How well does my child have to swim before joining the swim team?

Your child should be able to swim one lap of the pool in competition and 10 laps in practice regardless of age.  Younger children, who are not comfortable swimming a lap can, participate in the Mini-Wave program.  If you’re uncertain about your child’s ability, just ask the coach to evaluate your child in order to find the best placement for them.

What strokes are performed during competition?

The four different strokes performed are freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly.  Your child will receive instruction on each stroke during swim team practice.

What happens if we have a conflict and my child can not attend a practice or a meet?

Let the coach know as soon as possible.  The coach will put a sign out sheet on the bulletin board at the pool where you can sign your child out of a swim meet. The coaches must know what swimmers are coming to the meet in order to place swimmers in the right events. It is extremely difficult if not impossible for a coach to find out a swimmer is not coming to a meet the morning of the meet so that is why it is so important to let the coach know in advance to let the coach know if you child will not be a swim meet.

Does my child have to attend a particular number of practices during the week in order to participate in the Saturday meets?

Often families have other commitments during the summer and may have to miss some practices.  Please let the coaches know ASAP.  They will try to be flexible.  However, remember that the coach’s job is to plan the best strategy for the team to win meets and will select swimmers accordingly.

How does my child know when it is his or her turn to swim at the meets?  Who tells them where to go?

Your child is told which events they will be swimming on Friday before the meet.  At the meet, there will be a “Clerk of Course” who is responsible for letting your child know when their next event is coming up.  Younger children are given more support and are taken to the blocks for each event.

My swimmer was “disqualified” at a meet.  What does that mean?

At each meet, Stroke and Turn Officials make sure each swimmer is doing the proper stroke. If your child is not swimming correctly, they will be disqualified.  Their time is unofficial and will not count for that meet.  Being disqualified should be a learning experience for the child not a punishment.  Hopefully, the child will learn the correct way for the next meet.

 Who determines what my child will swim?

The coaches determine what your child will swim at each meet based on a variety of factors.  The coaches will place swimmers in the events where they feel the swimmers will score the most points for the team. Each week your child may be swimming different strokes and/or events.

What should my child do during a swim meet when they are not swimming?

All swimmers should stay in the team area during all swim meets, relax between events and cheer on their fellow swimmers.  At no time during the swim meets should a swimmer leave the team area without permission from the coaches.  All swimmers should NOT be playing on the basketball court or volley ball court during the swim meet.  There are NO exceptions to this rule. The swimmers need to be easily found by the clerk of the course so no swimmer misses their events.  This is extremely important that the swimmers stay in the swim team area.