Youth swimmer pushes to break records
Brenden Eslick stands on a diving board preparing for a race.
MOSES LAKE — Fourteen-year-old athlete Brenden Eslick is making waves breaking several Manta Ray swim team records.
He began swimming with the Moses Lake team when he was 9 years old.
“I just tried it one day, it looked fun,” he said.
Eslick broke his first record when he was 10 years old.
“It was exciting because I got it by 0.2 (seconds) and it was in the 100 meter fly,” he said. “We didn’t know if I got it or not.”
After he learned the results, he was surprised.
“I freaked out and jumped into a pool,” he said about learning he broke the record.
It’s the record he is most proud of. He received a certificate for breaking the Manta Ray record.
“I was happy I just got that one,” he said. “As the years went by, I got more and more.”
To date, Eslick has broken nearly 40 records. He said he never expected to break any records.
The oldest record he broke was from 1978, held by Todd Collier, for the 200 meter freestyle swim.
The record time was 2:03.51. Eslick shattered it with a time of 1:56.21. A couple of days after breaking the record, Collier called Eslick to congratulate him on his accomplishment.
His other accomplishments, he notes, include qualifying for age group section meets.
“You have to get a certain time to be able to go there,” he explained. “You race against some of the best kids.”
Eslick said he gives his best effort in competitions.
“I just find that energy inside and give it all I got,” he said.
In preparation for a race, he listens to music, usually a rap song, and just prior to diving into the water, he jumps and claps to get pumped up.
“I just have to go fast,” is all he thinks to himself before a dive, he said.
This season he has goals of qualifying for zone times and hopes to break more records. In the meantime, his bedroom walls feature a series of certificates, ribbons, pins, medals and trophies he earned through the sport.
His favorite races are the 100 meter freestyle, 200 meter freestyle and the 400 IM which entails a combination of swimming techniques.
Next school year Eslick will be an eighth-grader at Chief Moses Middle School but already has some college aspirations.
“I want to try and get a scholarship for swimming,” he said.
Eslick looks to Olympian Michael Phelps as a role model athlete.
“He got the eight gold medals in the Olympics,” Eslick said. “That was pretty cool to watch the butterfly race and he out-touched the Australian next to him.”
He said he dreams of competing in the Olympics one day in any type of swimming event.
“If you want something, if you try hard enough for it, you can get it,” he said about what he’s learned through swimming.
He trains with the team 11 months out of the year and follows a strict no-sugar diet just prior to races. The team practices at Moses Lake High School and the city aquatic center on occasion. He practices Monday through Saturday with up to two practices in one day.
When practicing, he usually trains with fellow swimmers Courtney Schwiesow, Cory Bradshaw and Kaelan Connacher.
He explained the four of them have similar skill sets and push each other to try harder. Eslick said they constantly challenge each other.
During meets, they continue to support each other by cheering for one another.
When asked what kind of advice he would give to someone interested in being a competitive swimmer, he said, “Don’t give up and keep going at it because in the long run all the practice will pay off.”
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