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HARRISON, N.Y. — Dottie Klein has coached the Harrison Summer Swim Team since its inception five years ago. The club has doubled in that short time, and many of the swimmers participated in this year’s Westchester County Swim Conference Championships.
The club had just 20 members when it started but now has 40 swimmers. Klein managed to assemble the club in the face of an uphill battle.
“It’s tough growing a summer team, being that a lot of the kids are kind of set with their clubs,” Klein said. “It’s taken time to grow, but I’m enjoying it.”
Many of the year-round swimmers are already on other summer club teams, but Klein has still managed to add members. Harrison sent 30 of the 40 swimmers to the county championships this year, and the rest had an excuse not to be there.
“The ones that aren’t coming just happen to be on vacation this week,” Klein said. “And I understand family commitments.”
Swimmers gathered Monday at the Scarsdale Municipal Pool for the first day of qualifying races in this year’s county championships. The finals are at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Westchester Country Club.
Harrison’s 12-and-under boys’ relay qualified for finals Monday, as did 12-year-old Craig Wall in the breaststroke event. Wall has been to the county championships before and has qualified for finals in the past, so he feels ready for the challenge.
“I’m pretty used to it,” Wall said. “I’m not really that nervous.”
Wall finished third in his heat on Monday.
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