Swimming Squad Training

We have adult swimming squad training throughout the year every Monday and Wednesday night from 7:00pm to 8:30pm at the Casey ARC next to the Fountain Gate shopping centre in Narre Warren.

Our training sessions cater for a variety of requirements, including:

• general fitness
• pool competition preparation
• open water swimming
• triathletes

The only requirements are that you are over 15 years old, can swim a few lengths of the pool and have a love of swimming.

Training Fees

After holding our training fees constant for over 7 years, we've had to face the facts that we can't hold them at the same price forever. The new fees, effective from 1 July 2009 are $4 for members (with a 5 or 10 swim prepaid card), $5 for members on a casual basis and $6 for non-members. Note that this does not include the pool entry fee, and is paid directly to the club Treasurer on pool deck before you get into the water. We also have an introductory discount for all new non-members have the first 4 swims in the first month at the members' casual rate of $5 per session.

If you are paying casual pool entry fees, remember to tell the staff when paying that you're training with the Casey Seals masters squad to get the club discount entry fee rather than the peak rate applicable when the wave pool is operating.

With the club membership fee currently set at $25 for the calendar year, if you are likely to swim more than 25 times in the year upto 31 December, it is worth taking out club membership to receive the members' discount entry fees (in addition to the other benefits that members receive).

If you are going to be swimming at Casey ARC or Casey RACE (that is anytime, not just the club training) more than twice per week on average, you might find it cheaper to take out Aquatic Membership with the ARC. Full Membership of Casey ARC is also an option, giving you access to all the centre's facilities including a well-appointed health club - a very cheap rate if you want to use a gym as well as swimming. Ask the pool reception staff for more information and current prices. Note that membership of Casey ARC also entitles you to enter the new Casey RACE facility in Cranbourne.

The Moveable Boom

Normally, most of the evening training sessions are in a 25m pool, although the pool is left as a 50m on public holidays. At around 8:00 (i.e. after an hour or so), the boom dividing the pool into two 25m pools is moved to the deep end, so the last part of training is in a 50m pool. This is great because it allows our swimmers to train in both long-course and short-course pools in the one session.

Being able to train in both pool lengths is invaluable for pool competition swimmers because pool racing is held in both long-course and short-course and this allows them to get used to both types of competition.

It is also very useful for triathletes & open-water swimmers because:

• The 50m pool allows them to settle into their stroke better than the 25m pool
• In the 25m pool on the other hand, the frequent turns of short-course swimming encourages improved breath control (a factor in choppy water when you often get a faceful of water from a wave instead of a breath)
• The 25m pool also encourages these swimmers to quickly recover into their normal stroke after a change of direction such as rounding a buoy

Our Coaches

The coach is an integral part of a club's continued success, and we have been fortunate to have had excellent coaches since our club's inception back in November 2001.

Ebony Ebenwaldner

Ebony took over the job of coach in October 2006 and continued through to June 2008 when she had to resign due to her accepting a role coaching squads at Monash Uni swim club. We are now fortunate to have Ebony back on pool deck with us on Mondays after the birth of her daughter Isabella.

Ebony has had a distinguished career as a top-level pool and open water swimmer and has coached age-group squads for many years.

She is one of Australia's top open water swimmers, having won the world-famous Lorne Pier to Pub ocean swim (under her maiden name of Ebony Currell) and is usually on the podium after her races.

Ebony has coached at:

• Haileybury Waterlions, one of Victoria's leading swimming clubs
• Oasis Otters in Dandenong, and
• Monash Uni Swim Club, assisting Ross Price.

Coaching Assistants & backup

We are fortunate to have several reserve coaches that we can call upon, including our recently Level 1M qualified coach Ann Hutchings and a number of enthusiastic club members.

Come and Try

If you would like to try a training session, aim to arrive at the pool deck about 10 minutes before the start of the session. You'll need to bring bathers, towel, swimming goggles, drink bottle and a pair of flippers (if you have any). Most of these items are available for purchase at the front desk if necessary. You will find us at the deep end of the pool (closest to the entry to the complex).

If you are unsure of whether the training is suitable for your level of swimming, come along and have a look, and have a chat to our coach or any of us. Alternatively, you could call one of the Committee members and we'll tell you a bit more about it.

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