Training Group Descriptions and Expectations

The Spokane Waves offer training and practice groups for swimmers of all ages and ability levels. We provide specific training for all of our athletes geared towards challenging each individual and developing each individual to the best of their abilities. Coaches monitor swimmer progress daily and swimmers advance when the right combination of skill, age, and commitment come together. Groups below are listed from most novice to most experienced.

Ripples 

Attendance Expectation: Minimum Three Days a week 

Fees: $95/month

Goals: 

Behavior-based:

Performance-based:

  • Listening 
  • Legal kick
  • Two-hand touches
  • Breathing patterns

Training Equipment:

Kick boards and pull buoy are available for use at the training facilities.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear. 

 

Wave Riders

Attendance Expectation: Minimum three days a week

Fees: $100/month

Goals:

Behavior-based:

Performance-based:

  • Complete a 200 Individual Medley (IM) for time
  • Legal 100 IM and 50’s of each stroke (freestyle, backstroke, breast stroke, and butterfly)
  • Learn drills

Training Equipment: 

Kick boards and pull buoy are available for use at the training facilities.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear. 

 

Bronze

Attendance Expectation: Minimum three days a week

Fees: $110/month 

Goals: 

Behavior-based:

Performance:

  • Perform all strokes legally
  • Have IES Championship (Champs) qualifying times
  • Detailed drilling

Training Equipment:

Bronze swimmers are expected to have their own mesh bag, pull buoys, kick boards and fins.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear. 

 

Silver 

Attendance Expectation: Minimum three days a week 

Fees: $120/month

Goals:

Behavior-based:

  • Personal responsibility
  • Ownership
  • Awareness of qualifying time standards
  • Know all personal best times
  • Attend culminating end of season competition
  • Awareness of different levels of competition
  • Vacations organized with Championship meets in mind
  • Failure management
  • Mental toughness
  • Delayed Gratification

Performance-based:

  • Have IES Championship (Champs) qualifying times (BB time standard)
  • Swimmers score at IES Championships

Training Equipment:

Silver swimmers are expected to have their own mesh bag, pull buoys, kick boards, fins, snorkel, and paddles.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear.  

Gold

Attendance Expectation: Minimum four days a week

Fees: $160/month

Goals:

Behavior-based:

  • Attendance of 6 days a week in preparation for promotion to Senior Foundations
  • Commitment to season goals
  • Understand concept of sacrifice 
  • Prioritize swimming over other activities
  • Detailed goal setting
  • Advanced drilling
  • Workout management (more complicated training sets)
  • Failure management
  • Aware of differences in physical and emotional development  
  • Understand Delayed Gratification
  • Mental toughness

Performance- based:

  • Qualify for Age Group Regionals
  • Qualify for Age Group Zones
  • Training commitment to achieving next level time standards (Seinor Zones, Sectionals, etc.)

Training Equipment:

Gold swimmers are expected to have their own mesh bag, pull buoys, kick boards, fins, snorkel, and paddles.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear.  

 

Senior Groups  

Our upper level groups were previously called as Platinum, Senior, and National. They have been restructured to Senior Fundamentals, Senior Performance, and Senior Elite.

Senior Foundations

Senior Foundations is where things start to look different from the Platinum, Senior, National format. Senior Foundations will be a split of two different priorities to be discussed with the coach:

  1. Gold Group swimmers who are working their way up into Senior Performance, they just need some more time to build up their strength/endurance/etc. or generally just need more time to mature both physically and mentally.  Overall attendance/dedication level: 85% of practices
  2. High school age swimmers who, though they love swimming and competing, have different priorities/extracurriculars other than just swimming in their lives.  A lot of multi-sport athletes will find themselves in Senior Foundations, along with kids who want to swim, but don’t want to be bound to anything more than basic attendance and performance expectations.  Overall attendance/dedication level: 70% of practices

Senior Performance

High attendance and performance expectations.

Senior Performance is for swimmers who:

  • attend most meets through the year, both in and outside of Spokane.
  • attend every IES Championship Meet and attend at least one post-champs meet per year (ex: Zones, Sectionals, Futures). 

Swimmers in Senior Performance are interested in swimming in college and their attendance at both practices and meets reflects their willingness to put in the work.

Overall attendance/dedication level: 90% of practices

Senior Elite

Very high attendance and performance expectations.

Senior Elite is for swimmers who:

  • are all in on swimming.
  • attend most meets through the year, both in and outside of Spokane.
  • attend every IES Championship Meet and attend at least one post-Champs meet per year (ex: Zones, Sectionals, Futures, Junior Nationals, TYR PRo Series). 

Swimmers in Senior Elite have committed swimming as one of their top priorities and their attendance at both practice and swim meets reflects that. 

Overall attendance/dedication level: 95% of practices

Training Equipment:

All Senior Group swimmers are expected to have their own mesh bag, pull buoys, kick boards, fins, snorkel, and paddles.

Visit the Spokane Waves Team Store on Swim Outlet to purchase your gear.