March 11th Weekly Newsletter

Administrator Admin

This is your River Falls Swim News for March 11th!

Action items are highlighted in yellow. 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

There will be no Competitive practices this Wednesday, March 13th.  Developmental lessons will run as scheduled.

This past weekend, we attended two state-level swim meets!  The Minnesota Senior State Championships in Minneapolis, MN, and the Minnesota 10 and Under State Championships in Eden Prairie, MN.  From those two meets combined, we had 10 swimmers compete in 27 races.  There were 17 new PRs and two swimmers met new time achievement standards.  This week’s swimmer of the week is Connor Perfect.  Connor competed in seven events and recorded PRs in six of those events, which culminated in a combined total time reduction of 16.75 seconds.  Additionally, he dropped 9.76 seconds from his previous PR in the 200 freestyle, which was a 6.69 percent time reduction, and the largest time drop on our team over the weekend.  It also resulted in a 3rd place finish, a Zone Minnesota Achievement Time standard, and a AAA National Achievement Time standard!  Furthermore, he also attained fourth-place finishes in the 50 freestyle and the 100 freestyle.  The time cut in both of those events also netted a Zone Minnesota Achievement Time standard, and a AAA National Achievement Time standard.  Finally, during the 50 breaststroke, Connor was able to shed 1.86 seconds, which directly contributed to an “A” National Achievement Time standard.

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:

  • Seniors 7:00PM-9:00PM (Monday-Thursday), 6:00pm-8:00pm (Friday)
  • Pre-Seniors 7:00PM-8:30PM (Monday-Thursday), 6:00pm-7:30pm (Friday)
  • Age Group 6:00PM-7:00PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice 6:00PM-7:00PM (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice Transition 6:00PM-6:45PM (Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday)

Spring practice times:

  • Masters 5:30pm-7:00pm (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday)
  • Seniors 4:00pm-6:00pm (Monday-Friday)
  • Pre-Seniors 4:30pm-6:00pm (Monday-Friday)
  • Age Group 6:00pm-7:00pm (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice 6:00pm-7:00pm (Monday-Friday)
  • Novice Transition 6:00pm-6:45pm (Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday)
  • Pre-Competitive 3:30pm-4:30pm (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday)
WINTER DEVELOPMENTAL SESSION:  The Winter2 session will conclude this week.  Expect to receive report cards on Wednesday/Thursday.  Returning swimmer registration for the Spring1 session is expected to open on/about March 23rd.  Next swim evaluations will be held March 26th and 27th, from 6:00pm-7:30pm.    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 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 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 5: Hastings Spring Invite (Hastings, 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.

See Team Events for remaining scheduled Summer meets

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