It has been way too long since I first wrote on here, and trust me, that is the last thing I wanted to happen. I didn't want to be one of those people that have trouble keeping up their blog, but it happened anyway, I guess that goes to show how busy a collegiate swimmer can be!

Speaking of being busy, that last couple of weeks (month!?!) since I wrote on here a lot has gone on with myself and my team. As I mentioned before, we were preparing for SEC's during most of February. Depending on what meet a swimmer was fully resting for (SEC's, Georgia Last Chance Meet, or NCAA's), "preparing" could mean many different things. Those of us, including myself, who were fully resting for SEC's had a relatively easy time throughout the month, with most days consisting of only swimming once with a light weights session three times a week. For my teammates who were able to have qualified for the NCAA Championships earlier in the season, February meant less resting and more training. The reason for their harder workouts is because in general, a swimmer competes at his/her best after only one full taper.

Moving on to SEC's...On both a personal level and a team level, I am pleased with what we accomplished over in Auburn. I clocked best times in all three of my events, the 100 and 200 back and 400 IM, which is something I definitely can't be disappointed with. Our team placed fourth out of eight teams competing, and Georgia swimmers won five out of the 11 individual events.

This past weekend we hosted the Georgia Last Chance Meet as a way to give my teammates who were not able to travel to SEC's an opportunity to swim a meet fully rested while also giving those of us who had not yet qualified for NCAA's one "last chance" to make the meet. Although I didn't make the meet with any of my times at SEC's I'm a lot more hopeful that the time I went at our last chance meet will qualify me for the NCAA Championships, which take place at the end of the month at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas.

As far as school goes, I have quite a hectic upcoming week...I have one test and one midterm each on Wednesday and Thursday. It doesn't help that we got the most snow Athens has seen in 14 years yesterday, forcing classes to be cancelled today and possibly tomorrow. So much for an in-class review session before the big tests! So besides studying with my new found free time, I'll be spending this week back in training with the hopes that I make it into NCAA's. I should know by next Tuesday for sure if I am going to the meet or not, so I'll try and keep this blog updated on my status.

GO DAWGS!

Hey everybody, my name is Hunter Lainhart and I am a junior and very proud Bulldog on the men's swim team currently working towards degrees in Finance and Economics here at the University of Georgia in Athens. On top of this being my first post on NCAA.com, this is my FIRST attempt at a blog of any kind. I am really looking forward to writing as much as possible on this page that will give you all some insight into the life of a D1 collegiate swimmer.

Last night my team and I got back from our last duel meet of the season swum over in Tuscaloosa at the University of Alabama. The meet was actually a "tri-meet" between us, UA and the University of South Carolina. It was the last opportunity for all three teams to get some good competition in the pool before headed down to Auburn, Alabama for the SEC Swimming and Diving Championships later this month. Both our men's and women's teams ended up winning the meet, nonetheless facing some great competition from two other talented SEC squads. I cannot believe that the duel meet part of my junior year here at Georgia is already over, and more importantly I can't believe that for our seniors, that was their last duel meet ever. I think that we have the greatest group of guys and ladies leading our teams this year and I can't even begin to think what it will be like next year without all of them in the water with us. That being said, conference championships are only a few weeks away, and all the attention of my teammates and coaches is now focused on making sure we swim as fast as possible at SEC's.

Before I wrap up this post for today, I would like to give you all a little bit more information about myself and my team. I train primarily for middle-distance events, with my strengths being the 100 & 200 backstrokes. Our head coach is Jack Bauerle; he was also the head coach for the U.S. Women's Olympic swim team in Beijing this past summer. On top of spending a lot of time working towards my majors, I am also President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, an organization made up of student-athletes that provide insight on the student-athlete experience. I hope everyone has a safe and productive week and I will try to post back next Sunday to let you all know how our preparations for SEC's are going in and out of the pool.

GO DAWGS!