HEAD COACH

Mike McGee
Mike grew up swimming for the Sleepy Hollow Sea Lions.  Years of swimming lead Mike to learn and love the game of water polo. Mike began his career at Drake where he garnered first-team All-Marin County Athletic League honors for three straight years, was selected to All-North Coast Section third team as a sophomore and junior, and then made first team in 2003.  Senior year, he was awarded with an athletic scholarship to play on the Men’s Water Polo team at UC Davis.  At UC Davis, Mike majored in Organizational Studies and minored in Exercise Biology and Communication.  He was twice awarded the All American and Academic All American teams for Division 1, in addition to being named WWPA Conference player of the year.  Following his final season as captain and starting goalie for the water polo team, Mike was awarded the university’s “Colby E. ‘Babe’ Slater” Male Athlete of the Year award.

While going to school and playing polo, Mike coached a wide range of different age groups with the Davis Water Polo Club.  In Mike’s final quarter at UCD, he became the undergraduate assistant coach for the water polo team.  Since the fall of 2008 he has been coaching locally for Sleepy Hollow Aquatics swimming and water polo programs.  In 2009 Mike was the head coach for both the San Rafael High School boys and girls water polo programs. 

ASSISTANT COACHES

Jeff McGee
Jeff started swimming at Sleepy Hollow Sea Lions in 1990 and continued through High School. He was named honorable mention All-American as part of 200 free relay as a senior. The squad won back-to-back Marin County Athletic League titles (and missed first team All-America honors by 0.16 of a second). Jeff was also part of MCAL-champion 200 medley relay as a junior. Individually, he captured the MCAL title in the 200 free as a senior. Following three enjoyable years as a member of the Marin Pirates club team, Jeff continued competing for US Davis at the Pacific Collegiate Swimming Conference. He achieved notable success in the 50,100,200, and 500 freestyle events, as well as the backstroke. Jeff was a strong contributor for the UC Davis relay teams. Jeff recently graduated from CSU Fresno with a Masters in Counseling and will be attending a Ph.D. Program in Counselor Education in the fall. Jeff hopes to specialize in play therapy, helping children who are recovering from various forms of trauma. Jeff also enjoys good si-fi movies, playing bass guitar and snowboarding.

Jill Ruppenstein
Jill has had extensive experience as a coach and a swimmer. She is currently a Marin Pirate coach who works with both age-group and senior swimmers. She teaches swimming at SwimAmerica in Novato and Petaluma, specializing in competitive stroke work. A Junior National qualifier and four time All American swimmer, Jill earned her MA in Sport Management from the University of San Francisco. Prior to joining the Pirates, she was the assistant master’s coach and the head age-group coach at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. Jill combines a great ability to teach the technical aspects of swimming with a friendly style of coaching that helps swimmers learn to swim fast in a fun and enjoyable environment.

Laureen Welting
Laureen returns to Swimarin for her third season as an Assistant Coach. Laureen will coach all three groups on Wednesdays and Fridays and be on deck this year for our swim meets! Laureen has been a full-time swim coach at the Olympic Club in San Francisco for the last ten years coaching masters and age group swimming. In 2008, Pacific Swimming named Laureen “Masters Coach of the Year.”  Laureen brings a wealth of coaching and swimming experience to the program. She was a two-time Olympic trial qualifier and six-time NCAA All American and was on two American record setting relays at the University of Florida. Laureen received her degree in Exercise Sports Sciences.

Jr. Coaching Program

To be announced in March 2010.

Coaches Q&A...

Question: Are swimmers expected to show up for practice even if it is raining or windy?

Answer: Of course! Swimming is an all-weather sport, and it's a lot more comfortable in the pool during a rainstorm than on a soccer field. We will cancel practice, however, if there are lightning strikes in the area.

Question: How many practices is a swimmer supposed to attend each week?

Answer: As many as possible. At a minimum, we expect swimmers to attend three practices a week. This is especially important during the early part of the season as we emphasize conditioning and basic technique. If your child can't make this commitment, please discuss this with us.

Question: My 8-U child is afraid to race. What do I do?

Answer: Most new swimmers are nervous before their first few races. That's why we spend a lot of time in practice working on technique and explaining the heat procedure, especially when we get close to the meet season. At Time Trials in April (our "intramural" meet), everyone swims as many events as possible. Their times are then used to place them in the correct heat so they are competing against like swimmers during meets.

Question: My child does not know how to dive, so how can he/she swim in a meet?

Answer: Your child will gradually become more confident about diving in, especially once we go thru more diving drills during practice. Some swimmers dive in from the deck (not the top of the starting block) during their first few meets. Later they develop the confidence to dive from the block.

Question: My child still can't (comfortably) swim 25 yards. How will he/she be able to compete?

Answer: Most of the swimmers now practicing in the wings of the pool will be swimming the full length by time trials. And, remember, the 8-U swimmers only race one lap (length) of the pool!

Question: What is the Shark Pups Program and when will it start?

Answer: The Shark Pups Program is designed to teach younger swimmers (6-U primarily) basic swimming technique so that they can develop into competitive swimmers. Some improve quickly enough to join the team during the season; others come back the following season ready to start training with their friends and older siblings. The Shark Pups Program starts in May after the high school season ends.  Check our Practice & Clinics page for details.

Question: Are swimmers required to wear swim caps?

Answer: No, but caps do three things: 1) they produce faster times; 2) they identify a swimmer by team; and 3) they protect hair from the effects of chlorine. We recommend swimmers wear a team cap at meets.

Question: My boy swimmer doesn't want to wear a Speedo-style suit. Is that required?

Answer: No, but a Lycra suit (brief or shortie style) is strongly recommended. (Surf or recreational shorts produce so much drag that they make swimmers non-competitive in meets.) Anyway, most boys like the shorties because they look like surfer wear but are still fast in the water.