Moments to remember
OMAHA, Neb. — Sometimes it's not about the results. It's all about the experience.
Seneca Valley graduates Stacie Safritt and Kylie Gamelier, as well as Caleb Courage of Grove City College, had the daunting task of competing against the country's best swimmers in the U.S. Olympic trials at the Qwest Center, which wrapped up Sunday.
While they fell short of making it to Beijing, they came away having enjoyed the moment more than anything else.
Safritt, a senior at the University of Pittsburgh, recorded a time of 26.46 seconds in the sixth heat of the 50-meter freestyle preliminaries, almost two seconds behind the top recorded time by Laura Jackson. She placed 71st overall.
Gamelier, a senior at the University of Toledo, registered a 1:13.93 in the women's 100-meter breaststroke, 7.08 seconds behind winner Jessica Hardy, to finish with the 98th best time.
Courage, who took a year off from Grove City College to train in Charlotte, N.C., competed in the 50- and 100-meter freestyle preliminaries.
Courage posted a time of 51.80 in the second of 15 heats in the 100 freestyle, finishing 107th overall. He entered the event with the 111th seed and a time of 51.53.
In the 50 free two days later, Courage finished 68th overall with a time of 23.31. He entered the event ranked 68th with a seed time of 23.31.
"The experience is something I'll never forget," said Safritt. "It's totally different from any college meet, including the NCAA meet.
"You feel like the smallest fish in the biggest pond. A lot of athletes there are the best on their teams and you realize how big swimming is and how great they are,"Safritt added.
Safritt also had a chance to take part in a time trial in the 100 freestyle. She had not qualified to compete in the event, but athletes were permitted to choose events where they could record an official time. Safritt shaved 1Z\x seconds off her personal best.
Gamelier found herself pressed for time. Qualifying one week before the trials was great, but it didn't leave her in the best possible spot.
"I only had the week after I made the cut to prepare," said Gamelier. "I kept resting. I didn't know what I'd do. I kept resting on and off for five weeks before.
"I wanted to do good. It was a good experience and it was fun," Gamelier added.
Having qualified for the trials as late as she did forced her to alter her normal preparation routine.
"I physically had to make myself nervous," said Gamelier. "It was fun and nice racing normally (at the last chance meet at Cleveland State University). I got to the trials and everything was so quick. I had a week to prepare and I still couldn't comprehend I was there.
"I knew I wasn't going to make the Olympics. That was out of the question. But I had to try and get up for the meet,"Gamelier added.
Unlike Safritt and Gamelier, Courage took a year off to train with the Mecklenburg Aquatic Club.
Courage has an impressive resume at Grove City College. He's a two-time NCAA Division III champion in the 100-yard freestyle and is an 11-time NCAA all-American with seven Wolverine records.That year off gave Courage the opportunity to concentrate on his eventsDespite the results, Courage is still appreciative of his break from college life."It was a unique opportunity, one that most people don't get, to interrupt school," said Courage, a Shippensburg resident. "You get to train for something larger than life."Courage was pretty close to the mark of where he was seeded in both events, but he said he still was a little disappointed."Going in, I was hoping for my best times," said Courage. "You have the experience of swimming with the top swimmers. It was nothing like I've ever been to or ever will until the next one."I was hoping to learn a lot, which I did. I was expecting to be blown away, and I was on how bigger than life it was and how fast it would be,"Courage added.The 100 free "was the first race of the meet for me and I was excited, more excited than nervous."I was a little more prepared for the 50 free. I was not too disappointed because I was capable of swimming that time twice."Along with returning to the Grove City campus, Courage also is eyeing the 2012 Olympic trials. He knows it's never too early to begin preparing for it."I plan on getting my training started," said Courage. "I had one year in advance to train and it was a great learning experience, a great trial run."I was serious all year, but now I know what's in store."
