Growing up in Florida, I was in pools, lakes, rivers, and the ocean quite frequently. I don’t really remember learning to swim; I only know that swimming was part of my life at a very young age. I started swimming competitively as a young kid, and over the years, swimming has been an excellent form of exercise for me and has provided me the opportunity to get to know lot of wonderful people. I started swimming with QUAC when I moved to Salt Lake City in the fall of 2003. The motivation of the swimmers to practice and plan many activities and team functions is impressive, and it is amazing to see how much QUAC has grown since I started. It is a pleasure for me to help coach and be part of this team.

I started competitive swimming when I was 13 years old. I grew up in New Jersey and swam on several teams year round. I started teaching/coaching swimming when I was 14. I taught countless swimming lessons and coached a few age group teams since then. I moved to Utah in 2002 and began coaching with QUAC in 2003. Coaching QUAC members has been the most enjoyable coaching experience I've had simply because the team is so awesome and the atmosphere is very laid back and a lot of fun. I LOVE seeing newer swimmers master the sport and become addicted to the lifestyle of swimming. QUAC is more than just learning how to swim, you become apart of a great family and a SLC tradition. As long as I am in Utah, I plan on coaching/swimming with QUAC forever!

Jeff is an all around great guy. To know him is to love him. He also spends a great deal of his time volunteering for QUAC. He’s chaired the Ski & Swim committee, Coached, sat on the Board of Directors, and has made friends all along the way. Jeff says:

I began swimming [with QUAC] over six years ago as I transitioned from marathon racing to competitive triathlons. I began with strictly distance freestyle but quickly moved into swimming the other strokes as well, which I find I love just as much. While I began coaching for QUAC just a few years ago, I’ve been coaching for over ten years. I coached high school track and cross country as well as triathlon swimmers and clubs. At QUAC, I intentionally modify running workouts into swimming—especially for the distance events. This brings a strong cardio aspect to swimming and provides a fun variation in workouts.

Jim is a passionate volunteer for the sport of swimming. He coaches weekly for our team; has been a member of our Board of Directors; coordinates many swim meets including Ski & Swim and Utah Master’s meets; and donates time and money generously.

You can count on a good lesson if you jump in one of his lanes. He likes to instruct stroke technique focusing on good body mechanics, and if you listen you’re sure to learn something each every practice. Although he prefers just "Jim", you can call him "Coach" or Doctor Viney; professionally he works as an Anesthesiologist at Primary Children’s Medical Center.

So how’d he get into swimming? He says:

My father threw me in the water sometime around age 4, I think because we went to the beach a lot and he didn’t want me drowning. I started swimming competitively from 8 to 14 and then took a ‘brief’ hiatus from 1963 to 2001. In between I ran, biked, skied, telemark and skate-skied competitively. I started coaching swimming for QUAC in 2004 because it was fun. The IGLA meets I have gone to are the most fun athletic competitions I have done in any sport and QUAC has been the most fun group I have worked out with and coached. It’s great to see the improvement our swimmers make by working out with us.

Thanks for everything Jim!

Suzanne began sharing her passion for swimming in 1993 for the Mountain View Masters Swim and Social Club in Mountain View California. As a swimmer-coach, Suzanne was able to motivate many swimmers to the fitness levels they desired. When she relocated to Corvallis, Oregon, she picked up her coaching passion by coaching the evening program for the Corvallis Aquatic Team Masters. One more move brought Suzanne to Salt Lake where she coaches Utah Masters' Wednesday morning swim at Fairmont Pool. Why is she coaching QUAC? Well, because she was asked! On those occasional mornings when Suzanne cannot drag herself out of bed, she enjoys the friendly welcoming nature of the QUAC swimmers in the evening. Suzanne says,

QUAC reminds me of my first master’s team, MVM. Everyone is interested in fitness and being social. It makes swimming fun!

When Suzanne is not swimming or coaching, she is teaching math at Salt Lake Community College, walking her beautiful greyhound, Iko, or just enjoying life with her boyfriend Dan who promises to try to swim a workout... someday! We look forward to that Suzanne. From all of us Suzanne, a great big THANK YOU for volunteering your time in coaching.

Trina truly is THE bright spot in every room she’s in. She walks up and suddenly all eyes and every conversation seem to focus on her. Get close enough and you too may see the world revolving around her. All joking aside, we can honestly say that once you get to know her you will just adore the woman. That in large part is due to her no-holes-barred, high-octane-fun, kick-ass-now-and-kiss-and-make-up-later attitude. To put it succinctly, the girl is a riot to be around. As she says, she "might be pretty but not dainty." She "loves keepin’ up with the boys, playing water polo, trail running, skiing and snowshoe" and she "LOVES getting’ dirty!"

She’s a big advocate of QUAC and especially female development for the team. She’d "love to see a [QUAC] girls water polo team kickin’ ass" someday. And she’s almost there, with 11 active women, she’s one away from her goal! Trina’s also an activist and volunteer for causes she believes in. She currently is the Vice-president of QUAC and on the board of directors for sWerve but before that she has been involved in many GLBT and political action committees too numerous to list here. If there is someone not getting their fair shake in the world, Trina wants you to WANT to help out. Her definition of a hero?

Anyone who stands up for justice! From kids on playgrounds to politicians. I think if you can stand up and be counted for something you believe in you’re a hero.