Your Coaches

Michelle Hopewell

Co-founder & Coach

I believe my role as a coach is to help guide each unique individual to live their best life using swimming as a vehicle for excellence, health, life lessons and healing in and out of the water.

Michelle Hopewell is a seasoned certified competitive swim coach and swim instructor with 25+ years working with elite level athletes, age-group swimmers, and beginner through advanced level learn-to-swim youth and adult students.

  • She has demonstrated proven results in USA Swimming club coaching, training, and developing individuals to compete in high school and Division I, II, III collegiate programs as well as masters’ swimmers and triathletes.

    An elite swimmer herself, Michelle is former captain of the University of MN Women's Swim Team where she received a B.S. degree in Scientific and Technical Communications. 

    She also served as an Age Group and Masters coach with Twin Cities Swim Team at the U of M for eight years.

    She and her husband are busy empty-nesters trying to keep up with their three early 20-something daughters, all who grew up as swimmers and continue to swim as collegiate-athletes or recreationally!

    She is credited with developing the Wave Swim Team at Wise Swim School and is one of the founding coaches of Riptide Swim Team. Michelle is an ASCA Level 2 Certified Coach. 

    As a “water baby” at the early age of nine-months, Michelle’s parents started her on a path of swimming and she has embodied the identity of being a swimming ambassador and professional for her entire life. Introducing, guiding and coaching people to the swimming world is a natural role.

Karin Clemon

Co-founder & Coach

I am a creative and resourceful problem solver ~ skills that have proven invaluable as a coach. I love helping swimmers reach their highest potential by finding the keys that unlock breakthroughs they never thought possible.

Karin Clemon is a certified USA Swimming coach and a U.S. Masters Adult-Learn-to-Swim (ALTS) instructor, who has built a successful coaching career working with everyone from beginner adults, competitive youth, masters swimmers, and Ironman triathletes.

  • Karin’s relationship with swimming began when she was five years old, after a near-drowning incident. Her parents promptly enrolled her in swim lessons, and by age seven, her love of competition was insatiable.

    As a multi-sport athlete, she swam competitively and also made a name for herself in other sports including completing an Olympic-distance triathlon at age 11.

    Professionally, she went on to earn a B.S in Psychology and an MBA from the University of St. Thomas, and spent many years working for a fast-growing engineering company until 2014 when adventure called and Karin’s family moved to the beaches of Costa Rica.

    Upon returning to the States, a corporate career no longer fit Karin’s goals. Instead, she felt called to share her love of the water by teaching adults to swim and coaching swimmers of all levels. Additionally, Karin volunteers as a triathlon swim angel and has co-led and taught free ALTS clinics.

    In addition to coaching, Karin continues to be an avid athlete, preferring sprint distances, but testing her endurance with long-distance bike events and, in 2024, finishing her first 70.3 triathlon.

    Karin’s athletic, professional and life experiences make her an ideal and versatile coach. She has a keen grasp of swim technique, and she personally understands the physical and mental demands of being an athlete.

    However, Karin also vividly remembers the fear of looking up from under the water at age five, unable to save herself.

    Those experiences spanning both ends of the swimming spectrum allow her to understand and connect with each swimmer to successfully coach them to their best.