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It isn't about
swimming more.
You're a strong cyclist and a strong runner. Your whole athletic life has run on one simple equation: put in the time, get the reward. Except it isn't working in the water.
You've watched a million YouTube videos (please stop). You've drilled, abandoned the drills, and decided you'd just out-train it with volume. Now your shoulders hurt and you're still getting lapped by the ten-year-olds in the next lane.
And somewhere in there you started wondering whether you should just become — gulp — a duathlete.
Repeat a bad swing a thousand times and you get very good at a bad swing.
Most triathletes try one of these. Both end the same way.
More yards, more sessions, more fatigue. Volume without technique is a thousand repetitions of the same flaw — and a fast track to a shoulder injury.
Chasing the perfect 25 before you'll swim any further. Your form holds for a length, then your fitness runs out and everything regresses to the flail.
You need correct technique and enough volume to hold it. Neither one alone gets you there.
See it with your
own eyes.
Camp starts in the water with cameras. Before we teach you anything, we capture your stroke — above and below the surface — so the conversation that follows is about your swim, not swimming in general.
The athlete on the left is dropping her elbow through the catch. Without video she'd never know it. She'd keep pressing down with her hand and keep wondering why the yards weren't paying off.
You leave with a personalized video analysis and a short list of drills chosen for your stroke alone — yours for life, to re-watch any time your form drifts.
Fix my swimFive sessions, in the order that makes them stick
Draft schedule — exact times confirmed closer to camp.
Filming & technique swim
We capture every athlete above and below the water, then swim pure technique while the footage uploads. No intervals, no ego — just clean, deliberate work.
Classroom: what kind of swimmer are you?
Swimmers aren't one species. We identify your swim type, debunk the myths you've been fed, and explain why the last five years of drills didn't take.
Mobility lab
Some of what's holding your stroke back isn't skill — it's range of motion. We screen you, show you where you're stuck, and give you the work that unsticks it.
Threshold set & your CSS
You leave with a number: critical swim speed, the pool's answer to FTP on the bike. Every set you write for the next year hangs off it.
The Red Mist
The one we won't explain in advance. Ask anyone who's done a Campfire camp; they'll get a look on their face. You'll finish it, and you'll be glad you did.
Seven things you can't get from another YouTube video
- 01A personalized video analysis naming what's holding your swim back — yours to keep for life.
- 02Your swim type, and why the generic advice you've been following was never written for it.
- 03Three coached swims: pure technique, threshold, and the Red Mist.
- 04A mobility screen that shows where your body — not your skill — is the limiter.
- 05Your critical swim speed (CSS), so every set you write afterward has a target.
- 06Drills chosen for you specifically, with the cues to practice them alone.
- 07Fourteen other triathletes who've been exactly as frustrated as you are.
Fifteen athletes. Two coaches on deck.
Chris Bagg
Short bio — coaching background, racing résumé, and the line about why swim technique is the hill he'll die on.
Coach name
Two or three sentences — what they run at camp and what athletes always say about working with them.
I tried private swim lessons outside of Campfire, but I got no feedback on how to correct my form — mainly just "swim more." Swimming more hasn't affected my speed at all. At Swim Camp the in-depth feedback plus video analysis really pinpoint what you need to fix. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Educational, supportive, and non-judgemental. As a beginner I learned so much and I never felt ashamed of my ability level.
It feels more like a family than a training event. I'm stronger, more confident, more motivated — faster, happier, healthier.
Hood River
Swim Camp
A year from now you'll either have a stroke you trust, or another season of yards that went nowhere. One of those costs $495.
Questions
How many athletes do you take?+
Fifteen. Small enough that every athlete gets filmed, reviewed, and coached individually across both days.
Do I need to be swim-fit already?+
You need to swim 100 yards of freestyle without stopping. We can't teach you to swim at this camp — but if you can cover 100 yards, we can absolutely make it faster.
Where should I stay?+
Athletes have driven out from Portland both mornings before. You can also stay at the Society Hotel in Bingen, Washington, just across the river — a lovely place, and where your camp counselors will be.
Is my registration refundable?+
If we have to cancel or move camp for extenuating circumstances — pandemic, flood, fire, earthquake, locusts — you'll be offered a transfer or a full refund.
What do I need to bring?+
Suit, goggles, cap, and whatever toys you already own — we'll tell you which ones to leave in the bag. Full kit list goes out with your confirmation email.