Earlier this summer, four local divers from Lexington attended a diving camp in Indiana. While there, they were able to develop and refine their diving techniques and skills. These young teenagers have aspirations to go to college with a diving scholarship. They continue to dive on a daily basis throughout the summer.
Brooke Dingess, Ty Carcione, Adam McCombs, and Evan Heth, all 15 years old, have all grown up in the same area. Dingess and Carcione both started swimming for recreation at Walnut Hill’s pool. McCombs and Heth both swim at Clear Fork’s pool. All four divers felt inspired as children when they saw the older children flip through the air after jumping off the diving board. When they each found out they could dive well, they decided to pursue it further.
Each teen had a turning point in their lives, when they decided to devote every day in the summer to practice their dives.
Heth and McCombs said they grew up together and have been friends since childhood. They both remember trying different tricks on the trampoline.
McCombs said, “You have to get over being scared to do tricks. Once you’re not scared, it gets better.”
Heth agreed and chimed in, “It’s just fun to do flips,” to which the other three enthusiastically agreed.
Carcione and Dingess both went to the same pool and remember looking up to the older kids. “Summer screw arounds were always really fun. You really learn a lot at those.” A “summer screw around dive” is a day where the children are able to dive freely and try new tricks. Some dives are silly, others serious.
The divers all agreed that diving takes practice and “a ton of repetition.” They are all able to do so because they live close to their local pools. In the summer they all practice every day. In the winter they practice three times a week. Carcione, however, practices every day during the winter. He also plays two other sports, tennis and golf.
The hardest dive the four of them ever tried is the back one-and-a-half somersault. A video of this dive can be found by clicking here.
Yesterday was the last day for the Greater Mansfield Aquatic Conference (GMAC) dive meet. The swimming portion of the meet will take place on July 19 and 20.
