About us

Chlorine Deckwear is for people who enjoy a summer’s hot deck next to glistening water, who prefer to “see the bottom” rather than guess what’s swimming down there, who have time to think while staring endlessly at the black-striped lines, who spent all their childhood money at the snack bar, who want to “go out fast” in their triathlon, or who wake up to the early morning smell of chlorine instead of coffee.  It's people who love...the pool, the friendships they formed on the deck and a lifetime of fitness.

Katie started swimming competitively at the age of 8 at the Forest Hills pool in the Eastern Swim Association’s summer league. As an only child with two working parents in the 80’s and 90’s, her long summer days were spent taking in the sun, playing mermaid, laughing and making friends. Two of her first friends later became the maids of honor at her wedding and the godmother to our youngest daughter. She built lifelong friendships and gained confidence in the pool which led Katie to success in USA swimming and high school swimming in Pennsylvania. At the University of Richmond, she immediately connected with the swimmers and water polo players on campus. They encouraged her to walk-on to the swim team.

With two older brothers who swam, Ben was on a pool deck before he could walk. This jumpstarted his competitive career at age 5. Identified as a “B” swimmer, the head start did not result in age-group success. He swam anyway because he was even worse at out-of-water sports. Ben joined the high school swim and water polo teams with pure social motivations (quickly earning him and his buddies the nickname of "The Happy Boys.”) But then, in his junior year, something clicked, times dropped, and he was suddenly competitive. Perseverance, incredible coaching, positive peer pressure pushed him, his little brother, and two of his best friends to win the Ohio High School state championship in the 200 Free Relay in his senior year. The confidence from this success propelled him into swimming and water polo in college, which is where he met Katie.

Fast-forward through a marriage, years spent as age group and high school swimming and water polo coaches, careers in marketing, technology and operations, and having kids. We are now full-time working parents with four children. We spend our summers at the pool relaxing, hanging out with an incredible group of friends, and working at swim meets. Our kids swim year-round and one is starting water polo. It makes us happy watching them in the pool. But we are overjoyed to see that the connections made around a pool continue.

#fortheloveofthepool

    
Katie and Ben Minister, co-Founders