Your swimmer is going to improve at this intimate high performance four session camp. Each session has a distinct curriculum designed to improve participants‘ performance in all components of a butterfly race.

Saturday:
Session 1: Butterfly Technique & Drills
Session 2: Starts & Underwaters

Sunday:
Session 3: Open Turns & Finishes
Session 4: Butterfly Race Strategy

Your Elite Clinician for this camp is Olympic gold medalist Clark Smith and Coach Shawn Parkhurst! Clark and Shawn are known for their detailed technical knowledge and are exceptional at teaching swimmers of all ages and abilities. Scroll down for more details on the curriculum!

Session Times (Both Days):
AM Sessions (1 & 3): Check in 9:00 AM, Clinic 9:15 AM-11:00 AM
PM Sessions (2 & 4): Check in 11:30 AM, Clinic 11:45 AM-1:30 PM

Social Distancing: Fitter and Faster is following all guidelines as it relates to COVID-19 as set by the CDC, NIH and local authorities. This camp will have limits on the number of swimmers per lane to maintain social distance. We also ask for you to please drop your swimmers off at the sign-in table and to pick your swimmers up after the clinic. If a waitlist is established, please join it. If enough people enter the waitlist we will plan for additional sessions! THANK YOU!

Suggested Participants

Clark and Shawn will lead four sessions for swimmers ages 10 and over. Sign up for one or SAVE by signing up for all four sessions!

Curriculum

SATURDAY, JULY 25

SESSION 1: BUTTERFLY TECHNIQUE AND DRILLS

Olympic gold medalist Clark Smith and Coach Shawn Parkhurst will work with participants to improve on the complexities of balancing power and fluid rhythm in one of the most dynamic athletic movements. Elite butterfliers maintain forward momentum by setting an immediate high catch with a perfectly timed kick. They are committed to a breathing pattern, perfecting their distance per stroke, and maintaining a horizontal body position - become committed to these same skills...make them YOUR habits.

BODY POSITION: Elite butterfliers focus on driving their momentum forward with minimal drag by keeping their heads low and hips high. Participants will work with Clark and Shawn on establishing and maintaining the proper body position.
KICK: Each butterfly stroke has two equally strong and well-timed kicks. Work on how and when to kick in fly for maximum speed.
PULL: Long and smooth strokes will allow your swimmer to have a more efficient butterfly. Clark and Shawn will teach participants to get an early catch on the water for more power in each stroke.
BREATH: The most common mistakes that swimmers make in fly occur during the breath. Swimmers will work on low and efficient breaths as well as WHEN to breathe so that they can swim more efficiently on the breath stroke.

SESSION 2: STARTS AND UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING

The start is your swimmer’s opportunity to cover as much ground as possible in a very short period of time with great efficiency and momentum heading into the streamline and breakout. There are many intricacies to performing a start, and it will only improve with practice. Clark Smith and Shawn Parkhurst have spent countless hours practicing starts and underwater dolphin kicking and will show your swimmer how to be explosive and efficient with each movement.

STARTS: Your swimmer’s proper hand and foot placement on the block can allow them to drive forward with a lot of explosive power. Clark and Shawn will work with your swimmer to find the best position on the block as well as how to launch their body forward efficiently into a tight streamline and enter the water through a small hole.
UNDERWATER DOLPHIN KICKING: The fastest swimmers know how to weaponize their dolphin kicking. It is absolutely, undeniably, the fastest way to move through the water! Whether you dolphin kick on your stomach, side, or back, understanding the importance of streamlined, underwater speed is vital for every swimmer!

SUNDAY, JULY 26

SESSION 3: OPEN TURNS AND FINISHES

Focusing on having faster turns and a well-timed finish is an easy way to drop time and win close races. Elite swimmers maintain their momentum through a quick turn and have a powerful push off every wall. Olympic gold medalist Clark Smith and Coach Shawn Parkhurst will lead participants through a series of drills to have compact, fast turns in any race. It’s easy for swimmers to have lazy turns when they are tired, but by learning the correct technique and practicing daily, your swimmer can gain speed on each turn.

OPEN TURNS: Think about the open turn differently! Your swimmer should not be making an open turn to touch the wall and swim the next lap; if they’re doing this, they are actually stopping and then trying to regain speed. An expertly executed open turn involves spinning backwards, enabling your swimmer to carry momentum into the push off.
FINISHES: Races can be won or lost by hundredths of a second, and many races come down to the last few strokes. Your swimmer will learn how to use their kick to accelerate into the wall, time their stroke for a perfect arm extension, and keep their head down so they don’t waste any time or strokes as they approach the wall.

SESSION 4: BUTTERFLY RACE STRATEGY

In the final session, swimmers will put together the skills they learned in the previous session to practice fast butterfly racing. Clark Smith and Shawn Parkhurst will have swimmers practice changing different parts of their stroke to adjust to sprint or distance butterfly events. Swimmers will put these skills to the test in workouts specifically designed to develop different racing plans and emphasize the technique and skills learned earlier in the camp.

DISTANCE PER STROKE: One way to increase efficiency is to take fewer strokes. Counting the number of strokes and improving technique to decrease that number will save energy. On the other side, it may be faster to take more strokes per length, especially in shorter events.
TEMPO: Your swimmer’s tempo is how fast or slow they complete each stroke. Having a slower tempo allows swimmers to conserve energy by taking fewer strokes, while a faster tempo is more tiring but much faster. Changing tempo based on event distance and fatigue level will help your swimmer swim as fast as possible.
RACE PACE: Participants will bring all of the technical elements of butterfly together in a fast and powerful stroke. Practicing butterfly at full speed while maintaining good body position and stroke technique will make it second nature when it comes time to race.

ASK QUESTION

Swimmers and parents are invited to ask Clark and Shawn questions during a Q&A session. Gain insight into their training regimen, diet and nutrition, and recovery tactics.

WATCH THE CLINICIAN

Observe Clark swim at full speed and demonstrate a progression of perfectly executed drills to achieve powerful, efficient and fast swimming.

PUT YOUR SKILLS TO THE TEST

Swimmers will get to practice what they've learned by taking their stroke to top speed with two of the best swimmers and coaches in the world! They'll work on holding onto their form while challenging themselves.

Take a photo with Clark and Shawn, get autographs, and ALL PARTICIPANTS receive a FREE Fitter and Faster Collector’s Bag Tag for each day they are at the camp. Collect all 37 and trade with your friends!

Inquisitive, Educated Swimmers are Faster Swimmers! Sign up today!

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