Marco - Polo

Trying to get in touch with the five area swimmers who won state titles last week has been like a game of Marco Polo.

It's actually been quite beneficial to my people-finding skills and my on the spot interview skills. My editor told me to get in touch the five swimmers who won state titles so we could write a story about them - seemingly an easy task - just call their coaches, interview their coaches about them, then have the coaches give you their number.

It hasn't been that easy, though. Most swimming coaches aren't listed in our directory, which means I have to call the Athletic Director. And, most athletic director phone numbers listed in the directory go straight to their office. As I am in the Inquirer office at night, I can't get in touch with them unless I call them during the day.

So, the process has taken a lot of phone calls at different times in the day. So far, I've interviewed three coaches and one athlete. I'm waiting on two coaches/ADs to get back to me and point me in the right direction, and two athletes to get back to me - one of whom I have to call around 3:00 tomorrow.
But, calls are out, messages are recorded, and emails are sent. Now, it's just a waiting game. By tomorrow, I should have enough quotes and content to put together a story. The goal is to talk to AT LEAST one person per athlete. That could be the player her/himself (preferably), the coach, or the AD (preferably not). I think I'm on the right track.