Varsity Blues

This past weekend I traveled to Halifax with the UPEI Swim Team for the AUS (Atlantic University Sport) Swim Championships. We somehow managed to snag the Panther Bus even though the Men's Hockey team and the Basketball teams were away this weekend as well. The Panther Bus is our school's tour bus that athletes travel in to away games. It is covered with images of UPEI athletes looking all intense, and has wireless internet. This is the first time that the swim team has been allowed to take the bus, it's normally reserved solely for Hockey or Basketball so it was super exciting to get to take it to Halifax for the weekend.
I didn't compete in the swim meet since I had to spend 4-6 weeks after Christmas "recovery" and moving my shoulder as little as possible. It's hard to be at the pool and watching every one race and not be able to race myself, but I was definitely kept busy cheering! And the team gave me so much to cheer about! Every time anyone swam a personal best time, there was a bell to ring and you got to enter a ballot to win Subway gift cards. Every single person on our team got to ring the bell at least once and everyone swam really well.

This meet was my very last as a varsity athlete. It's sad, but I think that my rocky career as a varsity athlete made it easier. I have been swimming for three years now. In 2nd year, I competed first semester, and then got the results of my genetic testing over Christmas and just swam for the club team second semester. 3rd year was the opposite; I swam club for first semester and then competed at AUS championships in second semester. And this year, I competed first semester and then got my defibrillator and had to sit on the sidelines second semester. I think if the circumstances had been different, and I had been able to compete consistently the entire three years I spent on the swim team, I would have been really upset and bummed that I wouldn't be swimming competitively ever again as a UPEI Panther. I think I'm going to miss my team more than the swimming, but I'm definitely going to find a master's swim at home this summer to swim with though.

I love swimming, and I'm really glad I got a chance to swim varsity, even if it was on and off. One of the many perks of going to a small school - not having to even try out to make the swim team!