you? There are myriad reasons why you might have stayed away from the pool, but now is the time to make a…
Miles Bivens I’m 12 years old now, but ever since I can remember, my grandma has been a champion athlete. Grandma Karin became a member of the SaddleBrooke Swim Club when it first formed, under Coach Doug Springer, in order to train for Ironman triathlon competitions, which are comprised of three events: swimming, biking, and…
The SaddleBrooke Swim Club is offering its 18th free Let’s Swim clinic! There will be six sessions on Wednesdays and Fridays from March 1 through March 17 from 10 to 11 a.m. at the DesertView pool. You have all seen the articles of the many 80- and 90-year-olds who are swimming with the Swim Club!…
Claire Guidas As we age, injury becomes more likely without preventive actions. Swimming has been proven to be one of the best ways to stay fit with minimal injuries. Despite being a great way to exercise, however, it never hurts to incorporate regular shoulder stretching and strengthening exercises to avoid possible shoulder injuries while swimming…
Lori A. Lyle “Join the Swim Club!” they said. “It’ll be fun!,” they said—and, boy, were they right! When my daughters (who were competitive swimmers in high school and college) visited last year, the first thing they did was head to the DesertView pool to do some lap swimming. At the pool, they encountered the…
Linda Merritt The SaddleBrooke Swim Club has over 100 members, and of those members, 20 are 80 years and older! Currently, the oldest is 89, but the Swim Club has had members in their 90s and as old as 104 in past years. Many of the current octogenarians first joined when Doug Springer started the…
Karin Bivens Doug Springer, former head coach of the SaddleBrooke Swim Club, crushed three all-time top United States Masters Swimming (USMS) national swim records in the men’s 75 to 79 age group at two meets this year! At the United States Masters Short Course Yards (SCY) Spring National Championship held in San Antonio, Texas (April 28…