Being over 18 doesn’t close the door on belonging to a swim club.

Thanks to the Cochrane Masters Swim Club there’s also an option for adults who want to enjoy the nonimpact fitness benefits of the sport or are interested in competing.

Registration is now open for the second session that starts Feb. 4 and continues until the end of June. It’s open to anyone 18 and older to enjoy, no matter their skill level.

A number of Cochrane swimmers participated in the Foothills Master Swim Meet held here last Saturday, including, from left, Chris Daniel, Travis Cummings, Don Dyck, John Roth and Jamie Roth.

The beauty of master swimming is the diverse range of swimmers and training opportunities. Weekly there are three workout sessions: Monday and Thursday evening from 8 to 9 p.m. and Wednesday mornings from 6:05 to 7:05 a.m.

Masters coach Breanna Hendriks, who is also the head coach of the Cochrane Piranhas, says participants can choose to participate in as many or as few as they wish by choosing one of three levels of membership offered.

For the fall session, they had about 25 participants, ranging in age from 21 to 74. Hendricks is on deck at each session providing feedback and instruction specific to the interest of the swimmer. There is quite a range, too. Some want to improve or maintain their fitness, while some want to learn how to do all four strokes—freestyle, backstroke, fly and breast.

“It’s pretty awesome,” she says. “It’s a very wide range as far as coaching goes, which I love.”

“Some swimmers can’t put their face in their water while their swimming when they start and by the end of the session they can do actual freestyle and do all four strokes. It’s pretty cool to see their progress.”

There are also some who are interested in the competitive side of the masters and are training to compete in other meets available around the globe. That includes Travis Cummings.

“Travis joined last fall and his progress has been amazing. Most of the master swimmers are there to get physically fit or to maintain fitness or they’re doing triathlons. He’s one of my first swimmers who has wanted to do the masters swim meets. Either way, it’s pretty cool.

Cummings also belongs to the Foothills Master Swim Club and is training outside of club time for upcoming national and world championships.

Travis Cummings will be competing in the masters national and world championships this year.He will be competing at the Canadian Nationals in Montreal in May and the world championships in Gwangju, South Korea in August.

For more information on masters swimming and a registration package, you can email cochranemasters@gmail.com or visit the Facebook page Cochrane Masters Swim Club.

The net session begins Feb. 4 but swimmers can join in at any point, says Hendricks. Many triathletes, for example, join later on in preparation for August triathlons.

Last Saturday, the Foothills Swim Club brought their annual meet to Cochrane and had about 75 participants. Cochrane swimmers were among them.