Race Report: Barnet Copthall Sprint Plus
13 September 2026
Getting “racing reps” in, at least for me, is critical to eventually swimming fast at a peak meet. I get to try out different strategies, extend myself to do different things than I normally do in a workout. As well, no matter how hard I try, I can never summon the same level of energy and commitment in a workout that I can in a competition, so racing is also a great way to push my limits.
Plus, I just love to race. This quote from Australian great Lani Pallister in her recent SwimSwam interview encapsulates my passion for racing:
“I love racing. Being eye to eye with people and, in that moment, you don’t know how much you have got left and actually having to look at someone in the eye. Unreal. Just unreal.”
Check that interview out. She’s hardcore, focused and just delivering amazing results and range.
I absolutely had that love of racing in my age group days and through qualifying for and then ultimately getting on the podium at the USA Junior National level. But, as things got more serious towards the end of high school and through a lot of my university days, I lost the love of racing and let my head get all wrapped around time standards, comparative measurement against my teammates, and finding less enjoyment in the competition aspect of the sport.
After a very disappointing conference championship in my 3rd year of university, I came very close to quitting. So close that I had a 1-1 meeting with Eddie Reese telling him that I was, in fact, quitting. (We didn’t call it “retiring” in the more blunt 1900s like the kids do these days).
He talked me off the ledge with a clever redirect. Rather than training exclusively in the distance lane that summer, he moved me to the IM lane. I had always raced the 400 IM, but just kind of did it on the back of principally to almost exclusively training for the 500, 1000 and 1650 yard races during the school year. That summer was a major motivational give-back to my swimming: new guys to train with, different sets, way more variety, less pressure. I still didn’t achieve my ambitions - qualifying for Olympic Trials - but was less than a second away from both the 400 free and 400 IM cuts and swam well under my previous bests**. Above all, I emerged from that summer with a renewed love of the sport, and re-found joy in racing. That carried over into a nice senior year, where I still got faster, and was able to leave the sport in a positive way.
I swam off and on recreationally through the rest of my 20s, with a few instances of competing, then kind of let myself drift away from the sport in the late 1990s as we had our first two kids and my career became more demanding. I then had a bit of a "Dude! You're letting your health suffer" event in late 2000 because I wasn't exercising enough, traveling too much for work, eating poorly, etc. My wife encouraged me back to the pool and a Masters team in 2001.
One of the commitments I made to myself was that I would swim and race for fun. I would still chase performance, but never lose sight that this was a hobby, a passion project, where chasing joy should be at the forefront.
Today's mid-day racing session hosted by my Barnet Copthall team was a great example of that - three events, suiting up for the first one, pushing myself through all of them and having a blast while doing so:
Though, I would be lying if I didn't say that part of the fun was swimming well! Here's how the events went over about 90 minutes from the start of the 400 to the end of the 50 free:
400 Free
Masters Best – 4:19.70 (2005, age 38)
50+ Best – 4:27.19 (2025, age 58, Swim Ontario Provincials)
Result - 4:29.11
Reaction -
After racing a very evenly paced 800 last weekend (which I still need to write up) where I felt like I had too much left at the end, I decided to go out more aggressively. I still had a stroke count strategy which was to be 14-15-16-17 SPL by length, but I probably got to 15 strokes per length by the 75 and then I think I was already up to 16 SPL around the 200 and in the last 100-125 I was probably the 17 to 18 SPL range.
While it definitely hurt as the race went on, and my splits showed that I was getting tired - 1:03.8 / 1:07.2 / 1:08.7 / 1:09.4 - it was not a scenario where I felt like I died or fell apart. But it does point to a need for more sustainted race pace work over the next 4-6 weeks as I get ready for Swim England Nationals.
I was exceptionally happy with this result. Over the last three years, I have ranged between 4:32 and 4:35 at "in-season" meets, so this was very strong to get under 4:30.
50 Fly
Masters Best – 27.62 (2010, age 43)
50+ Best – 28.69 (2017, age 50, Ron Johnson Invitational)
Result - 29.28
Reaction:
I tried to emphasize my start and turn, aiming for 8 SDKs off each, and then only two breaths. In reality, I hit the dolphin kick goal off the start, but was 6 off the turn. Similarly, I took one breath on the first length, but two (instead of one) on the second length.
While not as fast as I was this summer in Stockport, this is still a very strong swim. The only thing that was a little scary is that, in my zeal to have a fast turn, I was very light on my left hand touch on the turn. I definitely touched the wall, but I would not have been surprised if I had gotten a DQ call.
50 Free
Masters Best – 25.79 (2008, age 41)
50+ Best – 26.37 (2025, age 58, Swim England Nationals)
Result - 27.38
Reaction
While much slower than the uber-fast 26.71 I went as my first event of last Sunday's event in Bracknell, like the fly, this is a solid in-season time for me. I shortened the SDK goal to 6 off the start and wall, which I hit, but kept the two breath goal, which I also did.
I had also been entered in the 200 IM, but was pretty gassed by the end of the free and didn't want to push my knee too hard, given where I am on my physiotherapy rehab for my torn meniscus.
**Though I was happy with my 4:00 400 LCM time in 1988, it's amazing that is not even really a fast time for elite women like Lani Pallister these days!
