Summer is a special time of year where thousands of rich kids get to do nothing and hang at their country club. Kansas City has a league of 10 country clubs that for the Country Club Swim Association of Kansas City. About 1,500 swimmers participate in daily practices for the first half of the summer. It is honestly one of the greatest things residents of Kansas City can partake in (if they can afford it of course). Growing up in the league and swimming for the smallest club, I really meshed with the team and bonded with fellow swimmers. I liked swimming for CCSAKC so much that I joined a year round swim team, and eventually made my way to NYU's Men's Swim Team. Now that my adderall has completely worn off I should warn you I might go off on tangents.
Daily practices are run by ex-swimmers who were lucky enough to snag coaching spots. In Kansas City, being a CCSAKC swim coach is a highly sought after job. The hours are long, and the kids can get rowdy, but there really is nothing better than being an older brother or sister to nearly 150 swimmers. A special bond develops between people when they are forced to spend that much time together. I would never hang out with 35 eight-year-olds, but getting paid to coach them has changed my mind. When I look at them I can see the fun swimming used to bring me. They remind me of why I love swimming and more importantly why coming home for the summer can be fun.
Moving up through the system, the older kids eventually reach "that" age where they start to get hair under their arms, cell phones, and peach fuzz. They think they are too cool and really hate being at the pool, yet they spend the whole day their with their friend judging everyone and complaining. Everyone has been through that phase, it actually sucks. Then comes the age where puberty is in full swing. On rare occasions swim-cest might occur, which makes a coaches job extra entertaining.
Once swimmers reach high school they really look at coaches more so as friends than anything else. They will share stories about their crazy house parties or possibly their first experience past making out (if the coach and swimmer are REALLY good friends). Having spent every summer since the age of 4, the league of 2,000 kids becomes really small. Like any smaller city, everyone knows everyone. Older swimmers with older siblings usually know what the coaches are like outside of the pool.
Everything comes to a head with championships. Three long days are filled with cheers, tears, and Leawood South taking home another title. Every year could be "the" year they lose, but it never seems to come. 12 hour days that never seem to end seem like a distant background after the seniors get out of the pool from their last swim. Long story short, as much as I bitch about missing New York during the summer, Kansas City Country Club Swimming is something words really can't describe. It is something that has kept me in love with the sport, and with the city itself.
Sorry if this is emotional, I am running on Diet Coke and Vitamin D. Being up at Hallbrook for 13 hours today nearly killed me.
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