Coach Gritzmacher Returns to Texas as Guest Coach of Longhorn Swim Camp

Returning to his alma mater for the summer of ’06, Coach Gritzmacher joined the coaching ranks of the top-rated swimming camp in the United States, the Longhorn Swim Camp at the University of Texas. View the Photo Gallery

The camp consisted of three grueling practices per day, plus a dryland workout, classroom discussion, and race video and Tivo analysis.  Headed by legendary Texas swim coach Eddie Reese (Gritzmacher’s college coach), the camp featured one of the most impressive coaching line-ups in the history of the sport.  Four former Texas swimmers (all Olympic gold medalists and current world record-holders) put on stroke clinics each day for the campers, giving detailed instruction and descriptions of drills and proper stroke technique.
 
“It was an unbelievable experience coaching alongside these incredible coaches and athletes, and it was great to be back on my old campus in Austin,” Gritzmacher said.  “I like to keep a close watch on the swimming and diving team at Texas, and there is probably no better place on Earth to learn about fast swimming and good coaching than right here.” Coach Gritzmacher plans to incorporate many of the stroke drills and dryland training exercises into the Westminster Swimming and Diving Team workout program.
 
“I’m a huge believer in developing overall core stability, and I can’t wait to implement some of these new explosive power- and speed-building moves into our program.  I’m sure we’ll see fantastic results from all of our swimmers,” said Gritzmacher.
 
The 06/07 Season for The Martlets
Gritzmacher begins his third season with the Westminster Swimming and Diving Team in November, and he is very optimistic about the growth of the team and its ability to compete with some of the best teams in the league.  The Martlets’ 8th place finish at Boys’ NEPSSA Championships last March established Westminster as an up-and-coming team to beat.
 
“We’re committed to creating an environment where our swimmers can have a great learning experience with their friends as a part of a co-ed team, but we also want them to learn to invest time and energy into working toward their goals.  Swimming is an incredible sport because it requires kids to trust their coaches and push themselves to their limit without any instant gratification or reward.  It’s not until the end of the season that they reap the benefits.  If I am going to ask a swimmer to put that kind of trust in me and work his tail off all season long, I want to make darn sure I’ve got the latest information and tools at my disposal to make that kid as fast as he can be.  That’s why I went down to Texas to coach this camp.”