Stingray Newsletter #4
Hi Stingray families!
Congratulations to all our Stingrays at Waugh Chapel yesterday. While we didn’t win, everyone swam with integrity and cheered others on. That’s what makes us a great team!
There’s a lot of information in this email, with a lot of events, so please read carefully and save this email for future reference.
There is no practice this Thursday - Happy 4th of July to all!
RIBBONS AND TOKENS
Ribbons and tokens from Saturday’s meet will be handed out this week. If your swimmer misses, please check your family mailbox. The “token store” will be open Tuesday and Wednesday morning from 10:45-11 and Wednesday evening at 7pm. Donuts and full-size candy can be bought at our concessions for 4 tokens per item and/or swimmers can save them up for the banquet at the end of the year.
SPIRIT WEAR
The second-round spirit wear deadline is this Tuesday, July 2nd, at 11:59pm. You can even personalize them! You can access the link to order here. Items will be delivered by the end of the season.
CROFTON HOME MEET
We are back at our home pool this week! Sign up and declare by Tuesday at 8pm. The coaches will select the events and send out more information a day or two ahead of the meet. Warm-ups will be at 8am, please plan to be there by 7:45 to check in with a coach. As always, we reserved the parking lot for the visiting team, so please park on the street.
Concession signups are open! Along with our usual fare, we will have breakfast burritos, fruit, pulled pork (thanks Svejda Family!!), hot dogs, and nachos. We need everyone to sign up to bring something to make this successful. Thanks to all of you who helped with the last home meet concessions!
We will begin setting up the meet Friday evening at 7pm until we finish and again at 7:15am on Saturday morning. We would appreciate any help we can get from our team parents and older swimmers. Service hours are available for all kids (does not need to be a stingray swimmer) who are rising sixth graders and above who help.
STROKE CLINIC
Coach Alex and Coach Garrick are holding a stroke clinic this Friday, July 5th at 7pm and 7:30, focusing on starts. The cost is $20 per session (which supports our Team). This is a great opportunity to get some focused attention and improve swimmer skills! Sign up here.
CHIPOTLE FUNDRAISER
Wednesday, July 10th – mark your calendars!! Between 4-8pm, 25% of event sales will be donated to the Westminster Stingrays. See the attached flyer for details including a code if you order online.
CARROLL COUNTY INVITATIONAL (CCI), July 17, South Carroll Country Club
Reminder that the deadline to sign up for CCI is Monday, July 8th by 7:15pm. Declare your swimmer for the meet the same way as you do for dual meets, but this time you select your swimmers’ events (up to 4). Events are $5 each and we will charge your account – no cash/check needed!
There are CCI shirts available! If you’re interested in ordering one, you can do that by clicking here. Pre-orders are due by 7/10 to be available for pick up at the meet. Please use the discount code 2024CCI for free shipping for event pick up. There is also a mandatory box in the items where swimmers will have to list their Team for sorting purposes at pick up.
*Families who attend any optional meet are expected to complete one more volunteer point at one of the optional meets*
*Note: Per CMSL CCI times do not count for Straehle qualifying.
SPLASH AND DASH, July 19th, Stingrays Home Pool
This is the 2nd annual Splash and Dash, and a fundraiser for our team. We really need everyone to help promote and attend the kid’s biathlon on Friday, July 19th. There will be no practice that morning, so use this as practice time and come out for a fun time! You can register here – the cost is $13 for city residents/pool members and $20 for non-residents/non-pool members. There are three different options to accommodate everyone’s fitness level. Feel free to invite all your friends and family in the area, as this event is open to the public AND benefits our team!
Junior Champs, July 22nd, Westminster Riding Club
Junior Champs is a fun meet open to all swimmers who have not qualified for an individual meet at Straehle. Registration is open now and more information will follow soon. Warm-ups start at 3pm and the meet will start at 4pm. Each event is $5 and swimmers 8 and under are limited to 3 events while swimmers 9 and over are eligible for up to 4 events. No cash or check needed – we will charge your account.
Please note: swimmers who have qualified for a Straehle relay are still eligible to participate.
*Families who attend any optional meet are expected to complete one more volunteer point at one of the optional meets*
Straehle, July 24th, Andover Pool
The 2024 Straehle Championship Invitational Meet will be held at Andover Pool, 819 Main Ave., Linthicum Heights, MD, 21090. Warmups start at 7am and the meet will start at 9am. Entries are $5 per individual event, and we will charge your account.
Signups are live now and are due by the end of the CCI meet on July 17th. If your swimmer has already made a Straehle time and you know you can attend, please go in and commit. We will accept registration for those swimmers who qualify at our 7/20 meet, with those due by the end of that meet.
T-shirt pre-orders are available now and are due July 16th to be available for pickup at the meet. Limited quantities will be available that day.
This optional meet is open to swimmers that have made the Straehle qualifying times (found here). While this includes relays, when we create our relay teams for Straehle and Divisional meets, we base our selections off two main things: the top four times in the age group and whether they were on a qualifying relay. Essentially, swimmers must have been on a relay that qualified for the meet, or they are not eligible to swim at the Straehle meet. However, just being on a qualifying relay does not necessarily guarantee that your swimmer will be swimming at the meet. We will keep an updated list of all qualifiers as we go through the season.
*All families who have a swimmer(s) participating in Straehle are expected to volunteer at that meet*
More information will follow next week about Divisionals and the End of Year Banquet!
If you have any questions (it was a lot of information!), email [email protected] or find a board member at practice or a meet.
See you at the pool!
