2008 Woodie Awards
What the Natatorium means to its faithful swimmers
Jake Thompson
Issue date: 11/28/07 Section: Sports
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In November, 2003, William Ritchhart had a stroke caused by a blood clot in his brain.
The stroke damaged his circulatory system, equilibrium, and right leg.
The doctors decided, he said, that the best thing to do would be to replace his aorta. About six months after surgery, they cleared him to exercise, and because he swam in junior high and high school, swimming was a natural fit.
"I do it for my physical and what turned out to be my mental health," Ritchhart said. "I go in there feeling very gloom and doom sometimes and come out feeling a whole lot better. Not only physically, but mentally and that's why I do it. It is all about improving my physical and mental health."
The Natatorium was a convenient location for the 6'11" Ritchhart to swim because it is close to his work and home and, comparatively, it is the most economical choice. He purchased the $400 annual membership pass and says he gets the most for his dollar.
Ritchhart wants to swim at the Natatorium every day but between his job and responsibilities he is able to make it only three to four times a week right now. He tries to swim a minimum of 1,200 yards each time and prefers the long course in the competition pool as 0pposed to the short course set-up in the instructional pool.
"The doctors have been very pleased with the results that I have achieved," Ritchhart said. "They've seen the changes in blood pressure, circulation, and all the cardiovascular benefits. They are very happy with the progress that I have made in my overall physical well-being from the swimming."
Ritchhart graduated from the Indiana School for the Blind in 1980. He has had visual impairments of one sort or another from childhood that resulted in total vision loss in 1982. While at the School for the Blind, he participated in track in the long jump, triple jump, and high jump. He also was on the speech team and worked on the school newspaper.
Relying on his experience as a swimmer to alert him, Ritchhart says he can feel the quickness of the pool in the Natatorium.
"It is like the 25th anniversary T-shirt says, it is one fast pool," Ritchhart said. "I've swam in a lot of pools over the years and that one just feels fast when you're in it. Maybe it is the way the water is pulled away but it can be really crowded and you don't get a lot of waves from other lanes. I feel like I can feel that it is fast."
Ritchhart recognizes the need for improvements at the Natatorium even with all the benefits that it now offers. He said he would be willing to see the annual membership raised to help with maintenance cost.
"If they raise the dues by $20 and put in some decent lockers that weren't 25 years old, it would be worth it, " Ritchhart said. "Really, what needs to happen is the state legislature needs to choke up some money and give them what they need to maintain that facility. It is a good facility and that's really sad."
Mel Goldstein
Mel Goldstein, president of Indy Swim Fit, began swimming in 1957 at Indiana University for James "Doc" Councilman during the historic coach's first season with the Hoosiers. His love of swimming brought him into his position today after making the decision to retire 13 years ago from being a manufacturers representative for women's athletic apparel. The words of his former coach have echoed through his ears since he left IU and inspired him throughout his life.
"First and foremost, my mentor was Doc Councilman," Goldstein said. "He gave me three philosophies not just to swim by but I have lived my adult life by. And part of my success has been because of them. Believe in yourself, be the best that you can be, and try not to be someone you are not. Simple, but profound and Doc had that kind of influence over me."
Goldstein came up with the idea for Indy Swim Fit around the same time he wanted to retire. He went to the Jordan YMCA and talked to the director and originally the concept was to develop an adult aquatic fitness program that was all-inclusive with no discrimination in gender, diversity, or age. That is where it all began and it grew from there.
The program has around 375 members and five sites where they swim. The Jordan YMCA, Benjamin Harrison YMCA, Fishers YMCA, Fishers High School, Butler University and the IU Natatorium are where the classes meet. With multiple sites and various times throughout the day to swim most members can find a time and location that suits their individual needs. There are 15 -16 practices a week at the Natatorium and include tri-athletes, competitive masters swimmers, and fitness swimmers of all ages.
"Having the opportunity to work at a world class facility is a wonderful, wonderful thing," Goldstein said. "We probably have the best-kept secret in the city down here."
As an IU assistant athletic director from 1982 to 1991, Dale Neuburger served as manager of the Natatorium, along with other facilities, and he had the foresight to get Goldstein involved with masters swimming. Neuburger moved on and is the current vice-president of FINA (www.fina.org), the world governing body for aquatics.
The benefits swimming provides for a person physically drives Goldstein to help them but he also realizes the benefits of building relationships with people. With the program a community has evolved. There have been nine marriages and approximately 37 babies due to bringing people together.
"That is the great accomplishment," Goldstein said. "It all goes back to building relationships and trying to make it fun to build a lifestyle. We are trying to build a community aspect about it."
Goldstein knows the Natatorium is a great resource for the City of Indianapolis and the surrounding area but he, like others, has concerns over how the facility is being kept up to a world-class standard.
"The unfortunate thing is that this building is an anomaly," Goldstein said. "IU does not want to claim it. IUPUI does not claim it and Doc wanted this pool built in Bloomington. Those types of things led to people not caring for the facility. Therein lies the biggest problem that we have. I think that they are coming around and beginning to get some things done. Hopefully, it will be sooner than later."
Susie Hines
Susie Hines has been coming to the IU Natatorium since 1986. After a serious case of mononucleosis she spent six months in bed and became extremely weak from not exercising.
Hines said she began to exercise with one of her parents' neighbors, who was like a second father to her, and they enrolled in a class at the Natatorium. The mononucleosis had progressed into chronic fatigue and then to fibromyalgia, so she had to find an alternate type of conditioning that allowed her body to exercise.
"I would exercise 15 or 20 minutes and then I would have to rest in the locker room," Hines said. "I loved it. I felt good in the water because it did not hurt, so, that was really, really exciting. I enjoyed getting out and the camaraderie of other people. The social aspect was very important for me."
Hines then started coming with her father and then her mom and put her aerobic knowledge to work for her in the water. She previously taught land aerobics for the State of Indiana and after the Natatorium lost its instructor for her class she volunteered to fill the position in 1988.
"It is a gift from God and I love it," Hines said. "This is what is keeping me going and keeping my muscles strong. I was getting better. I was able to have more of a life and my illness was not controlling my life. Because I was exercising I was getting healthier. When they asked me if I wanted to take over the class I agreed."
Sharing this opportunity with other people is what motivates her. The people in her class are diabetic, have multiple sclerosis, or been through knee and hip surgery or severe arthritis. Helping them control their lives and illness is what she likes to see as the biggest benefit of her class. The exercise is one part, but the socializing that is done in the pool may be invaluable to the healing process since most have not had a lot of contact with the outside world since becoming ill.
Hines does this on a volunteer basis. She does the work to give back and help others in the way she benefited from the classes.
"The more you give the more you get," Hines said. "My passion is my gift to other people. I do it as a volunteer because it does not count unless it is given freely. It is something I really enjoy and need along with it is something I can share."
"This is such a world-class facility," Hines said. "Like everywhere else the financial support through state funding has become so tight that there is an inability to maintain the facility like it should be. I really do not want to see that happen and by giving my time maybe they can buy more equipment or paint the locker rooms. I love this place and would really like to continue to see it be a world-class facility. Without money coming in for maintenance and to keep things up, it will not be a world-class facility. I would like to see more funding come this direction because it is helping other people like it helped me."
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