Mike McEvoy

Mike McEvoy was an excellent swim coach, but his impact on the Los Ranchitos Sharks was much more than just that.

Mike was a lifeguard, swim lesson instructor and coach for the Sharks who loved swimming and loved kids, and those feelings came through loud and clear as he coached the team. Mike’s goal wasn’t just to make everyone a better swimmer; he also wanted every kid to have a great time and learn the joys of teamwork and good sportsmanship. All the swimmers, young and old, idolized Mike and gravitated around him all the time, and Mike never gave any of them anything less than his full attention and effort. He sweet talked sobbing five year olds into taking the blocks at their first meet, charmed teenagers into giving more effort than they knew they had in them and he always greeted every swimmer at the end of each race, be they a Shark or an opponent, with a resounding cry of “Good swim!” Mike wasn’t just acting; he truly loved swimming and coaching and every meet and every practice he went to was something that he enjoyed and savored.

Mike’s untimely death at 23 left a huge hole on our team and in our hearts. The Sharks have moved on, but for those of us who were here at the time, Mike’s incredible legacy will never fade. Having a “good swim” will always be a key part of our team’s philosophy, even if those good swims don’t always result in first places.

Every year at the awards ceremony after Champs, the highlight is the awarding of the Mike McEvoy “Good Swim” Award. Voted on in secret by the coaches, it is given to the Shark who best exemplifies Mike’s fun-loving spirit. The winner is someone who encourages the youngest swimmers, cheers for his or her teammates, exhibits the highest levels of good sportsmanship and just generally loves the cabana swimming experience and shares that love with everyone around. The reward is simple but very symbolic: in addition to having his or her name engraved on the memorial plaque, the winner gets to wear Mike’s straw hat to all practices and meets the following year before handing it off to the next year’s winner at the awards ceremony. Seeing someone else wear that hat doesn’t bring Mike back, but it does remind us all why we enjoy being involved with the Sharks and with swimming, and that is something that Mike would have approved of unreservedly.