Chinook Aquatic Club Swimming and Coaching Terminology
Did you ever wonder about all these terms that veteran swimmers and parents are throwing around at practices or meets? Here is the central location for all the terminology that can help you and your swimmer understand the in and outs of the sport of swimming!
Admission - the fee associated with a swimmer that needs to be paid before they compete in a meet - otherwise know as a fee.
Age Group - the age range in which your swimmer swims against at a meet and will determine the session they are swimming.
Anchor - the final swimmer in a relay of 4 swimmers
Backstroke - one of four competitive strokes, not typically a swimmer favorite but a great stroke to have in their swim portfolio! Hint, all the strokes are important! :)
Banner - the team sign that brings our team together - we are Chinook! Also the sign that Coach Mike is responsible for every meet!
Blocks - the starting platform that your swimmer dives off from - we'd like to see our swimmers jumping out towards the flags rather than falling into the water, but that's what practice is for!
Breaststroke - another one of the competitive strokes. This is what swim lesson instructors call the "frog stroke" or stomach version of chicken - airplane - soldier. Very technical stroke and a kick other than frog kick will earn you a DQ.
Butterfly - another one of the competitive strokes. Possibly the most technical, but ask your coach. This includes this dolphin kick and arms going in a circular motion. An exhausting stroke to both swim and observe!
BOD - Your Board of Directors who are here for your needs. Whether it's tryouts for your swimmer, registration for your swimmer, paying dues, making sure your swimmer has an amazing experience of competitive swimming - we are hear for you and always looking for volunteers!
Cap - These come in latex and silicone and we often prefer silicone to prevent ripped caps and broken hair. I hear the Chinook Swim Caps are some of the best looking ones in PNS!
Carpool - one of the key highlights to any swim season! If you meet a friend, see if you can carpool to a meet together! Attend our vendor nights together. Do a carpool share when one family takes you there and maybe the other picks you up!
Carbohydrates - Swimmers LOVE CARBS! Be sure to refer to a nutrition guide to see how carbs help athletes perform and recover!
Check-In - Always at every meet, swimmers check in with your coach and let them know you are in attendance. Also for certain events you will need to check in - typically this would be a positive checkin for longer distance races. This can also refer to especially our hosted meets, parents will need to check in with the Volunteer Coordinator for their job in volunteering.
Check-Out - Check out means that the volunteer returns their name tag to the Volunteer Coordinator to allow task to be complete or switch places with another volunteer.
Circle Swim - this is the technique of swimming on the right side of the lane during warm ups so swimmers don't have a collision within their team lane.
Chlorine - At Chinook - Chlorine is our Dopamine! We love to swim and we love racing! Not all pools are created equal however, we do sometimes swim in salt water.
Code of Conduct - Code of Conduct is the protection and advocacy of making sure all swimmers, parents, coaches, board members, officials, and volunteers are treated with the respect and dignity that they deserve.
Clinic - Typically on a non-meet weekend the Chinook coaches will host clinics to further refine technique with our swimmers.
Deck - the surrounding area of the pool. Always walk on the pool deck!
Disqualified (DQ) - When a swimmer doesn't technically swim the stroke they are competing in correctly they will receive a DQ or disqualification in their race. This could be a result of incorrect stroke, kick, flip turn, or other incorrect technique.
Dive - the entry into the pool to race.
Dropped time - this is when a swimmer enters a race with an Entry time and they decrease their time in the race. So for example they may have a 30 sec. 50 free and they swim the same race at a new meet and drop time by 2 secs. resulting in a 2 sec. drop time.
Event - the event signifies the certain stroke that a swimmer in a certain age group will swim. Each event can have a number of heats. An event can also be called a race.
False Start - When a swimmer dives in before the beep of the electronic timer or the official signals a start to the race. A premature entry is called a false start and the race must restart.
Finals - With some meets, there will be qualifiers and finals. After all qualifying races have taken place, the top swimmers will swim in the finals or final races to determine who the overall winners are.
Flags - At the pool there will be two sets of triangle flags strung above the pool. These help swimmers do their stroke count on backstroke to avoid hitting the wall and perform the correct turn.
Final Results - These will either be posted on the wall at a meet or on Meet Mobile but signifies the overall places in a race.
Freestyle - also known as the crawlstroke but is one of the fundamental strokes in swimming competitively and for water safety. Typically any event with the freestyle will have the most heats associated with the event in the meet.
Goggles - Goggles are fundamental for every swimmer! No matter if they are Speedo or TYR, they are guaranteed to make a difference!
Individual Medley (IM) - The IM consists of a race with all strokes - 100, 200...yards, you are swimming them all. As a swimmer you will need to be aware of what turns you use!
Invitational - These races allow for anyone to enter into a meet. A qualifying time is not required.
Kickboard - Used for training to build leg strength in a swimmer's legs/kick
Lane - Each swimmer in competition is divided by lane lines. Each team during warmup is typically divided by lane lines.
Long Course - The second half of our season where distance events start being the focal part of the meet and we go from yardage pools to metered pools - be aware that your swimmer's times will change!
Meet Director - The Meet Director is the go-to for every meet. They are the conductor of the meet to make sure that everything goes without a hitch (no pressure!) They are the director of the dry side of the meet.
Meters - When we enter our LCM season (2nd half) we will be swimming in meter pools. For example, our Seattle AGSO at Colmon Pool is a meter pool.
No Time (NT) - When a swimmer swims an event for the first time, they have no entry time.
Officials - Our most favorite people on the pool deck! They keep the meet on schedule alongside the Meet Director and make sure that the swimmers are swimming correctly. You will see them busily filling out DQ slips and wearing the most clean and ironed white polos on deck!
Pace - the rate in which the swimmer swims. For longer distance races, they will pace any part of the race to gain advantage over their competitors.
Parka - one of the essentials for any swimmer - although a bit on the pricey end. A swim parka can be great for meets or even swimmers who practice at an outdoor facility. It's like wearing a blanket after practice!
Pelican Pete - (trivia answer) - the mascot for USA Swimming!
Prelims - the qualifying rounds before a finals race is swam.
Psyche Sheet - This is the document before a meet that is derived from the declarations you make for your swimmer in a meet. It's not the heat sheet which will outline the particular races your swimmer will participate in.
Ribbons - the prize for placing in your meet depending on your place.
Relays - one of the most fun events of the swim meet. These teams consist of 4 swimmers that will either be in a medley race or a freestyle relay. Distances can vary depending on age group.
Short Course Yards (SCY) - the first part of our season where our swimmers swim in yardage pools. When looking at PNS times, you should be referencing the SCY column for these meets.
Set - a number of repeated swims in a given stretch of workout. A grouping could look like 5 75yd. freestyle sets for example that reflects a total yardage that the swimmer must complete.
Shave - to shave time on a race that means that a swimmer will have an entry time that they improved on. Shaving time is a GREAT THING!
Starter - the official that is responsible for starting each race for all 8 swimmers on the block before a race.
Swim a Thon - our official fundraiser of the year that typically happens in the Feb-Mar time frame.
Timer - the person or two people with stopwatches that are timing the race along with the electronic timing that happens with plungers near the water. Often timers leave the event with wet shoes!
We hope that this helps you get a bit more knowledge of our amazing sport that your swimmer is passionate about!
- The Chinook Board of Directors
