Mustang Monthly- Internet Edition

November 2005

A Refresher on our Team Philosophy

Those that have been on the Dallas Mustangs for a while know what our team’s philosophy is. Those of you who are new to the team might not. Regardless of which category you fall into, it is always a good idea to remember why being a part of the Dallas Mustangs can be a long and worthwhile experience. Much of that experience is driven by the philosophy that the team embraces.

Our philosophy is simply this: to develop an enjoyable and competitive program for each swimmer based on their skill, age, and interest. We don’t believe in pushing the younger age groups, mentally or physically. The focus at that age should be on technique and beginning to build an endurance foundation that will continue to help the swimmer throughout his or her swimming career. Pushing a child’s development too early or too quickly can be detrimental to the athlete in the long run. United States Swimming research shows the percentage of those athletes, who were ranked in the top 16 when they were younger, that were still ranked when they were in the 17-18 age group. The percentages were:

11% of ranked 10 and under went on to be ranked as 17-18 year olds

16% of ranked 11-12’s went on to be ranked as 17-18 year olds

33% of ranked 13-14’s went on to be ranked as 17-18 year olds

51% of ranked 15-16’s went on to be ranked as 17-18 year olds

This shows that early success does not necessarily translate into long term success. Therefore, it’s important to be patient. Let the body grow and develop, while working on correcting strokes and building an aerobic base.

The older Dallas Mustang age groups are challenged and are expected to contribute to the Dallas Mustangs’ continued national presence. There is obviously a high level of commitment and sacrifice needed to accomplish this lofty goal. We are also preparing those athletes to be successful at the college level.

We expect all of our swimmers to treat others as they would like to be treated and to take the lessons that they learn from our program into every aspect of their lives. And we expect all of our swimmers to support each other. A big reason for the success of our program over the years is due to our team concept, which really shows when it’s relay time!

Swimming is an incredible sport, with incredible people. Thank you for being a part of our great program. GO MUSTANGS!!

Mook Rhodenbaugh – Head Coach

Mustangs off to US Open

The Mustangs will be taking eight swimmers to this year’s United States Open Championships, which will be held Dec 1-3 in Auburn, Alabama. Swimmers from all over the world will participate in this year’s meet. Congratulations to the following Mustangs who qualified for this great opportunity:

Caroline Barnett, Spin Beck, Molly Bollen, Meredith Grubb, Alyssa Landino, Meredith Monroe, Clint Hallum, and Matt Thompson.

Dallas Mustangs Attend National Select Camp

Spindrift Beck attended the Girls camp November 11-13 and Matt Thompson attended the Boys camp November 18-20. Spin and Matt, as well as 25 other males and females from across the country, were selected by United States Swimming as national team hopefuls. The camps were held at the Olympic Training Center [OTC] in Colorado Springs. Camp curriculum included group workouts, a review of both under- and above-water video of some of the top swimmers at recent selected World Championships, individual filming of the select athletes, and several talks by some of the country's best coaches and OTC staff on various topics most relevant to swimmers at this level.

Mustangs on Top 16 List

The Top 16 program is an awards program administered by USA Swimming for the top level of age group swimming in the United States. Every year USA Swimming publishes a list of the fastest 16 times in each event and age group. Any times which are accepted as “official times” by USA Swimming are eligible for consideration. USA Swimming will award all swimmers on the list with a certificate and the fastest swimmer in each event and age group with a pin. The applicable age groups for individual events are 10 and under, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16 and 17-18 and for relays the groups are the same except that the 15-16 and 17-18 are combined into a 15-18 year old group. Here are the Mustang swimmers that made this prestigious list followed by their rank in the country for the 2004-05 swimming season (“L” indicates long course and “y” indicates short course):

10 and under:

Boys:

Dallas Mustangs “A” relay (Jake Watters, Harrison Tran, Luke Blaylock and Eric Futscher)

200 FR – 2:10.84L 8th

200MR – 2:29.08L 7^th

13 -14:

Boys:

Matt Thompson

50 free 22.04y 5^th

100 free 48.18y 8^th

200 free 1:43.99y 8^th

100 back 50.26y* 1^st

200 back 1:50.38y 1^st

200 IM 1:56.61y 6^th

400 IM 4:10.22y 7^th

*=National Age Group Record

Matt Thompson

50 free 25.34L 12^th

200 free 2:00.32L 12th

100 back 59.05L 1^st

200 back 2:11.44L 7^th

200 IM 2:14.26L 6^th

400 IM 4:45.72L 7^th

Max Murphy

50 free 22.06y 7^th

100 free 48.26y 9^th (T)

100 back 51.92y 2^nd

200 back 1:51.42y 4^th

100 fly 52.41y 6^th

Caleb Veazey

400 free 4:15.03L 10th

800 free 8:40.73L 3^rd

Andrew Tran

100 free 55.56L 12^th

200 fly 2:13.91L 11^th

200 IM 2:16.45L 14^th

Dallas Mustang 13-14 Boys “A” Relay (Andrew Tran, Nicholas Saliba, Caleb Veazey, Scott Weeks)

200 FR 1:45.66L 5^th

400 FR 3:52.19L 5^th

800 FR 8:28.80L 8^th

Dallas Mustang 13-14 Boys “A” Relay (Jack Beckwitt, Andrew Tran, Caleb Veazey, Scott Weeks)

200 MR 2:00.19 13^th

400 MR 4:22.11 10^th

Girls:

Spindrift Beck

200 breast 2:17.18y 7^th

200 IM 2:04.47y 9^th (T)

400 IM 4:24.60y 14^th

Spindrift Beck

100 breast 1:13.80L 10^th

200 breast 2:37.28L 9^th

200 IM 2:21.73L 6^th

15 – 18

Boys:

Clint Hallum

400 free 4:04.99L 16^th

800 free 8:27.38L 14^th

Matt Thompson

100 back 57.34L 1^st

200 back 2:05.73L 5^th

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Boys “A” Relay (Matt Thompson, Brooks Haller, Max Murphy, Clint Hallum)

200 MR 1:49.15L 6^th

Girls:

Molly Bollen

100 fly 55.11y 12^th

Codie Hansen

100 free 49.81y 6^th

200 free 1:46.95y 5^th

500 free 4:46.06y 7^th

1000 free 9:51.93y 7^th

200 back 1:59.22y 7^th

Candace Blackman

200 free 1:46.90y 4^th

500 free 4:47.42y 11^th

Katie Roberts

200 free 1:48.87y 15^th

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Girls “A” Relay (Candace Blackman, Katie Roberts, Codie Hanson, Jennifer Blackman)

400 FR 3:23.72y* 1^st

800 FR 7:15.04y 1^st (plus Lauren Roth, Alyssa Landino, Meredith Monroe)

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Girls “B” Relay (Alyssa Landino, Caroline Barnett, Meredith Monroe, Kate Gunning)

400 FR 3:28.96y 13^th

Codie Hansen

100 free 57.34L 11^th

200 free 2:03.79L 10^th

400 free 4:19.56L 13^th

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Girls “A” Relay (Alyssa Landino, Molly Bollen, Maddie Steiner, Lauren Roth)

200 FR 1:50.11L 9^th

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Girls “A” Relay (Lauren Roth, Alyssa Landino, Maddie Steiner, Meredith Monroe, Codie Hansen)

800 FR 8:34.98L 10^th

Dallas Mustang 15-18 Girls “A” Relay (Meredith Monroe, Kannon Betzen, Stephanie Futscher, Codie Hansen)

400 MR 4:23.73L 7^th

^{CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE SWIMMERS!!!}

Meet Recaps

Atac Your Times Invitational

The second meet for most of the Dallas Mustangs “A” swimmers, the annual “Atac Your Times” meet was held on the weekend of November 4-6 in Southlake. The Mustangs swam awesome, with most of its 70 competing athletes scoring points for the team. Most impressive about this meet was DM’s victory over all 23 teams participating, including teams from Louisiana, the Border, and West Texas! The Mustangs finished with a total of 836.5 points, beating its nearest competitor (COPS) by nearly 250 points! Those Mustangs who finished in the top 8 in at least one of their events are listed below and those that are italicized won at least one individual event:

Elizabeth Crowling, Emma Gruber, Courtney Nichols, Kendall Williams, Miyo Malouf, Megan Ernst, Julia Cuaderes, Blake Osborn, Spin Beck, Keegan Watters, Hannah Ferrin, Leah Jones, Hadley Trautmann, Lauren Roth, Alicia Stevens, Alyssa Landino, Meredith Grubb, Molly Bollen, Grace Kittle, Susan Jennings, Meaghan Watters, Meredith Monroe, Maddie Steiner, Eric Futscher, Jake Watters, Luke Blaylock, Harrison Tran, Liam Veazey, Andrew Tran, Scott Weeks, Fernando Lara, Steven Nichols, Paul Gerard, Jack Beckwitt, Greg Hoffman, Max Murphy, John Bannon, Caleb Veazey, Nicholas Saliba, and Matt Thompson.

Special congratulations to 14-year-old Andrew Tran, who won 11 out of his 12 events, scoring 106 points for the team!

FAST “BB” Invitational

The Dallas Mustangs finished a solid 6^th place at the FAST “BB” Invitational, held on November 12^th and 13^th, despite having only 24 swimmers compete in this meet. Several new “A” times were achieved during the meet and special congratulations go to those swimmers: Audrey Gruber, Lauren Murski, Natalie Rathjen, and Anna Beth Gruber. Listed below are all of the Mustangs who competed in the BB Invitational. Swimmers whose names that are italicized scored points and swimmers whose names are bolded won at least one event:

Natalie Rathjen, Caitlin Klemme, Lauren Murski, Audrey Gruber, Carolyn Thomas, Sarah Jones, Lauren Rathjen, Ann Weeks, Anna Beth Gruber, Kendel Ahnell, Alex Queener, Stephanie Grote, Marianne Scheer, Elisa Banowsky, Kelsey Pearson, Lisa Van Amburgh, Danna Callahan, Ashley Aleman, Miller Pyke, Jeffrey Nichols, Will McNamara, Nick Chong, Clay Taylor, and Andrew Harvey.

LAC B/C Invitational

Mustang swimmers at the “B/C” level competed at the LAC B/C Invitational from November 18-20^th. DM finished strongly, placing 3^rd out of the participating North Texas teams with 583 points. 38 Mustangs participated in the 2^nd B/C meet of the 2005-2006 short course season, and several achieved new “BB” or “B” times! Hats off to the Mustangs who swam a faster time standard: Alyssa Rusch (BB), Evie Thompson (B), Kendal Ernst (B), Lucy Stuart (B), Catherine Ward (B), Alex Fraley (B), and JoJo Veazey (B).

Congratulations to all participating Dallas Mustangs:

Ali Simenc, Sara Scheffler, Meryn Holtslander, Virginia Tiernan, Emma Pieroni, Charlotte Rolfe, Boni McVey, Caroline Florence, Carolina Boyd, Nicole Trubisky, Annelyse Tullier, Lucy Stuart, Hannah Bush, Siobhan Kelly, Evie Thompson, Kendall Ernst, Eliza Cope, Maggie Boreham, Molly Montgomery, Shelbi Purvis, Caroline Blaylock, Callie Scheffler, Catherine Ward, Caroline Thomas, Sara Granger, Susan Duncan, Alex Fraley, Sydney Patterson, Caitlin Garcia, Lesley Rowland, Alex Fraley, Meggy McVey, Yui Sato, Grant Hemingway, Cy Thompson, Alex Tcheng, Nick Hemingway, Dylan Tcheng, Joe Gray, Caelan Freeman, Jo Jo Veazey, Connor Mullen, Timothy Simenc, Thomas Holtslander, Pablo Lara, Steven Cornish, Jake Baldwin, and Preston Morgenstern.

TSA All Star Challenge

During the weekend of November 12-13, 2005, 11 Mustangs competed in the TSA All Star Challenge, held in Southlake, Texas. All five LSC’s from Texas competed and the Mustangs helped North Texas finish in 2^nd place. Congratulations to the following Mustangs who swam at this meet:

Kendall Williams, Julia Cuaderes, Megan Ernst, Des Godfrey, Leah Jones, Hadley Trautmann, Steven Nichols, John Kenny, Andrew Tran, Fernando Lara, and Jack Beckwitt.

Again, special congratulations to Andrew Tran who was high point winner for 14 year old boys. Way to go, Andrew!

Social News

It’s time once again for the Dallas Mustangs annual Christmas party. The festivities this year will be held on Tuesday, December 13^th at Loos from 6:30 – 7:30. Practices for that day are at LOOS as follows:

National: 5:00 - 6:30

All other groups: 5:30 – 6:30

ALL OTHER PRACTICES ARE CANCELLED THAT DAY.

Each swimmer should bring $3 for pizza and a $10 gift for the gift exchange. In addition, each family should bring a dessert to share.

Questions? Ask your coach or e-mail Maryann Martin at social@dmswim.com.

New Equipment Donated

A big thank you goes out to the Watters family for their thoughtful donations to our weight room at Loos. New weight machines, dumbbells, medicine balls, mats…..it’s beginning to look like a health club down there! All of the donations are great additions to our program and we appreciate them very much.

Holiday Practice Schedule - ** Updated December 15 **

Dec 10 – N 8-10 @ HP, G & S 10-noon @ HP

Dec 13 - Holiday party @ Loos 6:30-7:30pm, practices offered: N 5-6:30, G S and B 5:30-6:30 – No practices at HP and CFB

Dec 16 – No Loos practices, N G S 4:30-6 @ HP, B 6-7 @ HP

Dec 17 – G & S 10-noon @ HP

Dec 19 – N 10-12:30 @ HP, G 2:30-4:30 @ HP, S 4:30-6 @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Dec 20-22 – N 8-10am @ Loos and 2-4:30pm @ HP, G 8-10am @ Loos, S 4:30-6pm @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Dec 23 – N 8-11am @ SMU, G & S 4-6pm @ HP

Dec 24 & 25 – No practices

Dec 26 – N 2-5pm @ SMU, G & S 4-6pm @ HP

Dec 27 - N 6-8am @ HP and noon-2 @ SMU, G noon-2 @ HP, S 4:30-6pm @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Dec 28 – N 6-8am @ HP and 2-4:30pm @ HP, G noon-2 @ HP, S 4:30-6pm @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Dec 29 – N 10am-Noon @ HP and 2-4:30pm @ HP, G noon-2 @ HP, S 4:30-6pm @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Dec 30 – N 11-2pm @ SMU, G & S 4-6pm @ HP

Dec 31 – N 11-2pm @ SMU

Jan 2 – N 2-4:30pm @ HP, G & S 4:30-6:30pm @ HP

Jan 3 – Back to regular schedule for all groups

Jan 16 – No Loos or CFB practices offered. N & G 4:30-6pm @ HP, S 6:45-7pm @ HP, B 6-7pm @ HP

Attention Mustang Parents

(ESPECIALLY PARENTS OF BRONZE SWIMMERS)

The Dallas Mustangs will host the "B/C" short course championship meet at Loos pool on February 17, 18, and 19, 2006.  We expect this to be a very busy meet.   Your help in volunteering for this meet is critical because many of our "A" and "BB" level swimmers and parents will not be attending this meet due to their attendance at the "A" and "BB" championship meets being held at other locations the same weekend.  It is especially important, therefore, that the parents and family members of Bronze team swimmers help us out and volunteer.  We are committed to hosting a meet that deserves as much quality and service as the higher level meets.  Indeed, our swimmers stand a better chance of achieving a higher level if they attend and swim well at quality, well run swim meets.

 We are asking that you volunteer and help us with the meet.  Instead of sitting in the stands and relying on others to run the meet, why don't you come out of the stands and help out?  You will find that volunteering is rewarding and infectious.  Others that witness you volunteering will want to join the crowd.  When your children see you volunteering, it motivates them; they perceive you as an active participant in their sport as opposed to being just a spectator.  Volunteering is also financially rewarding.  Volunteers may earn valuable Mustang Bucks good for credit towards your swimmer’s quarterly dues. Many of you may be new to the Mustangs or new to year around swimming.  Experience is not a qualification to be a volunteer.  The volunteer positions require no previous experience, and we will train you to do the job.  We encourage family members (i.e. older brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles) to volunteer as well.  Mustang Bucks may be awarded for up to two family members.  If your older child needs community service points to satisfy a school requirement, volunteering at the swim meet is a perfect way to earn those points.

Volunteers are needed to assist with hospitality, clerk of course, heat sheet sales, timing equipment set up and tear down, awards processing, data processing and administration, and safety marshals.  Please contact me and volunteer.  You'll be glad you did.

Jim Cuaderes
Mustangs Meet Director
(214) 340-1938 (home)
(214) 880-8113 (work)
(214) 912-8598 (cell)
JCuaderes @ Littler.com (work e-mail)
quadlawyer@sbcglobal.net (home e-mail)            

Supply Room News

The supply room at Loos will be open every Tuesday and Thursday from 6:00-7:30pm and at Highland Park on Mondays and Wednesdays from 4:30-7:00pm. We keep basic equipment in stock such as goggles, fins, pull buoys, team caps, suits, t-shirts, etc.

Directory News

The database has been updated and we are working on getting the directory published. Look for it in your swimmer’s box in the next couple of weeks.

DM Tuition Policy Reminder

The Dallas Mustangs is a competitive year round age-group swimming program. As such we strive to provide consistent quality coaching and workout facilities. To achieve this goal we establish pool rental contracts and salary commitments with our coaching staff for a full 12-month period. Tuition amounts are established based on the 12-month budget and divided into monthly or quarterly amounts to provide reasonable payment options for our Dallas Mustang families. The Dallas Mustangs Swim Team is not, and was not designed to be a swim program where swimmers drop in one month and out the next. Flexibility has always been important to us. We try to work with each family on the team and we will continue to do so.

Tuition may be paid quarterly: September, December, March, and June, or monthly. Tuition paid monthly includes a $5.00 per month processing fee. (If tuition for the quarter is not paid by the due date, monthly payment has automatically been selected.)

· Tuition is due from September through August. (If you swim in July, you are responsible for August tuition.)

· Tuition is due on the 1^st of each month/quarter.

· Leave of Absence (LOA) is available only for injury and medical reasons.

· There will be a $10.00 per month tuition discount for the second and subsequent swimmers in the same family. The fourth swimmer is free, but all swimmers must pay the annual registration fee.

· A swimmer transferring from another team must be in good standing with their old team.

· Statements are only mailed quarterly. If you have chosen to pay monthly, it is your responsibility to remember to mail or drop off tuition by the first of each month that we do not send statements.

· There will be a $5.00 per family late fee after the 10th of the month for non-zero balance accounts.

· The swimmer(s) may be barred from swimming if there is an aged account balance is excess of 60 days.

· Please indicate in the memo portion of all checks what the payment is for (i.e. Dues – swimmer’s name, meet account, supplies, etc.).

· If there is a problem with your billing, please contact the treasurer.

· Should circumstances prevent full payment of your tuition, please contact the president. Scholarships and alternate payment plans will be addressed on a case by case basis. (Please Note: Lack of communication is not an option!)

· Should you choose to leave the team – it is your responsibility to contact the treasurer or registration chairman. (Informing the coach does not fulfill this responsibility!)

· If you choose to leave the team for the summer, you must go through the tryout process in the fall. You may not return to workouts until you have attended the tryout, completed paperwork and paid your fees. You are not automatically guaranteed a spot on the team. If your group is full, your name will be placed on the waiting list. Any tuition/fee balances that were not paid when you left the team must be paid prior to re-joining the team.

· If you choose to leave the team at any point during the year, you MAY NOT represent the Dallas Mustangs at any swim meet or event that occurs after the date you have left the team. Should you choose to participate in a swim meet after you have left the team, you must register for the meet and swim as unattached (Team = UN).

· Tuition may be sent with the swimmer to the pool, or mailed to the Treasurer:

DM Treasurer – Shannon Rusch

603 Hood Dr.

Coppell, Texas 75019

.