2019 Inducted into the New England LMSC Hall of Fame (Pool Performance)
USMS Records – 17 lifetime, 3 currently held
USMS All American – 66 (462 points)
USMS All Star – 5 years
USMS Top Ten – 911 Individual
NE LMSC All Time Top 3 – 220 points
Excerpts from the March 13, 2009 The Time Record article “A National Treasure”:
Ronnie grew up in Baltimore and participated in a number of sports including swimming. Here dad taught swimming and got her hooked. She had an aunt who ran a camp at Small Point. So, from the time she was 7 until she finished college, she spent summers in Phippsburg, ME where she resides today.
In the late 1970s her parents stumbled upon the Masters swimming program and, come to find out, some of her old pool adversaries were getting into the sport. “And, my parents were like, ‘why aren’t you doing this?’” At that time she lived in Connecticut and joined Connecticut Masters.
Ronnie has been a member of Maine Masters since 2004, participating at every meet she can. She used to be a sprinter but is now more of a distance swimmer. She likes the team concept of the Masters competition.
“This is what I love… I am one of the older people, but you’re a teammate with younger people. So, this is a refreshing thing where they treat me as one of them. It’s so much fun and some of them are so encouraging and fantastic. You know, here in Maine we have a phenomenal group of swimmers.”
There is a tough balance between the competition and having fun. Ronnie is at ease with both. “Some people just can’t handle the competition. They really don’t want to be up there… I don’t know if they just get too nervous or what. Nerves for me help get the adrenaline going. To me it’s just a wonderful shot in the arm to be around all these vigorous people.”
“A lot of people think that when you reach a certain age you get the rocking chair out and that’s the end of your physical activity. But, particularly in swimming, you can do it right through to the end. I plan to.”
Excerpts from the Center Lanes – SWIMMER magazine Nov-Dec 2011”
Not a braggart, although she clearly has plenty to brag about, Kamphausen guesses she does well because she loves swimming and swimmers and ‘keeps at it. I don’t think I am pushing that hard. I just think there are fewer people in my age group. I love it, and I have been doing it for so long,’ she says. ‘In some ways, I’m afraid to stop. And swimmers are wonderful.’