Croc Talk for May 12, 2024

 

Dear CAST Families,

 

Happy Mother's Day to all the swim moms out there!  I hope this day is all you deserve and more!  Below are some important team announcements and updates.  Please reach out to me directly if you have anything I can help you with.

Annual Banquet Recap

First off, thank you to our CAST swimmers and families for their attendance at the banquet on Wednesday evening.  I realize a late weekday evening on a school night is not ideal, but given the circumstances our team rallied for a fun, celebratory and successful event together!

There is a HUGE thank you owed to the banquet committee for all their hard work to make the CAST Annual Banquet a success.  A special thank you goes out to Kami Shaw, who ran lead on the banquet.  We also need to thank Alissa Descancic, Trish Shoemaker, Elena Ruth, Jaci Downing, Maddie Crow, and Kip Taylor plus ALL the CAST parent volunteers for their hard work in setting-up the venue and making our Olympic Themed banquet come to life!

A huge thanks goes out to Sean Hunt for allowing us to use his AV equipment (projector screen, speakers, and microphone) and for him running point on audio and video throughout the night.  His hard work was much appreciated! I also want to acknowledge Coach Jorge for creating all the videos, for making my awards presentation, and for doing the senior photos and bringing them to life with the water splash photo shoot.

There was also something I forgot to celebrate with you all—CAST won the “Team Spirit” award at Short Course Champs in March!  Our team came together, wore green everything, crocodile hats galore, we debuted the Croc mascot inflatable, and cheered on our swimmers with such enthusiasm it was rewarded by the other coaches who voted for us!  A special thanks goes out to the Croc Crew who rallied the night before the meet and made tons of posters and brought cheer sticks and pom-poms!  Maddie Crow, Jennifer DeRouen, Amy Maykuth, and Melissa Stroh were instrumental in making this happen.

I can’t wait for our Croc Crew to continue to grow and promote the team spirit and fun at CAST!

**If you were unable to attend the banquet, please see Coach Alicia on deck so your swimmer can pick up their team CAST 2024 medal that was given out to each swimmer for their participation and dedication to the team.

CAST Team Photos: Wednesday, May 22^nd

Team Photos will be taken on Wednesday, May 22nd during afternoon practice. Starting at 3:00 PM swimmers can pick up their 2024 sponsorship t-shirt and have individual pictures taken on deck. At 4:45 PM, individual pictures will pause and all swimmers will move to the patio area behind the Kroc Cafe for our team photo. All swimmers need to be on the patio by 5:00 PM to be included in the team photo. After the team photo is finished any individual pictures that still need to be taken will continue on the pool deck. 

Envelopes for team pictures are available on the pool deck and will be sent home with swimmers or please ask the coaches for one.

Information for Picture Day:

·       There will be (no) in-water practice that afternoon. Please attend Wednesday morning practices if you are able.

·       All swimmers will receive a free 2024 sponsorship t-shirt to be worn for the team picture.

·       Shirts can be picked up at the Kroc Cafe patio starting at 3:00 PM

·       Extra sponsorship shirts that were ordered will be available for pick up at this time

·       Individual pictures are not mandatory 

·       Individual pictures can include multiple swimmers.

·       For families with multiple swimmers, if you want individual pictures and a group picture of your swimmers please fill out an order form for          each picture.

·       Volunteers to help pass out shirts are needed. Service hours will be given. An email to sign up will be sent soon.

We look forward to another great CAST team photo!

Update your SMS Text Message Option for CAST communications

Only about half of our families have opted into text messages for urgent and time sensitive notifications and we urge you to please take the time and add this option for communication.

Our team needs to be able to send our urgent/quick text messages to families for last minute schedule updates.  Please watch this video to add your text capabilities to our site: https://youtu.be/C3uX9wc_q0A 

This is especially important for the summer schedule as lightening and other weather related changes may affect training times.
 

Witter Long Course Training: JR/SR Squads starts this Tuesday May 14th

JR and SR squads will start long course training at the Witter Pool in Spokane this Tuesday.  This schedule will run from May 14 through June 13^th on Tuesday and Thursday PM only.  Practice time for JR/SR squads will be from 3:50—6:00pm, and currently this is the only practice offering for these squads.  Any changes or updates will be communicated directly with the parents and swimmers in these squads.

JR/SR/A Travel Training Trip: June 6/7-9

We are offering a travel training trip to Velocity Swim Club in Wenatchee for those swimmers 13 and older in Sr/Jr/A squads.  We are limited to 30 swimmers since this is a training trip where we will have multiple challenging practice sessions, and be given the opportunity to swim with Velocity and participate in a nutrition seminar, a hike, and a trip to the Leavenworth Adventure Park.

All A/Jr/Sr parents with a swimmer 13 and older, please click HERE to complete the survey needed for travel and planning purposes—even if you do not plan to attend.

Seasonal Summer Swim Team Tryouts: Saturday March 25^th

CAST’s Summer Team is about half full already after our first round of tryouts.  Please pass this information along to any family or friends that may be interested in swimming with CAST for the summer or who want to try a swim camp experience to gain swim skills and have fun while doing it!

Participation in our 6-week seasonal program teaches the sport of swimming without committing to a year-round team.  The goal of our pre-competitive classes is for swimmers to learn all four strokes and gain the skills and confidence in the water and potentially be able to join our year-round competitive team once they are ready.  CAST strives to provide a positive and memorable experience for all swimmers on the team!  Click HERE for full details.

Who: Swimmers ages 5 and older
**Swimmer must be a new CAST member to join the seasonal summer team

Dates: June 17 - July 25 (6 weeks); Monday-Thursday; 45 minute classes

Tryout Sign up: click HERE to schedule a tryout now
 

CAST Summer Training Schedules

Please click HERE to view the summer schedule for all groups.  It is now posted on our website, and includes training from June 17 through the end of Long Course Champs.  August schedules will be posted at a later date.

A/Jr/Sr Squads will also have an open water training schedule for the summer which will be announced soon!

IES Zone Teams

If you are interested in attending Zones with the IES or would like more information, please see the below announcement:

2024 IES Zone Teams Information & Applications are NOW AVAILABLE on the IES website here: IES Zones Team Information 
Information posted includes:

·       Applications: Athletes * Assistant Coaches * Chaperones

·       Qualifying Time Standards

·       NEW for 2024 -- Age Group Zones Automatic Qualifier Option @ 2024 IES SC Champs

Zone Team Fees and initial Team Travel Details are listed in the Athlete Application.

Visit the IES Zones Team Information page for additional details!!

Please email me if you are possibly planning to apply to the All-Star Team by Sunday, May 19^th, as the IES is asking me for an approximation of CAST swimmers (even if you are undecided, please let me know).

CAST’s Motivational Message to our Team:

"Don't measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability." -John Wooden