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Eastern Express is located in the central New Jersey Princeton area. Eastern Express is both a member club of USA Swimming providing a year-round competitive swim team, and a licensed SwimAmerica program providing a learn to swim program designed to teach all the swim skills your child needs to be safe in and around the water for a lifetime. New swimmers to Express are evaluated and placed into the appropriate training group given their prior experience and current skill level. Swimmers whose skills are not yet strong enough for the competitive team may start in the lessons program, Express SwimAmerica, and then move onto the team at a later date. Team size is limited. Information describing the year-round competitive swim team provided by Eastern Express can be accessed by clicking below on a topic of interest. For more information describing the SwimAmerica lessons program, click here.
At Eastern Express, swimming is more than a sport -- it's a way of life. At Express, development of the athlete is designed to better our young people both in and out of the pool. Express athletes learn about perseverance and determination, goal setting and achievement, dedication and commitment. Swimmers on the team learn how to win and lose with grace, and what it takes to strive for excellence. Express athletes take these skills with them into school, work and life. Importantly, each Express swimmer is a valuable member of the team -- learning how to compete and cooperate with fellow teammates, and how to advance from the guidance provided by the coaches. Most of all, however, at Eastern Express, swimming is about having fun and swimming fast!!! Q. Why should my kids become year-round swimmers? A. Because year-round/club swimming is a great sport! Club swimming develops healthy, physically fit kids who know how to work hard and how to have fun! Club swimmers develop time-management skills and a disciplined lifestyle which leads to improved academics and a more focused approach to life in general. Club swimmers learn about and enhance their competitive abilities. Finally, swimmers enjoy many long-term friendships with their teammates. Q. Why should I choose Eastern Express? A . First, because Eastern Express will develop your kids to be the best swimmers they can be, regardless of what level they are at now. Express is well-known for maximizing the potential of ALL swimmers who are willing to put in the time, focus and effort. Second, at Express your kids will be coached by full-time coaches who care not only about developing strong swimmers, but also about developing strong people. The Express program helps to build skills and traits which last a lifetime: Discipline - Our swimmers learn self-discipline by establishing goals, and then working to achieve them. Our younger swimmers have qualitative goals such as improving a specific stroke flaw, while our older swimmers set both qualitative and time goals. By establishing goals our swimmers learn to become accountable to themselves for their own effort and behavior. With the help of their coaches and parents, Express swimmers learn to focus their energies and manage their time in a way that will provide them with the best opportunity for success. Self-Esteem - Self-esteem is built by overcoming obstacles. With the help of their coaches and parents, Express swimmers learn how to deal with the ups and downs of competitive swimming. Express swimmers learn to persevere when times are toughest. Not all Express athletes become champion swimmers, but our goal is that all become champion people. Leadership/Teammanship - Express swimmers are encouraged to be leaders in word and deed. They learn to speak their minds, while at the same time respecting their teammates, coaches and parents. Express swimmers take great pride in their team and support each other both in and away from the pool as they pursue individual and common goals. Swimmers on the team range in age from 6 to 18, and are divided into five different levels based on a combination of swimming ability and age. The levels include Age Group 1 and Age Group 2 for younger swimmers, Pre-Seniors, and Seniors and Seniors Advanced for more experienced swimmers. "Age-Groupers" focus on perfecting stroke technique, and learning the skills necessary to advance to the Senior levels. At the Senior levels, athletes focus on training to develop a strong aerobic base while constantly striving to improve technique. Since the team was first founded in 1987, Eastern Express swimmers have competed at the Olympic Trials, USA Swimming Nationals, Sectionals, the Eastern Zone Championships, the New Jersey Junior Olympics, and several other championship meets. All swimmers on the team are offered the opportunity to compete in USA Swimming sanctioned competitions. Meets are available for every age and skill level.
Eastern Express was founded
by Todd Kemmerling in the early months of 1987. The team held
its first workout on April 13, 1987 at Trenton State College,
now The College of New Jersey (TCNJ ), with a young and eager
group of sixteen swimmers. The 1987 Spring session was originally
planned as a pilot program for a year-round team that would
begin later in the Fall of 1987. However, the enthusiasm and
excitement of the Spring '87 session carried the team right
through the Summer, and we have yet to look back.
Eastern Express is directed by a staff of full-time professional coaches who provide a full-service USA Swimming club. The business of the team, administration and policy, is conducted by head coach, Brent Matheson, together with his staff of assistant coaches, Mike Randazz (Head Age Group Coach), Jen Feltis-Cortese and Emily Steiner. For more detailed information regarding the coaching staff, click here.
Our training and development system is based on predetermined and numbered training intervals (the time allotted to cover a given distance). The system was developed by analyzing the training and competition performances of our swimmers throughout the team's history. In advance, we can evaluate with a reasonable degree of accuracy the intervals/speeds an individual needs to be training at in order to achieve his or her goals. While racing confidence and the will to succeed certainly factor into the equation, our interval system provides a much more objective marker - for parents, swimmers and coaches - to evaluate the progress being made by each swimmer in their training program. Swimmers on the team range in age from 6 to 18, and are divided into five different levels based on a combination of swimming ability and age. In determining group placement, the coaches also take into account meet performance, commitment, attendance, training ability, and attitude. Age Group 1, Age Group 2, and Pre-Senior swimmers are characterized below.
At Eastern Express, emphasis is placed on both academic achievement and athletic achievement. Commitment to academics goes hand in hand with commitment to swimming. By expecting both from our swimmers, our athletes learn time management skills that are well ahead of the majority of their school peers. While a swimmer may go through trying times on occasion, with the help of parents and coaches, our swimmers learn to focus their time and energy in an effective manner. In the fall of 2000, the cumulative, unweighted G.P.A. of our Senior Program swimmers was 3.65 on a scale of 4.00. Virtually all of our swimmers maintain or improve their academic standing as their training commitment increases during the high school years. Eastern Express is proud of its graduates who have moved on to become student-athletes at the following colleges and universities: Bucknell, Colgate, Colorado State, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, George Washington, Indiana, Lehigh, Mary Washington, Michigan, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Oberlin, Princeton, Rhode Island, Rider, Stanford, The College of New Jersey, UCLA, University of Pennsylvania, US Naval Academy, Virginia, West Chester, and Yale Senior and Senior Advanced swimmers are characterized below.
Eastern Express practices at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ)Packer Hall Aquatic Center in Ewing, NJ, and at DeNunzio pool on the campus of Princeton University in Princeton, NJ. The TCNJ Aquatic Center is the "home" pool for Eastern Express, and is located in the center of the TCNJ campus. The TCNJ Aquatic Center houses an eight-lane pool with a movable bulkhead that can be set at twenty-five yards, twenty-five meters, or thirty meters for water polo. A separate adjoining diving area includes two three-meter and two one-meter diving boards. The diving tank area provides additional pool space for swimming instruction, and facilitates close instructor-swimmer interaction. The College of New Jersey campus is located just minutes off of Interstate 95. Driving directions and an aerial view of the facility can be obtained from the links in the table below. DeNunzio pool on the campus of Princeton University is used by Eastern Express for early morning practices, and for long course practices during the summer. DeNunzio pool was constructed in 1990, and its state-of-the-art design and technology make it one of the fastest pools in the nation. The pool measures 50 meters by 25 yards, ranges in depth from 9 to 17 feet, and has two bulkheads that allow for numerous training and competition configurations. The Princeton University campus is located just minutes off
of Route 1. Driving directions and an aerial view of the facility
can be obtained from the links in the table below.
During the school year, Eastern Express typically practices in the afternoon on weekdays and in the morning on weekends at The College of New Jersey. Senior swimmers also have a second early morning practice on select days during the week at DeNunzio pool at Princeton University. Tabulated below is a sample practice schedule for each of the five groups at Eastern Express. The data is provided for informational purposes only. Practice times and locations are subject to change depending upon pool availability.
During the summer after school ends, Eastern Express typically practices in the morning on weekdays at DeNunzio pool at Princeton University. Afternoon practices during the week and morning practices on the weekend are at The College of New Jersey. Tabulated below is a sample practice schedule for each of the five groups at Eastern Express. The data is provided for informational purposes only. Practice times and locations are subject to change depending upon pool availability.
All swimmers registering for the team must complete and submit the Eastern Express Swimming - Registration Form.
All swimmers registering for the team should also complete either the New Jersey Swimming - Swimmer Transfer Form or the USA Swimming - Swimmer Registration Form. If at the time of registration, the swimmer is already registered with USA Swimming for the current season, then the New Jersey Swimming - Swimmer Transfer Form should be completed and submitted. If at the time of registration, the swimmer does not have a current, active registration with USA Swimming, then the USA Swimming - Swimmer Registration Form should be completed and submitted. Please note that USA Swimming registration must be renewed each calendar year. In addition, as defined by New Jersey Swimming regulations, any swimmer transferring from another club must compete Unattached for 120 days from the last date of competition for the previous club. All completed forms should be submitted to Eastern Express Swimming. The Eastern Express business office will forward any of the necessary forms to either New Jersey Swimming or USA Swimming. If you are interested in joining the team, simply give us a call to arrange a meeting with the coaches or to attend a practice. For Eastern Express contact information, click here. New swimmers have the opportunity to swim with the team for a FREE one-week trial. Please note, however, that space is limited.
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