First Swim Meet How to Guide

Swim meets are an amazing experience for new swimmers and a great way for us to come together as a team during competition. Swim meets can be fun, exciting,and challenging. They can also be very nerve racking for first time swimmers and their parents. So we wanted to write this “How to Guide” to hopefully answer any questions and to make your first swim meet experience go as smoothly as possible.

First thing we’d like to talk about is how the swim meet is run and organized. Each stroke and distance (example: 100 Butterfly or 50 freestyle) will have its own event. And each event will be broken down into heats based on the swimmers entry time. If your swimmer is brand new or has no time, they will be entered as an NT (no time) and most likely swim in the first heat. This first race will be your swimmers base time that you can work towards improving and challenging yourself to beat.

Heat Sheets are how you find out what event number and swims your swimmer will be competing in that day. Generally they will be sold at each swim meet or sent to you from your swimmers coach via email depending on the hosting club.

  WHAT TO PACK IN YOUR BAG!

•  First things first is a swim suit. If you are new to swimming you don’t need some $100 dollar competitive tech suit. A nice well fitted, not baggy, one-piece swim suit is all you need.
• Two Towels: Your swimmer is going to want a dry towel at the end of the swim meet so packing two, one for during and one for after is recommended.
• Two pairs of Goggles: It is always handy to have an extra pair of goggles just in case. Can’t tell you how many times a pair of goggles have broken the day of a swim meet.
• Extra Hair Ties
• Swim Caps: Also preferably bring two, feel free to reach out to your swimmers coach if your swimmer needs a new swim cap.
• Hoodies/Swim Parka: Most swim decks are pretty humid for parents but swimmers will be constantly wet and will get cold in between swims. So a nice hoodie, sweatpants, or a swim parka will be helpful in keeping your swimmer warm while on the deck.
• Healthy Snacks: Swimming fast makes you hungry! Pack some healthy foods with protein, fiber, and carbs such as: Bananas, apples, peanut butter crackers, granola bars, or cheese sticks. You don’t want to pack anything too heavy that may upset your swimmers stomach. A little something that many of our swim parents do is pack a “Meet Treat”, which was a little bag of candy or favorite type of gummy to have during or after the swim meet. It is a special little tradition that always helps leaving even the hardest swims with a smile.
• Water Bottle or some sort of sports drink
• Bring a form of entertainment! I always brought a book or some cards to play with fellow swimmers. Sometimes there are large gaps between your swims and it's nice to have something to pass the time. For more competitive swimmers I’d suggest bringing music as a way to focus your thoughts and calm your nerves.

WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU ARRIVE

The venue where the swim meet is occurring will determine whether the parent is allowed on deck or not. Example: Kernersville YMCA parents can sit in nearby bleachers with their swimmer, but at the GAC in Greensboro parents, unless volunteering, have to stay in the bleachers and not on the pool deck. When you first arrive look for your coach or fellow swimmers. There will always be a HPSC designated seating area where all the swimmers from our club will be seated. Then find your coach and let them know you are there. Coaches will help your swimmer get settled and prepared for warm up. While you wait for warm up we suggest doing some light stretches to keep your body warm and limber.

Coaches will help swimmers to keep track of upcoming swims, but to cut down on added stress I suggest that swimmers go behind the blocks an event or two before their event especially for short races like  25’s and 50s. For longer races, I’d say your swimmer is safe going behind the block only an event early.

What happens if your swimmer misses their swim? Don’t panic. Find your swim coach and they can go and try to fix the situation. In most cases, the Meet Officials will do all they can to ensure your swimmer is able to swim.

HOW BEST TO SUPPORT YOUR SWIMMER

As we are all former competitive swimmers, and now coaches the only thing we ever wanted to hear from my parents, no matter the performance or what our own coaches said, was that they were proud of me and how much they loved to watch us swim. Your swimmer will never forget the first time you tell them that after a rough swim meet. Your job as a parent is to love and support your swimmer while the coaches is to correct and improve your swimmer. There may be times where coaches may give your swimmer tough love, and we ask you as parents to give them unconditional love so that together we can  build stronger healthier and happier swimmers.

As always if there are any questions please feel free to reach out to our coaches.

HPSC Coaches