Hemel Hempstead Masters – February – The Gala That Went Wrong (But Also Really Right)
Team Luton rocked up in force to Hemel Hempstead Swimming Club’s 2nd Open Masters Winter Meet, with eight of our master swimmers treating it as our new “local” and casually bagging 6 gold, 5 silver and 6 bronze medals from just 22 swims. Not a bad day at the office… or in this case, the slightly chaotic swimming pool.
It might only be the second year this meet has been running, but it’s already found its personality. To be fair, the organisers had a lot to deal with and deserve credit for holding it all together – but there were definitely some comedy moments, including:
- A talk radio station suddenly blasting out over the sound system.
- Lifeguards accidentally trimming the bunting off the backstroke turn flags, leaving backstrokers guessing their turns until it was fixed.
- A starting gun with a mind of its own, forcing one poor swimmer to get off the blocks at the start of their race to go and sort it out.
New faces, close races
Ignoring the circus around them, we had a brilliant debut from Nicola, racing for Team Luton as a master for the first time. She lined up in the same heat as our very own Karen in the 50m breaststroke. It turned into a nail‑biter, with just 0.72 seconds between them at the touch, Karen just pipping Nicola to grab the bronze in their age group.
With over 60 clubs competing, you’d think we’d be racing the whole country – but it often felt like we were mostly racing each other. Karen, who had to wait an eternity at the start of one race while the timing pad in her lane was replaced, still managed to keep her cool and rack up a tidy haul:
- 50m freestyle – silver.
- 50m backstroke – same heat as Rachael, both coming away with golds in their age groups.
- 50m butterfly – initially no time showing on the scoreboard thanks to more gremlins, but once fixed, it turned out she’d earned herself a bronze.
Youth vs experience (and friendly bragging rights)
In the battle of “youth vs experience”, Mark and Tom went head‑to‑head in neighbouring lanes for both the 100m and 200m freestyle. Tom snuck the bragging rights, beating Mark by about a second in each race. Mark, however, had the last laugh in the medal table with two golds in his age group, while Tom claimed two silvers in his.
Tom also took on the 100m individual medley, adding a bronze in his age group to his collection.
Rachael was also in on the IM action, picking up a silver in the 100m individual medley. She didn’t stop there – she added bronzes in both the 50m and 200m freestyle as well, just to keep things interesting.
Rachel’s 200m freestyle saw her in the same heat as Ian, who was busy collecting events of his own: 50m freestyle and 50m backstroke. Ian’s 50m backstroke put him in the same heat as Sam, and once again the scoreboard scriptwriters got involved. The board initially claimed Ian had beaten Sam, which absolutely nobody watching believed. After some head‑scratching and corrections, the truth emerged and Ian was awarded a silver in his age group.
Sam, wisely steering clear of the Everest‑like starting blocks on other strokes, stuck to his backstroke combo of 50m and 100m, and walked away with a bronze in the 100m.
Records, drama and pool noodles
Last but very much not least, Graham is clearly enjoying life in his new age group. His 50m freestyle time didn’t just win him a gold – it set a new club record. He then turned the drama up a notch in the 50m backstroke, where he not only took gold in his age group but also set new club, county and East Region records (all subject to the usual verification, of course).
Feeling slightly invincible, Graham was all set to go and “have a go” at the 50m breaststroke records too – a brave choice for someone not exactly known for their breaststroke. Really not known for it. Unfortunately, the pool had other plans. While getting out after his backstroke race, he managed to injure his shin and calf on the way, ending his day early.
In a very Masters‑meets‑health‑and‑safety twist, pool noodles were then added to the lane ropes to protect future swimmers from similar exits. The incident has been reported to Swim England, so watch this space for a thrilling future article on “How Not to Exit a Pool”.
Despite the radio invasions, scoreboard shenanigans, timing pad drama and slightly dangerous pool edges, one thing’s certain: we’ll be back next year. It was chaotic, entertaining, and pretty successful – just how we like it.
Sth East Masters – Crawley – January
Two of our more senior Masters took advantage of moving up into a new 5 Year age band to claim Long Course East Region Masters records. The seven strong squad returned home with 5 Gold 4 Silver and 4 Bronze medals. Over the two days they claimed 3 East Region 7 County and 9 Club records.
In the 70-74 years age group Graham Powell set new East and Beds Masters records whilst winning both his 50m Backstroke (36.68 seconds) and 50m Butterfly (35.34). Settling for the silver medal in his 200m Freestyle, Graham’s times at 50m (38:00), 100m (1:21.65) and 200m (2:50.33) broke the previous County and Club records set back in 2012.
Dave Wright demolished the East Region’s 65-69 years’ 200m Butterfly record from 2011 by 58 seconds to finish in a winning time of 3:05.76. That followed a Beds County record of 5:36.20 in his 400m Freestyle for which he claimed 3rd place.
Mark Lewis was just 0.26 seconds away from the 40-44 years’ 200m IM County record as he lowered his own 2025 Club record to 2:51.27 to claim a silver medal. That emulated Mark’s placing in his 100m Breaststroke whilst he also picked up a bronze for his 50m Backstroke.
Matt Wright was victorious in both of his 25- 29 years’ 50m and 100m Freestyle.
Sam Bradley claimed silver in the 30-34 years 800m Freestyle.
In the Ladies events Karen was placed 3rd in her 50-54 years’ 50m Backstroke, after recovering from stomach cramps during her 800m.
Michelle Neal’s “star appearances” at Inspire for pre-dawn long course training paid dividends. She picked up a bronze in her 45-49 years’ 200m Freestyle with her time of 2:47.55. Only problem is that it weakens any arguments for Michelle not leading her lane in future training sessions!