So perhaps you watched Dara Torres last night, dazzling in a sleeveless white sheath on "The Tonight Show", chatting up post-Olympics life with Jay Leno. You might also know more than you care to about the unique and rigorous stretching regimen she uses to keep limber and lithe. But did you know about the Power Tower? You didn't see it at the Water Cube in Beijing or even in Singapore where Torres trained prior to the Games. But she and other champion swimmers use the tower, a 9-feet tall aluminum machine with cables that attach to two 20-gallon barrels and a pair of swimmers. When the swimmers move away from the apparatus, they lift the weight of the water in the barrels. Resistance can be altered by fine-tuning the water levels in the barrels. Frank Busch, head swim coach at the University of Arizona, created the machine. He brought the idea to Ontario High School Coach Sam VanCura, who builds it and markets it.
Olympics coach Mark Schubert apparently wanted the Power Tower for his swimmers, alas it couldn't clear customs in time for his team. Still Janet VanCura managed to get Torres to send her husband a personal birthday card in time for his 60th birthday party. Isn't that sweet? In any event, we're hoping that more mainstream swimmers get a chance to use this special equipment in their own quest to get more fit.