12:00 AM, Jan. 20, 2012
HURRICANE - With the Region 9 swimming championships coming up this weekend at the Sand Hollow Aquatic Center, Dani Caldwell, voted last season's 3A coach of the year by her peers throughout the state, was reflecting on how far her Hurricane swim team has come in the past few years.
"Hurricane has in the past had maybe one or two swimmers, who would train with either the Cedar team or at Pine Hollow with the Dixie, Pine View and Snow Canyon kids," Caldwell said. "Some members of the swimming Goettsche clan or Stacia Pederson are examples of kids who, over the years, have trained with other teams but have swum individually for Hurricane. But they never had a real team of their own."
Now they do.
Thanks largely to the efforts of Caldwell with a huge assist from graduating senior Rebecca Reynolds, the aquatic Tigers, after four years of concerted effort, will field a team of 16 contestants for the region finals, which start today at 5 p.m. at Sand Hollow and conclude Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m. By contrast, Dixie High, the oldest secondary school in Southern Utah, will have only 19 swimmers in the competition.
Caldwell, who speaks fondly of Reynolds, said "There are athletes and there are dedicated athletes. Then there are athletes who persevere despite the odds. Becca Reynolds falls into that rare group.
"She's not only a marvelous recruiter," continued Caldwell, "but she's a real leader. She's been a team captain for two years and to accomplish what she has done the last four years, given her physical limitations, is inspiring."
Reynolds has had shoulder problems and knee surgery during her swimming career, but those pale in comparison to the lung problems that she and her twin sister, Jesse, have battled since infancy.
"The twins were given a contaminated medication when they were 3-months old," said their mother Cathy Reynolds, who has been a mainstay volunteer, helping to operate the computers at the scorer's table during swim meets. "They weren't expected to live past six months, but obviously we've been blessed to have them for 18 years now."
The bad drug damaged their lungs and Becca operates at only 55 percent of normal capacity, even when fully medicated. She takes two prescriptions and always has a tank nearby, going through three liters of oxygen daily. She rarely misses a practice, which for Caldwell's teams starts at 5 a.m.
She even completed Dani's "Hell Week" training, which mandates the kids swim 57-plus miles over the Christmas break.
Becca had the biggest weekend of her aquatic career last Friday in a meet against Judge Memorial. She won both her heats in the 50 freestyle and the 100 breaststroke, going the 50 in 30.63, two seconds faster than her previous personal best, and 1:29.21 in the breast, also a lifetime best.
"That was my high point as a swimmer," Becca said, "It was awesome."
Those times won't get her any gold medals at region meet, but what she's accomplished in her young life, despite the obstacles that would have overwhelmed the average person, count for a lot more than a medal.
The future is not particularly rosy for Becca and her sister. Their local doctors say the medications they are on are not working anymore and have referred the Reynolds family to the National Jewish Health Hospital, ranked as the leading respiratory hospital in the country.
The only problem is National Jewish Health does not accept the Reynolds' health insurance and it costs more than the family can muster at the moment just to get through the front door.
"We'll make it somehow," said Cathy Reynolds. "The good Lord has helped us this far. We have faith."
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