Beth Davis

Swimming Instructor – Competitive Swimmers – Adults Learning to Swim – Triathletes – Young Competitive Swimmers – Getting Children Started

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Roger’s Story – You Are Never Too Old to Learn

 

By Roger M., age 70

I am an engineer. I learned to swim in the sandpits of Nebraska by the time I was 10 years old. Then I quit swimming for 50 years. Oh, I could swim long enough to get out of trouble if I fell in the river or the ocean, and I could tread water for 10 minutes to qualify for a scuba diving certificate, but I couldn’t swim well.  When I was about 60 years old, I could no longer achieve aerobic conditions by running or racquet ball or other pounding forms of exercise. My back, knees, and ankles were just too worn and painful. So I decided to start swimming at the city pool. Oh yeah, I quickly recalled, I could do freestyle for 50 meters before I was completely out of breath and my heart rate was in a danger zone. With perseverance, I got to 100 meters before being overwhelmed by the same conditions.

Then tragedy struck. My granddaughter fell from a horse and broke her hip at age 13. After several surgeries, she had a total hip replacement at age 15. The family yearned for some exercise that would help her regain her stride, and swimming seemed a logical candidate (her surgeon said she’d best go to college and learn a profession because impact pursuits would no longer be possible). A mutual friend recommended Beth. I called Beth in the middle of her season and told her my granddaughter’s story. Beth immediately volunteered to work her into the class schedule, and a week later her lessons began. We live in Golden so I drove my granddaughter to the lessons in Boulder each week and hung out by the pool to watch Beth work her magic. After watching my granddaughter become a better swimmer in a year than I had in 67 years, I asked Beth if she took older adults into her classes. She smiled and asked when do you want to start?

It is now four years later and Beth has me swimming 1000 meters three times a week, using a variety of strokes and exercises. I no longer poop out at 100 meters. I can now count on injury-free aerobic exercise for essentially as long as I live. I am slowing down a trifle, and it appears to be a monotonic phenomenon, but I enjoy my time in the pool or the lake or the ocean and I am practically injury free.

In a typical lesson (I share a spot with my daughter-in-law so we alternate weeks with Beth), I swim a few lengths, then Beth decides what we will work on. She usually prescribes an exercise to correct this or that in my stroke, and then we end the lesson with a couple laps to see what changed. We periodically commiserate on how I should structure my time in the pool to get the exercise I seek and to continue to improve my strokes. In my semi-retirement, swimming alone or under Beth’s watchful eyes is one of the most fun things I do.

 

Dear Roger:  You are someone who inspires me on a regular basis! Your curiosity and eagerness to learn is astounding. Your willingness to be taught new tricks is one of the reasons you appear to have the verve of a young man. ~Beth

Life Altering Experiences …

Stories from Courageous Adults Learning to Swim

My inspiration for asking my adult students to write about their swimming experiences came from reading an article in the Wall Street Journal. The journalist had interviewed me for the piece on adults … [Read More...]

ROKA Sports Partnership

roka-logo2SwimBoulder, Inc. has partnered with ROKA  to bring all of you the best quality swim gear at a discounted price. Contact me to learn more about this benefit.

What Beth's Clients Are Saying

Beth Davis is an amazing coach. She worked with me to create a plan that pushed my limits while supporting and fitting it into my everyday life. She believed in me when I had no idea of my strengths and limitations. Best of all, she consistently pushed me to look within. I highly recommend Beth for her personalized approach, her consistent support, and her superior knowledge as a coach and athlete.

— Erin Blakemore
Beth Davis
2023-09-26T23:03:42+00:00
Beth Davis is an amazing coach. She worked with me to create a plan that pushed my limits while supporting and fitting it into my everyday life. She believed in me when I had no idea of my strengths and limitations. Best of all, she consistently pushed me to look within. I highly recommend Beth for her personalized approach, her consistent support, and her superior knowledge as a coach and athlete. — Erin Blakemore
https://swimboulder.com/testimonials/beth-davis-is-an-amazing-coach
I came to Beth when I was 11 years old. At that point I liked swimming, but had had little success in competition. One year later I qualified for summer league finals for the first time. In high school, I qualified for State and earned a spot on an All-American relay. Through Beth’s help, I was recruited by Division III schools and ended up swimming for Claremont McKenna College, where I had success in numerous conference finals. Without her help, I would not be the swimmer or person I am today.

— Nathan Lenssen
Beth Davis
2023-09-26T23:05:17+00:00
I came to Beth when I was 11 years old. At that point I liked swimming, but had had little success in competition. One year later I qualified for summer league finals for the first time. In high school, I qualified for State and earned a spot on an All-American relay. Through Beth’s help, I was recruited by Division III schools and ended up swimming for Claremont McKenna College, where I had success in numerous conference finals. Without her help, I would not be the swimmer or person I am today. — Nathan Lenssen
https://swimboulder.com/testimonials/when-i-was-11-years-old
When I started working with Beth I was the typical 9-year-old who didn't want to focus on anything for more than 10 seconds. I went from only being a breaststroker (and a slow one at that) to a well-rounded swimmer, getting relay spots in freestyle and excelling at butterfly, posting State times in all three strokes in my time at Fairview High School. Beth was very positive about my personal development as well and helped give me confidence that was hard to find elsewhere.

— Michael Lenssen
Beth Davis
2023-09-26T23:05:45+00:00
When I started working with Beth I was the typical 9-year-old who didn't want to focus on anything for more than 10 seconds. I went from only being a breaststroker (and a slow one at that) to a well-rounded swimmer, getting relay spots in freestyle and excelling at butterfly, posting State times in all three strokes in my time at Fairview High School. Beth was very positive about my personal development as well and helped give me confidence that was hard to find elsewhere. — Michael Lenssen
https://swimboulder.com/testimonials/didnt-want-to-focus
When I was 5 years old, I fell out of a boat in the middle of Broadmoor Lake. Since then I have had a continuing fear of water. Beth Davis has helped me ease that fear, to begin to trust myself in the water, through amazing patience and understanding. She has zillions of exercises for me to try in the water; if one is too hard, she comes up with another that's easier.

Beth is a topnotch swimming instructor. She is knowledgeable, dedicated, and kind.

— Jane Carlson, age 72
Beth Davis
2023-09-26T23:06:15+00:00
When I was 5 years old, I fell out of a boat in the middle of Broadmoor Lake. Since then I have had a continuing fear of water. Beth Davis has helped me ease that fear, to begin to trust myself in the water, through amazing patience and understanding. She has zillions of exercises for me to try in the water; if one is too hard, she comes up with another that's easier. Beth is a topnotch swimming instructor. She is knowledgeable, dedicated, and kind. — Jane Carlson, age 72
https://swimboulder.com/testimonials/fell-out-of-a-boat
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Contact Beth Davis • 303.554.8857 • bdswimboulder@gmail.com