Kaitlin Wilkinson says it is really simple.
She gets in the pool, makes a bunch of movements with her arms and legs, and those actions propel her to move forward in the water.
It’s swimming.
Duh.
Wilkinson does not want to be inspirational. She wants to be treated just like any other member of the Hudson’s Bay girls swim team.
And while she might be “just” swimming, she has an extra challenge in the pool.
Wilkinson is one of two swimmers on the Hudson’s Bay team who are legally blind.
And their coach says both swimmers are inspirational.
They count their strokes to know to turn before smacking their heads into the wall. When they are performing the backstroke, they rely on a coach to tap them on the head to let them know when to flip-turn.
“I’ve been swimming since the womb,” Wilkinson said with a laugh. “I was on a competitive swim team when I was 8, but I’ve always been a swimmer.”
Wilkinson was born with gestational glaucoma and lost her vision when she was 12 years old. Now a sophomore who lives in Spokane, she attends the Washington State School for the Blind in Vancouver and competes with Hudson’s Bay. She can see some light.
Alexann, a senior at WSSB who lives in Walla Walla, was born with retinopathy of prematurity (ROP).
“I can see people but no detail. Lights and shadows,” said Alexann, who did not wish to use her last name.
Alexann started swimming two years ago.
“I’ve always been very limited to the sports I can do because of my eye condition. This is one I’ve grown to love,” she said, adding that besides the competition, the sport gives her a great workout.
Wilkinson said swimming is a stress reliever.
“You kind of beat the water. You can eat up the water and keep going forever,” she said. “This is what I like to do. Nothing’s going to stop me from swimming.”
Actually, when pressure builds in her eyes, she cannot get in the water. So lately, she has been going to practice to be there with her team, hoping to return to the pool soon. But the fact that she is blind will not keep her from doing anything she sets out to do.
Still, she says that does not make her special. It makes her like any other driven athlete.
“I just want to swim,” Wilkinson said.
She and Alexann appreciate swimming with the Hudson’s Bay Eagles because that is who they are — swimmers.
“They encourage all of us. All of us,” Wilkinson said, describing the whole team.
She does not feel special, and that’s a good thing.
“Here, in this community, I’m not a foreign person,” Wilkinson said. “I’m not the one blind chick.”
Alexann agrees.
“I don’t feel like an outcast here,” she said. “I feel I’m one of them.”
Hudson’s Bay coach Cassi Grier said all athletes face challenges.
“Alexann and Kaitlin bring a whole different dynamic to the group. They’re dealing with a different set of challenges than most people,” Grier said.
But once a routine is established, it is routine. All the Eagles warm up together, train together, compete together. There is no need for anything to be different.
Except, of course, there is a coach using a long cane with a tennis ball attached at the end to tap the swimmer just before the wall. Grier has always been there for Wilkinson and Alexann.
A former coach once forgot to tap Alexann, though.
“It hurt,” she said, now laughing about the incident. “I didn’t really think it was funny at the time.”
“I’ve hit my head tons of times when I was younger,” Wilkinson said.
When swimming freestyle, though, Alexann can see the black stripe painted at the bottom of the pool. When it ends, she knows it is time to turn. Wilkinson said she can see the stripe “on a good day” but she usually does not need it. For one she counts her strokes. She has another trick, too.
“Most of the time, it’s a weird sense for me,” Wilkinson said, noting that she can hear the difference her splashes make as she approaches the wall. “It’s a weird sixths sense for me in the pool. I can just kind of tell.”
Both have tried other sports, as well. Alexann competes for the Bay track and field team, too, in running events.
“I tried hurdles once,” she said. “I’m just going to go with the flow. If I fall, I fall.”
Wilkinson said she sticks to swimming now, but she once tried soccer.
“I usually just ran around, but I kicked the ball one time,” she said. “I was so proud of myself. I kicked it the wrong direction, but I was proud.”
Now, Kaitlin Wilkinson and Alexann are proud members of the Hudson’s Bay girls swim team.
They do not want, nor need, any special attention on race days.
Being part of the team is special enough.
