Personal Narrative: My Journey To Become A Collegiate Athlete

Motivation, the single most important word in the journey of a swimmer. Without it, you are lost, swimming with regrets and doubts. When two men in my life, however, presented me with this fundamental characteristic, my journey in becoming a collegiate athlete was more than just an idea, it became a reality. At the age of 58, my godfather has completed endless amounts of triathlons, including two full Ironman events after the age of 50. My Uncle Dan has always found ways to not only be an inspiration, but more importantly a mentor to me. From an early age, he motivated me to peruse all the different passions I had, which entailed me playing six different sports within the same year during middle school. He also inspired me to seek out, and discover my faith. Every time I went to stay with him, we never missed going to church. This

Geoff Gear was my very first coach, but fortunately for me he was one of my only coaches throughout my swimming career. From an early age Geoff taught me the fundamentals of swimming. He watched me progress from year to year and then when I made my decision of which high school to attend, my coach of nine years just gained four more years of me as the head coach of my high school team. He single handedly pushed me to my limit every day. When I tell people how influential this man was in my life and how he has taught me not only how to be the best swimmer I can be, but also characteristics of sportsmanship, manors, and leadership, people are beyond confused. This confusion stems from the fact that Geoff is not a communicator. Many have questioned how I could have learned all of this from a man who cannot carry on a conversation for what seems like ten seconds. I tell them that he does not need to say anything to me; it is all in his