| Questions New Swim Parents Should Ask
Your child has told you that he or she wants to join The Newcastle Stingrays Swim Team. We are excited that your child wants to learn competitive swim! What does that mean for you as the parent? Below are some FAQ and basic info regarding our organization and competitive swimming. 1. Basic Information Q. What is the Newcastle Stingrays Swim team?
A. Newcastle Stingrays Swim Team has been around for several decades. Currently we are a year round swim team and offer swimmers of all ages, through training and guidance, a safe and healthy experience both in the pool and out of the pool. NSST is a USA Swimming affiliated organization based in Newcastle, Wyoming. Q. What are the requirements for my child to join the swim team?
A. A child must be at least 5 years old, elementary school and higher and able to swim 25 yards unassisted to join the competitive team. NSST offers a developmental swim program called Nemos for 5 and up, elementary where the only requirement is that the child must be able to swim 15 yards unassisted on their front and back. Q. What do I do to start?
A. Contact us at [email protected] or call Teresa Gross at 746-9136 to have a swim test. Please bring the necessary swim gear (swim suit, towel and water bottle and goggles) for your child to start. NSST may also be contacted online through the website www.teamunify/wyns if you have further questions. Q. Do you have a trial period?
A. New swimmers may practice with the team for one week. Registration must be completed prior to the swimmer entering the water. If the swimmer decides that the program is not right for him or her during the trial period they simply discontinue coming. Once the trial is over the full fees for the beginning of the season and the USA Registration fee must be paid before the swimmer can continue in the program. Q. How is NSST organized?
A. NSST is a 501(C) (III) nonprofit corporation. NSST is affiliated with USA Swimming and Wyoming Swimming, Inc. Q. What is USA Swimming?
A. USA Swimming is the National Governing Body for the sport of swimming. It administers competitive swimming in accordance with the Amateur Sports Act. They also provide programs and services for members, supporters, affiliates and the interested public. Visit http://www.usaswimming.org/ for more information. Q. What is Wyoming Swimming, Inc. (WSI)?
A. Within the United States, there are fifty-nine (59) Local Swimming Committees (LSCs). Each LSC is responsible for administering USA Swimming activities in a defined geographical area and has its own set of bylaws under which it operates. A House of Delegates with representation of athletes, coaches, members of the Board of Directors and clubs is responsible for managing the business affairs of the LSC. Wyoming Swimming, Inc. (WSI) is our Local Swimming Committee. WSI’s geographical area consists of the state of Wyoming and the western Nebraska panhandle. Visit http://www.wyomingswimming.org for more information. Q. Who runs NSST?
A. A Board of Directors is elected by the membership to run the business affairs of NSST. All Board members usually are parent volunteers and athlete representatives who do not receive any payment for their service to NSST. The Board hires a head coach and additional coaches as needed based on the number of swimmers, who acts as the chief executive officer for the organization. The Board, in coordination with the Head Coach, is primarily responsible for establishing policy and budgets; running meets; fundraising; collecting dues and fees; coordinating parent volunteers; holding monthly meetings; and, overseeing the financial affairs of the club. The Head Coach is primarily responsible for assistant coach staffing, supervision and education; scheduling of practices, meets and camps; organizing team activities; establishing coaching philosophy and training plans; setting goals; taking necessary disciplinary actions; and, acting as liaison with the Aquatic Center, the Weston County School District, and Wyoming Swimming. 2. Financial Obligations.
NSST employs professional coaches, pays USA and Wyoming Swimming fees, meet fees, purchases equipment for swimmers, and incurs other necessary expenses. These costs must be passed on to the swim team members in the form of membership fees and team fees. Questions you should ask are: Q. What is the total cost per year for my child?
A. Swimmers are required to pay yearly registration fees for USA Swimming, Wyoming Swimming, and approximately $65.00. Monthly dues are currently $35. There is currently a monthly dues cap at $150 per family per month. NSST may, at the discretion of the board, sponsor a reduced dues or free program for swimmers who qualify for free or reduced lunches through the school district. Contact a board member if interested in this program. Any swimmer who attends practice two or more times during any given month must pay the full dues for that month. Dues payments are electronically billed on the first day of the month. Payment is expected to be paid no later than the 10th of the month. Q. What is the average cost per year for competitions for a swimmer of my child’s age and ability?
A. Meet entry fees usually run from $25 - $45 per meet, and currently the team fundraising has been used to pay the meet fees for team participating meets. Non Team Participating meets are not covered and the responsible to be paid by the swimmer. There are guidelines in the Parent Handbook if the swimmer fails to attend the meets. Q. How are entry fees for swim meets collected?
A. Meet entries are completed online under the Events tab. For meets that are not team functions they must be paid prior to the registration deadline of the meet or the registration will not be processed. Q. What equipment and outfitting will my child need and how much does it cost?
A. Swimmers need suits, caps, and goggles. A good practice suit runs about $35 - $45 and goggles cost between $10 and $20. One NSST cap per season is free with membership. Additional team caps can be purchased through the team if available, online or an athletic store. Q. Where do I get the equipment such as suits, caps and goggles that my child needs?
A. Swim gear is available online through a variety of retailers. We have a sponsor on our website (sportsoutlet.com) that any purchase through our site gives a percentage back to the team to purchase equipment. Kiefer.com, Amazon, Scheels or other sporting goods stores usually have competitive gear available. 3. Swim Practice.
Swim practices are usually scheduled with the swimmers broken into groups according to age and ability. Questions you should ask are: Q. Where are swim practices held?
A. NSST swim practice is held at the Kozisek Aquatic Center, 116 Casper Avenue, Newcastle, WY. The facility is a 8 lane, 25 yard pool. We are able to utilize this fine facility through the generous cooperation of the Weston County School District #1 and the Aquatic Center management and staff. We do share the facility with the high school swim teams and they get priority for lane space. Q. How many days a week will my child have swim practice?
A. The practice schedule varies depending on which group your swimmer is in. The practice schedule is posted on the NSST website and on the NSST bulletin board at the Aquatic Center. Regular 2 day minimum requirement is required to participate on the team. Sickness and family emergency situations are the exception. Q. Who will be coaching my child? What is this coach’s background and experience?
A. All NSST coaches are registered with USA Swimming and Wyoming Swimming and have completed all required certifications, training and testing required by USA Swimming and Wyoming Swimming. Coaches also undergo background screening prior to being hired and then once every two years. They also participate in ongoing education throughout each season. Q. Do I drop my child off or can I stay and watch practice?
A. Parents are welcome to watch practice. However, parents are asked to stay in the bleachers and to not interrupt practice. If parents need to communicate with their swimmer during practice, they should inform the coach and the coach will take the swimmer out of the water for them. Otherwise parents are asked to wait until after practice to talk to their swimmer or to the coach. Q. What is Dryland training?
A. Dryland is a session during practice that includes stretching, jogging, stationary exercise and other physical activities designed to provide extra strength training and cardiovascular exercise. Dryland training is also important for injury prevention. Q. How does my swimmer change groups or move up in the program?
A. NSST tries to maintain a manageable coach to swimmer ratio. NSST has group criteria which the coaches use as guidelines to place swimmers. All final placements of swimmers are based on coach’s discretion. Group placement may also involve the swimmer’s age, maturity level, skill level, endurance level, and swimming knowledge. Depending on the number of swimmers in a group, NSST may split a group into smaller, more manageable groups. The splitting of a group will still follow the principles mentioned above. NSST strives to keep a flow of swimmers from group to group to maintain a progression through the team. We do not want to hold swimmers back or keep them from moving to the next level. However, we want to provide a climate that is successful and we keep all these factors in mind when placing swimmers. Feel free to contact a coach about the placement of your swimmer. Please keep in mind the factors mentioned above. 4. Swim Meets.
Swimming competitions are called meets. Meets are organized so that children are competing against other children of similar ages and abilities. Questions you should ask are: Q. Do I chose the meets my child competes in?
A. Yes. Swimmers and parents are encouraged to talk to their group coach about attending meets. Coaches are available before or after practice. Q. How do I enter my child in a meet?
A. Information on Team Meets is available under the Events tab. Meet information is also posted on the NSST bulletin board at the Aquatic Center. If you are unsure of which events to enter your swimmer in, be sure to ask the coach. Entries will not be accepted after the meet specific deadline. If you have any questions regarding signing your child up for meets, please contact a Board Member or coach. Board Members are listed under the About tab on the home page by clicking Contact Us located on the top right side of the website. Entries are entered online and reminder emails are sent out a few days prior to the deadline. A coach may adjust entries after parents have entered their swimmer. Q. How often will my child compete in meets?
A. A Team Meet schedule is posted on the website and on the NSST bulletin board at the beginning of each season. Generally, one or two Team Meets are scheduled each month of the season. A coach will attend all Team Meets if there are two swimmers. Q. Will a coach be available to travel to a non team meet to be with my swimmer?
A. Coaches are people too, and have other responsibilities on off weekends. Usually if you choose to go to a meet that is not scheduled as a Team Meet, you are on your own, but we can contact the team to let them know they will need to be assigned to their lane for a coach for warm-ups. Q. Where are the meets held?
A. NSST competes in age group meets held in Newcastle and in surrounding cities such as Gillette, Buffalo, Rapid City, Deadwood and Spearfish. The state championship meet in the summer is Gillette, the winter state can be anywhere in the state but are usually Laramie or Gillette. Q. What are the differences between short course and long course seasons?
A. Short course (SC) simply means swimming in a pool that is 25 (SCY) yards or (SCM) meters long. Long course (LCM) means swimming in a pool that is 50 meters (like the Olympics). There are seasons for each. SC season is November thru March, and LCM season is May thru July. The events are roughly the same. For example, there is a 50 meter (LC) freestyle as well as a 50 yard freestyle, but a meter is slightly longer than a yard (1 meter = 3.3 yards). State qualifying times are adjusted for the lengths of pools. Q. Who prepares and sends the meet entries to the host team?
A. Meet entries are prepared by the Head NSST Coach. Q. Who is responsible for providing transportation to meets?
A. Parents are responsible for providing transportation for their swimmer. Per USA Regulations Q. What do parents do at the meets?
A. At Home Meets, which are held in Newcastle, parents are required to perform functions such as timing, working with meet management, helping with hospitality, set up and tear down of the meet,etc. At Away Meets, parents will be required to help with timing when required. We need to take turns and not leave it to the same parents to time. Q. Do I have to stay for the entire meet? A. No, if you are not timing, you are free to leave the meet when your child is done with his/her last event. Q. What do we need to do to prepare for the swim meet?
A. Make sure you bring all of your swim gear; team suit, team cap, goggles, and more than one towel. Usually it is not a good idea to use new goggles for the first time at a meet. Make sure you prepare for the weather by bringing proper clothing; parkas, sweaters, extra pants if cold. Don’t forget sunscreen for summer outdoor meets. Also, bring water, Gatorade, and nutritious food so your child will eat properly and stay hydrated. Make sure your swimmer gets a good night’s sleep before each day of the meet. Q. What do we do when we arrive at the meet?
A. Make sure you arrive 10-15 minutes prior to the beginning of warm-ups or when the coaches tell you to be there. Check in with your coach to see when the swimmer should get ready for warm-ups. Purchase a program to determine which events, heats and lanes your swimmer is in. Many swimmers use a Sharpie to write event information on their hands, feet or legs to help them remember. More information on how to write meet info can be found on the website or the assistance of a seasoned parent. Encourage the swimmer to conserve energy and to not use all of their energy playing around at the meet. Save it for the race. Sit with the team and cheer for each of the NSST swimmers. Q. What is an Event?
A. An event is a specific type of race such as "11-12 year old Girls, 100 yard butterfly". There may be many "heats" per event. Q. What is a Heat?
A. When there are more swimmers for an event than there are lanes in the pool (for example, 16 swimmers in an eight lane pool), the first heat includes eight swimmers. The second heat includes the next eight swimmers. The best times from all the heats for an event determine the first, second, and third place finishers for the event. A swimmer can win his or her heat and still not place overall in the event. Q. Why do I have to be there for warm up when my child does not swim until two hours later?
A. Warm-up is essential because it helps the swimmers get focused on their events and accustomed to the pool that they are racing in (starts, turns, backstroke count, etc.). Swimmers are accustomed to doing a good warm up everyday at practice and need to create the same experience on meet day. Not warming up can lead to injuries in the future. Swimmers should show up to warm-up on time and be ready to get in at the START of warm-up. Q. What does it mean to be “DQ”ed?
A. It means there are aspects of the stroke that we still need to work on! When a swimmer is disqualified or “DQ”ed it means that there is something that they did that is illegal under the swimming rules. A DQ can be for something like a one handed touch in breaststroke, false starting, or a stroke violation like flutter kick on the fly. A DQ is no big deal and although it may cause some tears, it is best to keep it in perspective. Every swimmer has received or will receive a DQ at some point in his or her swimming career. We look at it as a teaching tool for the coaches and a learning experience for the swimmer. Q. What is a False Start?
A. When a swimmer leaves the starting block before the start horn sounds. Q. What strokes do the swimmers use in competition?
A. Freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly. Q. What is Freestyle?
A. Freestyle is usually the front crawl with the flutter kick, but any stroke or combination of strokes is legal as long as the swimmer does not walk on the bottom of the pool or use the lane line to gain momentum, and touches the walls on turns. Q. What is Backstroke?
A. Backstroke is done on the swimmer’s back. A flutter kick is used while the arms alternate (one then the other). Swimmers cannot roll past 90 degrees from their back as they stroke and cannot roll onto their sides or stomach when approaching the finish wall. (Many younger swimmers have a tendency to do this to see how close they are to the wall; they will need to learn to count the number of strokes they need to take after they pass under the flags.) Q. What is Breaststroke?
A. The breaststroke uses the whip kick (or frog kick is acceptable), while arms pull underwater simultaneously. The two hands must touch the wall simultaneously on the turn and finish. Q. What is Butterfly?
A. In the butterfly, the feet and knees are together on the kick (dolphin kick), while arms move simultaneously. The two hands must touch the wall simultaneously on the turn and finish. Q. What is an Individual Medley?
A. An event where the swimmer swims each stroke in a specific order: fly, back, breast, and free. Q. What are Relays?
A. Relays are a combination of four swimmers. The freestyle relay consists of four individual freestyle swims and the medley relay consists of four individual strokes--backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle. The coaches will determine who swims on the relays. Q. How long is each race?
A. Different age groups swim different race lengths. Short Course distances for 8 & Under swimmers are generally 25, 50 or 100 yards and their Long Course distances are 50, 100 or 200 meters. 9 – 12 year olds swim Short Course distances of 50, 100, 200 or 500 yards and Long Course distances of 50, 100, 200 and 400 meters. Swimmers, age 13 and older, swim Short Course distances of 50 freestly only, 100, 200 of free, back, fly and breast, 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyle yards and Long Course distances of 100, 200, 400, 800 and 1500 meters. Q. How should parents behave at meets?
A. Parent’s behavior at swim meets is vital to the success of their swimmer It is also important for the success of the team. 1) Don’t Coach. Leave the coaching to the coaches. This includes pre-race strategy, “psyching up”, and motivating. This also includes post-race critiquing and setting goals. 2) Support the Coaches. They need your support for everyone to “win”. 3) Be Your Swimmer’s Best Fan. Support your child unconditionally. Do not get upset or withdrawn if your child performs poorly. Your child should not have to perform well to win your approval and support. 4) Support and cheer for all swimmers on the team. 5) Take your concerns directly to the coach in an appropriate manner. Do not go to parents to discuss concerns. BE RESPECTFUL!! At meets it is imperative to act professionally and respectfully to coaches, officials and volunteers, and other swimmers and families. If you have a problem with the coach wait until after the meet. If you feel you cannot talk to the coach in a respectful matter contact a board member to make arrangements for a meeting. 5. Volunteering and Parental Responsibilities.
Most teams depend heavily on parent volunteers to perform a variety of tasks. Questions you should ask are: Q. How can I contribute to my child’s team if I know very little about swimming?
A. You can contribute by helping with meets, fundraisers and team activities such as Fun Night, Movie Night, and Awards celebrations. Your biggest contribution will be your unconditional love and support for your swimmer. Q. Who can I ask when I have questions?
A. The group coach is the best place to start if you have questions. A list of coach contact phone numbers and email addresses is posted on the NSST website and on the bulletin board. Phone numbers and email addresses are also posted for each member of the NSST Board of Directors. In addition, NSST has a very informal structure. There are usually board members or “experienced” parents at the pool who can help find answers to your questions. Q. What is expected or required of parents?
A. Parents are required to help at home meets and team activities and to participate in team fundraisers. Once you have figured out the basics of swimming and think your child is committed the next step is learning to become an official. All of the officials at swim meets are volunteers and have or have had a family member that has been swimming competitively. You do not need to have been a competitive swimmer to become an official. There is extensive support and training on becoming an official. It is a great way to learn the sport. |
