March 4th Weekly Newsletter
This is your River Falls Swim News for March 4th!
Action items are highlighted in yellow.
| ANNOUNCEMENTS This past weekend, we attended the Minnesota Regional Championships in Lakeville, MN. We had 20 swimmers compete in 81 races. There were 52 new PRs and 10 swimmers met new time achievement standards. This week’s swimmers of the week are Kate Widner and Wes Thompson. Kate competed in seven events and recorded PRs in five of those events. She removed 20.93 seconds from her previous PR in the 500 freestyle, which was the largest time reduction of the weekend! During the 100 butterfly, she shined again when she dropped 5.11 seconds, which directly contributed to a “Silver Minnesota Swimming Achievement Time standard and a “B” National Achievement Time standard. Finally, she also earned two “BB” National Achievement Time standards during the 200 freestyle and the 500 freestyle. Wes competed in five events and recorded new PRs in each of those events. He started the weekend off by shedding 7.17 seconds in the 100 breaststroke. He was also able to cut 4.75 seconds during the 50 backstroke, which was a 10.02 percent reduction from his previous PR. Best of all, he was able to attain four new “Gold” Minnesota Achievement Time standards along with two 3rd-place finishes and one 2nd-place finish! Back in January, we asked you to vote for us in the “Best of St. Croix Valley” feature of the St. Croix Valley Magazine. Thanks to your outstanding support, the River Falls Swim Club has been listed as one of three finalists for “Best Swim School or Lessons”!! We aren’t sure how the winner will be decided, but we are grateful to have been recognized at this level. Our families, swimmers, and coaches are what make this club so successful! Regardless of the final outcome this June, please know that we appreciate each and every one of you. |
| ON DECK WINTER COMPETITIVE SESSION: Our Winter session will run through March 15th. If you have questions, contact Coach Michael at [email protected] or Coach Marissa at [email protected]. Winter practice times are shown below:
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| UPCOMING SWIM MEETS & EVENTS The meets for the Winter Session are posted below. Spring/Summer events have been added for planning purposes. 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. March 7-10: Minnesota Senior Short Course State Championship (UofM). This is a 3.5 day meet for swimmers with verifiable Senior (15&Over) Championship (CH) qualifying times (or faster). Registration deadline for this meet has passed. March 8: Bring a Friend to Swim Practice (River Falls, WI). RFSC is hosting "Bring a Friend to Swim Night"! Swimmers are encouraged to have a friend come with to a fun practice to show off their sport and have some fun in the pool as we get to the end of the swim season! Practice will include many of the traditional activities that your swimmers are used to in practice, but will also include some fun relays, games, and other activities that everyone can enjoy. Invited friends should be at least comfortable in the water, but do not need to have any significant swim experience. Please add a note/comment with who your swimmer is bringing to the pool after committing to the event so we can get an idea of how many swimmers to expect. Swimmers are welcome to invite up to 2 friends to come with them to practice! All swimmers should come with a swimsuit, towel, and goggles to practice. Registration deadline is March 4th. March 9-10: Minnesota 10 and Under Short Course State Championship (Eden Prairie, MN). Eligible athletes must have a verifiable Champ time, or must be a “Win it and swim it” qualifier from the 2024 Winter Minnesota Regional Championships. Registration deadline for this meet has passed. March 13-14: RWSC Mini-meet Championships (Red Wing, MN). This is a great final meet option for the end of the Winter session! There is a $20 flat fee per swimmer. Warmups are from 5:40pm-6:20pm. The meet begins at 6:30pm. Event file is pending. Registration deadline for this meet has passed. March 14-17: Minnesota 11-14 Short Course State Championship (Minneapolis, MN). This is a 3.5 day meet. Eligible athletes must have a verifiable Champ time, or must be a “Win it and swim it” qualifier from the 2024 Winter Minnesota Regional Championships. Registration deadline for this meet has passed. April 20: NOR Spring Meet (Northfield, MN). Meet Information and Event File pending. May 17: RWSC Spring Meet (Red Wing, MN). 1 session Friday evening. Meet Information and Event File pending. June 8: Alexandria Invite and Open Water Swim Meet (Alexandria, MN). Alexandria Invite in a 25 yard pool with Open Water lake swim events. Meet Information and Event File pending. June 14: 41st Annual Birdland Classic Invitational (Des Moines, IA). 50 Meter Long Course swim meet. Meet Information and Event File pending. June 22: RFSC Summer Last Chance Invite (River Falls, WI). RFSC Spring/Summer session home meet. Volunteer event will be available at the beginning of the Spring session. June 29: Fairfax Invite (Eau Claire, WI). 50 Meter Long Course outdoor swim meet. Meet Information and Event File pending. |
| MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION USA Swimming registration (for Competitive groups): Our team has returned to bulk registration for 2024 returning swimmers. If you were not a USA Swimming member in 2023, please contact Robert at [email protected] to help with new registrations. USA Swimming membership is good from January 1-December 31 (CY24). Registration for 2024 opens September 1, 2023. A premium membership will be $78 ($70 to USA Swimming and $8 to MN Swimming) while a Flex membership, available to swimmers 12 and under, will be $40 ($30 to USA Swimming and $10 to MN Swimming). Over the 2022 summer break, we became an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) affiliated swim team. Athlete membership is only $20. This keeps expenses low for Developmental swimmers ($20 AAU membership vs $40-$78 USA Swimming membership). All Developmental swimmers will be invoiced for the $20 membership. Batch registration is sent to AAU and is 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 ($78 USA Swimming membership + $20 AAU membership). AAU memberships are valid from September 1 – August 31. If there are any questions about this information, email Robert, at [email protected], and I will do my best to answer them. 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. |
HAPPY SWIMMING!
Robert
