A Swim Meet

Were you ever the first person to a sporting event?

My son and I achieved that distinction when I overestimated the distance to Buffalo Grove High School.

A placid pool.

Before practice began, then chaos.

First the youngest from the Buffalo Grove Hurricanes.

Note the boy finishing his double fist splash in the second photo.

Diving not quite up to form.

Then, a team mate doing a better job.

Thrashing through warm-up.

Then, the races.

I love the splashes from the butterfly.

The end of a leg of a relay.

Part of the crowd, mainly McHenry Marlins.

Touch for the butterfly.

Teenage girls starting the backstroke.

In the middle of a freestyle relay.

Boys turn.

And, finally praise for the official running the meet.

The Schaumburg man is Emil Barbato and he’s been at it 24 years.

Why mention him?

Our experience at Buffalo Grove was so bad last year I didn’t want to return.

The guy in charge yelled all the timke during the meet and had the loudest starting horn I have ever heard.

The concrete block construction made his noise even louder.

I finally had to go out to the corridor by the concession stand because I couldn’t take the noise level.

Mr. Barbato’s officiating was the exact opposite.

He spoke softly.

When people were not quiet enough, he did not shout into his bullhorn.

All we heard most of the time was an amplified,

“Shhhh.”


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