News Splash January 12

Andrew Hasek

Good Afternoon CAJ Parents,

Coach Andrew’s Corner

We are hosting a swim meet here in Chico on Saturday January 21. I urge every Aquajet sign up for this meet. This is a great introduction to swim meets for those that have never been. It also gives our older swimmers another opportunity to our swimmers to achieve qualifying times or the upcoming meets (Senior Champs for 13 and over swimmers, JOs for 14 and under swimmers). Our swimmers work very hard in practice, going to swim meets helps show the swimmers that their hard work is beneficial and that they are improving as athletes. Signups close next week on Wednesday 1/18 at 11:59pm. There is a link to the signup page in the “Upcoming Meets” section of this News Splash

A quick reminder for our Pre-Senior and Senior families, Saturday practices count as bonus days for Polar Bear Club. When I plan out the workouts for the week, Saturday practices are included in the planning process, but it does not count against a swimmer’s polar bear attendance record if they are absent. In other words, Saturday practices have the same polar bear attendance policy as swim meets.

Our Team Dinner was last night (1/11) and while it was a bit cozier this time, I think it was still a lot of fun! Each team dinner we hand out awards to chosen swimmers from each group based on their performance in the previous month. For our Minijet Silver group: Everett Villasenor earned Most Improved Swimmer, and Benjamin Shaeffer earned Best Sportsmanship. For our Minijet Blue group: Kaya Duncan earned Most Improved Swimmer, and Sofia Perez earned Best Sportsmanship. For our White Group: Brodie Dennery earned Most Improved Swimmer, Damian Camacho earned Best Race for his 50y freestyle, and Ella Slem earned Best Sportsmanship. For our Navy group: Kinsley Denney earned Most Improved Swimmer, Lily Vogelbacher earned Best Race for her 25y freestyle, and Addyson Crane earned Best Sportsmanship. For our Pre-Senior group: Sarah Plummer earned both Most Improved Swimmer and Best Race for her 200y freestyle, and Siena Jones earned Best Sportsmanship. For our Senior group: Dane Chambers earned Most Improved Swimmer, Iban Ullate earned Best Race for his 100y IM, and Tatev Hambardzumyan earned Best Sportsmanship. The Swimmer of the Month nominations were: Nataley Bartell, Addyson Crane, Jasmine Guzeldere, Gino Lawrence, and Mason Winzenz. Our Swimmer of the Month for the month of December is Jasmine Guzeldere. Congratulations to all of our Aquajets that earned an award! Our next team dinner is Wednesday February 15, I hope to see you all there.

The Bud Meyer Memorial Meet is now open for signups. It will take place in Sacramento from Friday 1/27 through Sunday 1/29. This meet provides another opportunity for swimmers to try and achieve qualifying times, or to practice racing in general especially if they are not able to attend our Chico meet.

With the new year coming it is time to renew your swimmer’s USA Swim Registration. It is a quick process, and necessary for your swimmer to get in the pool.

Polar Bear Season is under way and will continue through Friday, March 10, 2023. If a swimmer attends enough of their group’s practices, then they will get a special Polar Bear t-shirt. The percentages for each group are Seniors 80%, Pre-Seniors 75%, Navy 70%, White 65%, Minijets (both groups) 65%.

Go check out our team store on our website to get some CAJ winter gear. There are parkas, sweatpants, and multiple types of sweatshirts to choose from!

If your swimmer is not USA swimming registered yet, please do so as soon as you can. There is a link to do so in the “USA SWIM REGISTRATION” section of this news splash.

USA SWIM REGISTRATION

This link will show you all you need to register your swimmer until the end of 2023.

https://omr.usaswimming.org/omr/welcome/43F7068EBC3C44

UPCOMING MEETS

  • CAJ Home Meet in Chico 1/21/23 https://ome.swimconnection.com/meets/3184
  • Bud Meyer Memorial Meet in Sacramento 1/27/23-1/29/23 https://ome.swimconnection.com/meets/3181
  • SNS Senior Short Course Championships in Roseville 2/3/23-2/5/23 (13-18 year old swimmers only) [Time qualifier meet]
  • Last Chance for Short Course Champs in Elk Grove 2/24/23-2/26/23
  • SNS 14 & Under Short Course Championships (JOs) in Woodland 3/10/23-3/12/23 (14 years old and younger swimmers only) [Time qualifier meet]

IMPORTANT Reminders

  • Team Dinner at Round Table: Wed 2/15/23 starts at 6:00pm
  • Make sure your swimmer is USA Swimming registered
  • Make sure your swimmer is bringing a water bottle to every practice

NEW AQUAJETS: 

Please Familiarize yourself with our    Team Handbook located on the CAJ website under Join the Team.  

We ask that parents avoid being on deck during practice as it can be distracting to the coaches and the swimmers.  

NEW SWIMMERS: SIGN    CAJ WAIVER  AND HAND IT TO YOUR COACH    

SWIMMER ACCOUNT REMINDER:  All swimmer fees are due on the 1st day of each month and are considered late if not received by the 10th. A $10 late fee will be assessed for late payments. Notice of intent to discontinue swimming must be provided to the Chico AquaJets in writing by the 15th of the month before the date of inactivity to cancel monthly fees. Written notice should be provided through the "Contact Us'' button on the CAJ website. Verbal notice to coaches is not sufficient. Any written notice occurring after the 15th of the month before deciding to discontinue will be charged the following month. Any hanging balances left will be billed and payment will be required before any re-registration. 

  • BE ADVISED: if you discontinue your membership, the $65 registration fee will be reassessed upon re-registration. 
  • CAJ WEBSITE: All members must double-check your Team Unify member account to ensure that your e-mail is correct and verified. We also need you to verify your SMS number, and make sure you use dashes. This will ensure you receive ALL of our communications. 
  • REMINDER FROM IN MOTION: If families discontinue their In Motion gym membership it is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to notify In Motion that the swimmer is remaining an Aquajet swimmer. We’d also appreciate notification to the team through the “contact us” button so that our bookkeeper and membership coordinators are aware of your IMF membership status. This will assist in smooth entry to the club as well as accurate billing information for CAJ. Thanks! 

Coach Andrew