What are people saying about our staff?

About Coach Joe..

About Jared...

"I would like to refer to Jared as being a bulldog. He never backs down to a challenge and always lays his body on the line for the team."

-Mark Gole, Head Coach, Truman State University Men's and Women's Swimming, NCAA Division 2 Nationals Champs 2006,2008, coached Jared at Wayne State University

"I am the proud swim dad of two daughters who have been doing year-round competitive swimming for over 12 years.  In that time they have had many different coaches.  Looking back over those years, one coach
clearly stands above the others, and that coach is Joe Plane.  As a father of age group swimmers, I have always looked for a coach who is demanding but never demeaning.  This is Joe.  His breadth of swimming
knowledge coupled with the depth of passion he has for the sport is seldom found in club swimming.  He is a coach who truly cares about bringing each of his swimmers to their next level of swimming and personal maturity.

His occasionally gruff exterior covers a heart full of caring and concern for his swimmers and the sport.  Joe is an ideal introduction for a child to a non-parental adult who calls them to perform for themselves and shows them the way individual hard work leads to individual and team accomplishment.

-An Ohio Swim Dad

"I love him to death, he is the reason that I am swimming in college right now on scholarship.  With out him, I wouldn't have been able to have ever even made a State Swim meet, I probably would have quit.  He will never give up on you and NO ONE will believe in you more.  He will get on your case, and sometimes you'll get angry at that, I know I have been there, but I look back now and love him for it.  It made a man out of me.  Joe is my second father and he will make a champion out of you, I promise.  Also, do not fret about swimming without other boys.  I swam from 10 years old until I was 14 with only girls.  Joe still got me to become a 6 time state champion.  It is the coach who you have to swim for, and Joe is the best of the best.  The passion he shows is indescribable."
-Michigan male Swimmer, swam for Coach Joe from age 10-16, current University of Buffalo scholarship swimmer

"I had the opportunity to work with Joe Plane for three years.  I consider him to be one of the brightest, most creative coaches I know.  Joe made a significant contribution to our program as a coach and a person.  One of the things I appreciate about Joe is his analytical approach to finding ways to improve his swimmers.  He is always thinking about ways to positively affect performance.  No doubt his education as an engineer is a big plus when it comes to understanding all the elements involved in fast swimming.  Most importantly, he is a great guy who relates in the most positive manner to his swimmers.  I wish he was still working with us."

-Jim Richardson, Head Women's Swim Coach, University of Michigan, 1985 to present

"I'm now 16 and have been swimming competitively for 10 years. Swimming had only been a past-time until Joe became my coach. For me, and I'm sure every other swimmer on our team, swimming became a undying passion in my life once Joe arrived. We worked harder than ever imaginable, and though many hard practices were driven with the frustration of the intensity of the workout, I still remember the feeling of pride and accomplishment as we were walking out of the pool to go home.  Joe not only opened up my mind to becoming a better swimmer than I ever thought I could, but also, with the push of a coach, that the possibilities were all up to me. That was the first time I realized that if I worked the sets and practices as hard as I possibly could, I would actually improve. And not those 1 or 2 second drops. I'm talking about dropping 5 to 10 seconds by the end of the first season. I was competing closely with the swimmers I had looked up to as untouchables years before. Joe opened my eyes to what the sport of swimming really can  become for the individual that has the drive. Best coach I've ever had, and I'm still focusing on the things I learned from him 3 years ago."
-Ohio female Swimmer, swam for Coach Joe from age 13-15