Bonnie Kara-Foltz was Awarded the Kerry O’Brien Grassroots Coaching Award for 2017 at the U.S. Masters Swimming Convention in Dallas, Texas.
Bonnie Karas started the Bonnie Karas Racing (BKR) Training Systems masters swimming team in the fall of 2013 and in a very short time they have become a rapidly growing team that services not only adult swimmers, but adult runners, cyclists, and triathletes. When she started the masters swimming program in the Auburn Hills/Rochester Hills area, there was no facility or organized team with swimming practices that workout together and there was no local team to compete for at the Michigan Masters State Championship meet. That all changed when Bonnie started the BKR masters swim team.
The BKR Masters swim team practices at Stoney Creek High School in Rochester Hills from 6:00 AM to 7:30 AM on Mondays thru Fridays. Their mission is to help anybody that wants it and it does not matter what level of swimmer you are. “Our coaching philosophy is to help you get the most out of your available training time. We don’t believe in excess mileage or useless workouts. We believe every workout has a purpose and our focus here is to help you reach your goals!” BKR provides one on one swim instruction on the pool deck, online coaching, video analysis, as well as the regular swim workouts with a Certified/Elite Coaching Staff. They encourage their swimmers to cross train to supplement their swimming.
The BKR Masters swim team competes together at swim meets and triathlons and in 2 years they have grown to over 50 swimmers. The results of this growth in swimmers contributed to a Small Team Women’s Championship in 2014 and 2nd place finishes in 2015 in the Men’s and Combined Small Team Divisions at the Michigan Masters Championships. The BKR team contributed to both Michigan Masters National Championship titles when they competed with the Michigan Masters Club team at both the 2013 USMS Short Course Spring Nationals and the 2014 Canadian National Championships.
Bonnie is certified as a USA Cycling level 2 and a USAT level 1 coach. She is also an ACE Certified Personal Trainer and Certified CPR, First Aid, AED, and Safety Training. She has over 20 years of experience working with injury prevention and rehabilitation with high performance athletes. Bonnie was a 7 time All American Collegiate swimmer and a USAT All American Triathlete. She is a National Champion for Olympic distances and 70.3 K distances. Bonnie qualified and competed in the ITU World Age-Group Championships. She is also a member of the Saginaw Swimming Officials Hall of Fame.