St Louis Area Masters

It is with the heaviest of hearts that I share this post from a loved one of Becky:

“On Sunday, July 26th Becky began the Catalina Channel Swim – a marathon open water swim from Catalina Island to the mainland of California. After swimming for 17 hours, Becky went into cardiac arrest in the water. Despite the heroic efforts of everyone involved in the emergency response and the amazing medical staff at UCLA Habor Medical Center, Becky suffered a devastating hypoxic brain injury and died on Friday evening. Bo, Becky’s husband, her family, and close friends were able to say goodbye to Becky and walk with her in an Honor Walk through the hospital as she made her way to One Legacy where she will be making gifts of her tissues and organs.

Becky’s life was a gift. Her smile, intelligence, kindness, quirkiness, loyalty, and sense of humor touched more lives than I could ever begin to count. To say she will be missed seems like the most overwhelming understatement imaginable.

In lieu of flowers or any other immediate outpourings of generosity, Bo asks that you give him time to consider how best to honor Becky in ways that connect with her values and priorities. Information about donations and funeral arrangements will be shared once these decisions have been made.”

Our SLAM President, Patrick, wanted to express his condolences and say:

“Becky was an inspiration to all of us at South City Y Masters. Every time I saw her, she was warm, friendly, and always had such a positive attitude. Becky was the most fearless swimmer I've ever met. Whether it was swimming around Manhattan, swimming in the ice-cold Lake Memphremagog in Vermont in the winter, or attempting to swim the Catalina Channel, Becky dove in with a drive that was unmatched. She was such a valuable member of South City Y Masters, and while we will miss her deeply, we will always carry the positive memories of her that will continue to inspire us.”

Becky swam her first USMS meet at our meet last November. And her favorite quote is included in the photos, by Frightened Rabbit.

Stroke Clinic: Our workout group at the South City YMCA will host a stroke-improvement clinic (Breaststroke, IM, and Backstroke), led by our 3 outstanding Nationals medalists, Daniel Verdico, Jeddrick Gamilla, and Ashley Turpin on Tuesday, July 8th at 7pm. If you are a YMCA member, you can come join for free. If you are not a YMCA member, there is a $10 drop-in fee. If you are not a Y-member, be sure to get there early as it will take a few minutes to register at the front desk. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from 3 of the best in the country.

YOU CAN STILL SIGN UP FOR GROWN-UP SWIMMING!! The first meet is set for July 12th at Lifetime Fitness in Frontenac. SLAM swimmers are spread across several different teams. All the information for Grown-Up Swimming is HERE:

St. Louis — Grown-Up Swimming We're excited about the number of teams joining Grown-Up Swimming St. Louis this year! Find your Team below, join as a free agent or reach out to register a new one!

REGISTRATION IS STILL OPEN for the Ed and Ruth Shea Challenge LCM meet on July 11th in Carbondale, IL. This is our local long-course meters meet. There's no online registration, it's a mailed paper registration only. The meet info and registration is HERE:

Ed and Ruth Shea Challenge Classic Annual LC Swim Meet Indoor long course meet at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Mailed paper entries. No online entry available. Challenge events in the sprint and distance categories.

Congratulations to all the swimmers on an excellent National Championship swim meet!! SLAM FINISHES OVERALL 20TH OUT OF 263!!! Here are additional Sunday highlights:

• WOMAN 200 FREE: MARY POHLMANN 2ND PLACE (80-84 AGE GROUP)

•WOMAN 100 FLY: TERESA MCDOWELL 2ND PLACE (75-79 AGE GROUP)

• MEN 100 FLY: DANIEL VERDICO 8TH (18-24 AGE GROUP), NOAH SCHEUERMANN 3RD (25-29 AGE GROUP)

•WOMAN 50 BACK: ASHLEY TURPIN 10TH (18-24 AGE GROUP), MARY POHLMANN 1ST (80-84 AGE GROUP)

•MEN 50 BACK: NOAH SCHEUERMANN 2ND (25-29 AGE GROUP), PATRICK SULLIVAN 15TH (45-49 AGE GROUP)

• WOMAN100 IM: ASHLEY TURPIN 16TH (18-24 AGE GROUP), MARY WOEHLER 4TH (65-69 AGE GROUP)

• MEN 100 IM: JEDDRICK GAMILLA 2ND (18-24 AGE GROUP), JEROME SCHEUERMANN 32ND (60-64 AGE GROUP)

• WOMAN 50 BREAST: ASHLEY TURPIN 6TH (18-24 AGE GROUP)

•MENS 50 BREAST: DANIEL VERDICO 1ST (18-24 AGE GROUP), JEDDERICK GAMILLA 4TH (18-24 AGE GROUP), LARRY GOOD 1ST (90-94 AGE GROUP)

Four more USMS Champion races by SLAM swimmers: Mary Pohlmann, 100 back (with new Ozark record) and 400 IM (80-84 age group), Larry Good 200 breast (90-94 age group) and Daniel Verdico 200 breast (18-24 age group). Congratulations and good luck to all in the final day of competition Sunday.

Congratulations to Mary Woehler, winning the 50 fly 65-69 age group and taking 2nd in 200 IM, and national champions Mary Pohlmann, winning the 1000 free and 200 back (80-84 age group) and Larry Good, winning the 100 breast (90-94 age group). Daniel Verdico already menioned for winning the 100 breast (18-24 age group). The 500 free is still in progress at this time.

GROWN-UP SWIMMING!!! The first meet is set for July 12th at Lifetime Fitness in Frontenac!!! Hope to see you there!! 👏🏼🏊🏼‍♀️

The launch party is planned for Wednesday, June 10th, @ 6:00pm. Location is TBD.

May 7th Video Call Link: https://is.gd/DOT2hU

May 19th Video Call Link: https://is.gd/DOT2hU