As the Ferndale High School girls’ swim team swam laps one Monday afternoon, the YMCA pool echoed with the encouraging voice of Coach Julia Landon. As she cheered on her team, she occasionally pulled aside a student to give constructive advice on their stroke technique.  

“It’s going to feel weird at first, but it’ll get easier and easier, I promise,” Landon said to one student, whom she had just told to focus on keeping her posture more flat in the water. “You’ve got this!” 

This upbeat feel during practices isn’t unusual for Ferndale swim. Landon, who’s coached FHS swim on and off since 2010, leads the Golden Eagles girls’ and boys’ swim teams less like a drill sergeant and more like the famously chipper Ted Lasso, with no shortage of encouragement and smiles. 

Even with something that most people would see as a competitive disadvantage – Ferndale’s practice pool is 20 yards, but every pool they’ll compete in this season is 25 yards – Landon manages to see the bright side. 

“We’ll get more turn practice than everybody because we have to swim more laps!” she said with a laugh. 

Landon’s swimmers said they love her leadership style. 

“She’s really kind and accepting of anyone that wants to join swim,” said sophomore Kenley Latta. “She’s never been harsh or mean in any way – she’s just really uplifting.” 

“She’s always super sweet,” added fellow sophomore Cara Esparza. 

Landon said her positive attitude comes naturally to her – but she credits her students for helping build the FHS swim team’s upbeat culture. 

“I came in the first day of practice, and they’re already clapping and cheering for each other,” she said. “It makes my job really easy when you get a good group of kids, and we just continue to nurture that.” 

Landon wasn’t seriously interested in swimming as a kid in Vancouver, WA – “I preferred to read books!” – but fell in love with the sport after joining a club team in 7th grade. She wound up on the state-qualifying Mountain View High School team, swimming as an alternate in the 200-meter individual medley and 100-meter butterfly races. 

In 2010, shortly after graduating from Western Washington University, Landon began coaching for Ferndale High School’s girls’ swim team. She led the Golden Eagles for five years before leaving to coach at the YMCA, then rejoined the FHS family in 2020 to coach both boys’ and girls’ swim.  

Since her return to Ferndale, Landon has helped grow Golden Eagles swim into a thriving program. Both programs have risen in participation in the past few years – particularly the boys’ team, which didn’t have a full squad until 2022.  

Landon said she loves coaching because she gets to impart life lessons onto her students, such as perseverance, teamwork, communication, and confidence. 

“I love empowering people to find who they are and finding qualities that they might not know about themselves,” she said. “Sports is a vehicle for life -- they’re learning so many skills in the pool that they’ll use in the real world.” 

In particular, Landon loves to emphasize how progress requires lots of trial and error. 

“I always talk about ‘being brave enough to try,’” she said. “It’s not going to work out perfectly the first time. But this is a safe place for them to try something and fail, and then try again and get better.” 

With about 20 swimmers on each team of varying skill – ranging from state meet hopefuls to teens who’ve never swam competitively – Landon juggles multiple different goals for the Golden Eagles. But at the end of the day, there is one overarching mission for everyone. 

“Our goal every day is just to try a little bit better than we did yesterday,” Landon said. “Just make progress.”