The third Annual Free Community Swimming Lessons occurred at Bakersfield College on Oct. 7. The free swimming lessons were coached by Matthew Moon, the head men’s and women’s swim coach at BC for seven years, as well as the Renegade swim team members.

The event was hosted by the BC swim team, with the purpose of helping people learn how to be in the water safely.

The swimming lessons ran on a continuous thirty-minute cycle so they could attract more people, especially kids at the pool.

According to Moon, they were not only focusing on kids but also, older people who needed assistance with swimming. He said “Learning how to swim varies among everybody. I think the earlier you get them involved the more likely they will be to catch on. If you can teach the kids at an early age, then they will be able to enjoy the water more while being safe and hopefully teach their kids or family in the future. It will allow the kids to enjoy water, and in a town like Bakersfield where the summers are hot … it will hopefully prevent any unnecessary drownings.”

When Moon was asked which stroke is the most important, he said it can be up for debate, but the most common stroke would be freestyle.

Ten people drown each day in the United States, according to Moon, and he contends that this is because many do not know how to swim.

“I highly recommend parents to enroll their kids in swimming lessons, I am hoping the lessons caught the interest of the attendees and will spark the interest in joining the swim team or getting enrolled in future lessons,” Moon said.

Learning how to swim can be difficult for other people, but the earlier you get involved in this kind of activity, the more likely you’ll be able to learn quickly, according to Moon.