Despite all manner of pool closures and/or restrictions earlier this year during the event’s January through March dates, the Oregon Club managed a relatively strong performance in the 2021 USMS One-Hour Postal National Championships. Of course, our overall participation was way down. But those who were able to swim did well, and there were many fine swims. The Oregon Club placed second Overall. The Oregon LMSC will reap a modest financial benefit for running the event.
Oregon Participation summary:
- 48 Oregon swimmers entered the event
- 27 women & 21 men swam and entered, relatively equal numbers which really helps for mixed relays
- 8 Oregon clubs/local teams were represented, lower than usual but reflective of pool availability
Congratulations to…
- Our TWO individual National Champions (USMS Long Distance All-Americans), Dan Kirkland and Ralph Mohr
- Our FIFTEEN other individual swimmers who made the top ten (and thus received medals)
- Our THREE relay team National Champions (USMS Long Distance Relay All-Americans)
- Our THIRTEEN other relay teams who made the top three (and thus medaled)
- Our TWO relay teams that broke Oregon Relay Records:
- Womens 65+ team of Jeanna Summers, Lizzie Cheney, and Colette Crabbe, going 11,465 yards
- Mixed 65+ team of Lizzie Cheney, Colette Crabbe, Jeff Piette, and Dan Kirkland, going 16,970 yards
- Colette, who broke the Oregon individual record in the Womens 65-69 age group, going 4265 yards
- Our TWO swimmers, Valerie Jenkins (4670 yards) and Hardy Lussier (5115 yards), who topped the Oregon womens and mens categories respectively
- Our TWELVE swimmers whose performances qualified or moved them up on the Oregon All-Time Top Twelve list for the One-Hour Swim. This list is ever harder to make
Thanks to:
- Everyone who participated!
- Tim Waud and his small crew from OCT who stuffed envelopes and mailed the awards & souvenirs
- And I guess a small pat on the back for me for being the Event Director; biggest postal I’ve ever run
There’s a bonus—48 Oregon-registered swimmers have now completed the first of the three legs of the Oregon Postal Participation Award. These swimmers just have to swim & enter two more swims—the 5 or 10-km postal and/or the 3000 or 6000-yard postal—later this year to snag this award. You’ve seen the patches—now you can earn your own. Put these swims on your calendar! Of course, the truly compulsive swimmers—like me—plan to complete all four remaining postal swims this year. BUT WAIT! The USMS Long Distance Committee has decided that just THREE ePostal National Championship swims & entries will qualify for the national participation award. This looks like a two-for-one opportunity, Oregon and USMS participation awards for the same effort! Go for it!
Where do we go from here in 2021? Keep on swimming—the essence of the postal events is to do them. Next up are the 5 & 10-km postal national championships, to be done between May 15 and September 15 in a long course pool. We are working to arrange pool time and space for these. And let’s get back to full strength for 2022!
Look for the full 2021 Oregon LMSC One-Hour Swim results in this Aqua Master.
Good luck and good swimming!