May 15th Weekly Newsletter

Administrator Admin

This is your River Falls Swim News for May 15th!

Action items are highlighted in yellow.  

ANNOUNCEMENTS

This past weekend, we attended the SHARK IM Tough Challenge in Farmington, MN.  We had seven swimmers participate in 30 races.  There were 15 new PRs, and five swimmers met new achievement time standards.  This week’s Swimmer of the Week is Harrison Smith.  Harrison scooped up a PR in each of his three events, in addition to earning a “B” National Time Standard and a “Gold” MNSI Achievement Time Standard.  He shed 4.32 seconds during the 50 breaststroke event, which was a 7.9% time reduction.  Overall, he dropped 6.06 seconds over his three events.  Fantastic swimming!

Silicone Swim Cap Order:  We are going to run an order of the black silicone swim caps with the green and blue logo.  There will be an option to personalize the swim cap with names in white.  If you want a cap personalized with your name, you must order at least two of them.  Costs will vary based on the overall size of the order, but the initial estimate for caps are: $10.50 each (without name), $13.50 each (with name) (must order at least 2 if you want names added, for a minimum of $27).  For those new to the team, silicone caps are more durable and last longer than latex caps.  They are also brighter and keep a shine to them.  If you are interested in ordering a cap, there will be a team event posted on our website beginning on Wednesday.  Confirm with a “Yes” response, add a note on how many you want, and what name you want on the side (if you wish to personalize the swim caps).  I will email and confirm with everyone before we actually place the order.  This will verify interest and allow us to get a final quote based on quantity.

ON DECK

SPRING COMPETITIVE SESSION: The Spring Competitive session is underway and is scheduled to end June 9th.  The summer session is scheduled from June 12th-August 4th.  Expect Summer Competitive registration to open early next week.  If you have questions, contact Robert at [email protected] or Coach Marissa at [email protected].  Spring practice times are shown below:

  • Seniors 3:20PM-5:20PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Pre-Seniors 4:00PM-5:30PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Age Group 5:30PM-6:30PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice 5:30PM-6:30PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice Transition 5:30PM-6:15PM (Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday)

Here is a preview of Summer practice times:

  • Seniors 7:00AM-9:00AM (Monday-Friday) or 5:00pm-7:00pm (Monday-Thursday)
  • Pre-Seniors 5:30PM-7:00PM (Monday-Thursday)
  • Age Group 5:00PM-6:00PM (Monday-Thursday)
  • Novice 6:00PM-7:00PM (Monday-Thursday)
  • Novice Transition 6:00PM-6:45PM (Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday)
  • Senior Dryland 9:00AM-10:00AM (Tuesday,Thursday)
  • PreSenior/Senior Dryland 7:00PM-8:00PM (Monday, Wednesday)

 

SPRING DEVELOPMENTAL SESSION: The Spring Developmental session is underway and is scheduled to end June 2nd.  Our next swim evaluations will be held June 7-8, from 5:00pm-6:30pm.  Our next Developmental session is scheduled from June 12-July 14.  Share with your family and friends if you would like them to get started with RFSC in the coming sessions! 

 

UPCOMING SWIM MEETS & EVENTS

The meets for the Spring/Summer Session are posted below.  Team meets are posted on the Team Events page of the website and in this newsletter.  As a reminder, once the deadline passes, we will not be able to add/remove swimmers or swimmers’ events from the meet registration.

May 26-27: STAR Memorial Day Classic (St. Paul, MN).  This is an outdoor long course meet.  Open events (13+) on Friday and Saturday afternoon.  12 and Under swimmers on Saturday morning.  There is a $60 flat fee for entry, and a $2.20 splash fee for each swim.  Registration deadline for this meet has passed.

June 9-11: Alexandria Summer Invite and Open Water Swim (Alexandria, MN).  This meet will have both open water and pool events.  Meet Information and event file pending.  Expect meet information and event file to be posted this week.  The ALEX pool is currently down for maintenance.  The pool portion of this meet will be at the Minnewaska Pool in Glenwood, MN.  The lake swim will still be held at Alexandria City Park.  Registration deadline for this meet is May 22, 2023.

June 24-25: YCV Fairfax Invitational (Eau Claire, WI).  This is a long course outdoor meet with a $5/splash and a $4/swimmer flat fee.  Saturday and Sunday early warmups are from 6:50AM-7:20AM.  Second(later) morning warmups will begin after Open and 13-14 y/o events.  Afternoon warmup information pending receipt of entries.  Registration deadline for this meet is June 6, 2023.

July 8-9: Minnesota Achievement Championships (River Falls, WI).  Minnesota Achievement Championships are the first in a series of swimming finals meets for the Summer session.  All swimmers competing in the meet must have times that are slower than Silver time standards in order to participate.  Meet information and event file pending.  Registration deadline for this meet is Friday, June 23, 2023.

This will be our home swim meet for the Spring/Summer Session, and we will need everyone’s help to volunteer at the meet and make the weekend a success.

 

July 14-16:  Minnesota Regional Championships (UofM, Minneapolis, MN).  Minimum time standard for this meet is Silver time standard.  Must be less than Champ time standard.  Meet information and event file pending.  Registration deadline for this meet is July 1, 2023.  Additional entries are permitted if new official times are acquired after the initial registration deadline.

 

July 20-23: Minnesota Long Course Senior State (UofM, Minneapolis, MN).  This meet is for swimmers, ages 15 and Over, with CH times.  Meet information and event file pending.  Registration deadline for this meet is July 1, 2023.  Additional entries are permitted until July 17, 2023, if new official times are acquired after the initial registration deadline.

 

July 27-30: Minnesota Long Course 14 and Under Age Group State (Rochester, MN).  This meet is for swimmers, ages 14 and Under, with CH times.  Meet information and event file pending.  Registration deadline for this meet is July 1, 2023.  Additional entries are permitted until July 24, 2023, if new official times are acquired after the initial registration deadline.

 

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

Registration is now open for the AAU Junior Olympic Games!  They will be held in Des Moines, Iowa, July 27-30, 2023.  All participants must have a current AAU membership.  Spectator’s entry into events is $15/day.  Meet information can be located here.  More information can be found here.  Swimmers must have an “A” minimum time standard for all 200M, 400M, and 1500M events, and “BB” time standards for events under 200M.  Time standards must have been attained between 8/1/2022-7/9/2023.  Visit https://aaujrogames.org/ to register.  Registration/entries must be completed by July 10, 2023.

 

MNSI Scholarship Opportunity:  On behalf of Minnesota Swimming, the Athlete Committee has announced the return of the 2nd annual Minnesota Swimming Legacy Scholarship.  It is designed by athletes, for athletes, and meant to honor individuals whom we believe will continue the legacy of strong student athletes from Minnesota.  MNSI will be awarding two scholarships for $1,000 to graduating seniors.  The form for submitting scholarships is open from April 1st to May 14th at 5:00pm CST.  The winners will be announced no later than June 1st, with awards paid directly to the college or university the recipient attends.  In order to be eligible to apply, the applicant must meet the following criteria:

  1.  Applicant must be graduating in the current year’s class
  2. Applicant must have a 3.0 GPA (on a 4.0 scale) or better
  3. Applicant must have been involved in Minnesota Swimming for four (4) consecutive years prior to high school graduation
  4. Applicant must have competed in at least four (4) meets per year in the 4 years prior to applying for this scholarship (waived until post-pandemic ear is reached)
  5. Applicant must not currently, or in the past, be enrolled in a post-high school college institution as a full-time student, or ever represented a college institution in competition
  6. Proof of college acceptance (such as an enrollment deposit)

Have you ever considered a volunteer position on deck during a swim meet?  Would you like to have the best seat in the house at your child’s swim meet events?  Meet new friends? Get free entry into the meet?  Free food and drinks while you officiate?  Consider giving back to the swim community by becoming a swim meet official!  We are looking for Stroke And Turn judges, Administrative officials, Starters, and Referees.  Serving as an official completes all volunteer requirements with the club for the year.  If you have any questions about becoming an official, you can contact Robert at [email protected].

If you have taken pictures of your swimmer at practice or at swim meets, and would like them shared on the RFSC website, Facebook, and/or Instagram, please email them to [email protected].  Any emailed photos will only be shared publicly with the parental consent of all identifiable photographed swimmers due to league athlete protection policies.

If you are shopping on SwimOutlet.com, SwimOutlet.com will donate 3%-5% of your eligible purchases to the River Falls Swim Club.  You can donate to River Falls Swim Club by using this link.

If you have been a part of the River Falls Swim Club for any length of time, and you have a Google account, would you mind leaving a review on Google?  Word of mouth is pretty powerful, and there have been many positive things said about the club on social media and among friends.  If you would like to share your experiences with the community and let others know about the developmental and competitive sides of the club, you can add your review here.

Over the 2022 summer break, we became an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) affiliated swim team.  Athlete membership is only $16.  This keeps expenses low for Developmental swimmers ($16 AAU membership vs $30-$76 USA Swimming membership).  All Developmental swimmers have been invoiced for the $16 membership.  Batch registration was sent to AAU and will be processed as soon as it is received.  All Developmental swimmers will be registered with AAU.  Competitive swimmers (Novice Transition through Senior) are still required to register with USA Swimming, in order to participate in local swim meets, but will now have the option of adding the AAU membership, which provides swimmers the ability to participate in the AAU Junior Olympics ($76 USA Swimming membership + $16 AAU membership).  If there are any questions about this information, email me, at [email protected], and I will do my best to answer them.

HAPPY SWIMMING!
Robert