Spring Start Up 2026

UCSC’s very own Spring Start Up came and went this past weekend, featuring two timed-final sessions filled with fast racing from swimmers across the TREX squads all the way up to the National Development groups. The meet followed an aggregate-style competition format, with swimmers competing across six events: 50 Fly, 50 Breast, 200 IM/100 Free, 50 Free, and 100 Back.

This format meant swimmers were not only racing the competitors in the lanes beside them, but also competing against their own best times. In each event, points were awarded based on how far over or under a swimmer’s personal best they performed.

For 2 days, swimmers were chasing that pesky time next to their names on the heat sheets, with many success stories across all age groups. Energy levels were high all weekend with athletes cheering their peers on and new qualifying standards achieved. For some, this meet marked one of the last few of the season, while for others, it’s just the start of a new phase of training to prepare for higher-level competitions down the road. No matter which group the swimmers fell into, all of the coaches were impressed with how races were handled and key takeaways from every performance.

GO DINOS GO!