Diving Lessons for 9 year old

Question
Hi Tom,  

I've read several of the posting on diving lessons.  I live in Lake Stevens, WA and have a 9 year old daughter who has loved the water since she was 3 months old.  We spend a lot of time at the Lake Stevens High school pool and she loves diving off the springboard. She would love to take formal diving lessons, but it would need to be fairly close.  Lake Stevens HS pool was supposed to offer lessons this fall, but the teacher pulled out - we found this out today as we went to sign up.  Any suggestions?  I'm open to private lessons or group.  Thank you.

Sincerely,

Michelle McDermott

Answer
Hi Michelle-

Since you have read some of the postings, you know that I have in the past tried to establish diving lessons for non high school age kids. I have done it at the Hal Moe Pool in Snohomish (now closed) and for the City of Everett at Forest Park. It is very difficult to get the pool time I need to do it the way I know will work.

I did not know that there were diving lessons at Lake Stevens. I have never been to that pool. I know that they have had high school diving there. Maybe the high school coach can do the lessons.What are the days and times of the lessons you had hoped to sign up for?

I would like to help but these public aquatic programs pay very little and do not offer enough hours for me to take the time to run it. They also charge way too much to rent the pool and do it independently. At the moment, my time is taken up coaching high school diving in Mukilteo. The problem in Snohomish County is the lack of pools with deep water and diving boards. The ones that do have them are dominated by the high schools for the next 6 months and then after that, they are taken over by club swim teams.

If you want to contact me directly as a follow up to my response, my home e-mail is: [email protected]