The annual Southeast Champs meet is in Ketchikan this year, but the distance isn’t daunting members of the Haines Dolphin swim team.
First-year coach Lauren Rutland said up to six Dolphins are expected to compete at the Dec. 4-6 meet that requires swimmers to post qualifying times to enter.
Eight Dolphins competed at the event last year in Juneau, racing against top athletes from Craig, Juneau, Ketchikan, Petersburg and Sitka.
Dolphins were able to garner qualifying times at a meet earlier this month in Petersburg. Hayden Jimenez, 8, said he had a long-time interest in making the trip to Petersburg for the “November Rain” meet and made his goal of qualifying for Southeast Champs.
“I wanted to go for two years, and this year I actually got to go,” Jimenez said.
Rutland said Jimenez provided one of the highlights at the meet that drew entrants from Craig, Ketchikan and Petersburg.
“Hayden swam a 200 breaststroke against a bunch of 16-year-olds,” she said.
Other Dolphins at the meet included Fiona and Loyal Tormey, Brennan Palmieri, Pacific Ricke and Bohdin Waschae.
“A couple people qualified (for Southeast Champs), and everybody dropped times,” said Rutland, who noted the team had several heat winners.
Ricke, 8, said the 25 backstroke is her favorite event. She said the ferry trek to Petersburg was “tiring but exciting.” She is another Southeast Champs qualifier for the Dolphins.
The team opened its season Nov. 6-7 in Whitehorse for the annual Ryan Downing Meet. Along with host Whitehorse and a field of about 20 Dolphin swimmers, a few students from Inuvik, N.W.T., swam at the meet.