Practice starts next Tuesday, May 26 at Washington Park Pool! You can practice from 4-5 or 5-6 (Choose one time. If you arrive late to the early practice, you'll need to wait until 5!) The regular practice schedule will start on June 8. (Click the "Handbook" link to the right for all the details).
If you haven't registered, you'll need to register during practice at Washington Park Pool. Don't delay!
As usual, we count on our parent volunteers. The sign up genius link is up and running. Click and sign up now to save your favorite jobs! If you have older kids and will be staying until the end of the meet, consider signing up for a second half job. Remember, the second half is usually shorter and cooler.
We are still looking for help with the heat sheet ads. We need someone with VERY BASIC computer graphic skills (the ability to get words like "Good Luck Sweetie!" centered in a box) and someone willing to talk to parents at practice and collect forms and checks This could be one multi-talented person or two people -- one to get the ads cleaned up and one to collect the forms and checks. This job will be done by July 1, as that is when the ads and forms are due. Email swordfishswimteam@gmail.com if you're available.
We also need assistance with volunteer coordination throughout the season. Again, email swordfishswimteam@gmail.com.
Looking forward to a new season as a Division I team! GO SWORDFISH!
Wednesday meet against Farmington
This week, we will be swimming against Farmington at Farmington.
Swimmers need to be at the pool by 5:00 pm. Warm ups will start at
5:30, beginning with the 10 and unders. Coach Andrea wants to
remind us all that if the 10 & unders miss their warm up time, they cannot
warm up with the older swimmers. Warm ups are especially important in swimming
as it gives the swimmers an opportunity to get used to a new pool. They
are critical for those swimming backstroke so that they they can count their
strokes in each pool. The coaches hope to see all swimmers at their
warms up ready to hit the water -- caps and googles on, events marked on their
hands with Sharpie.
The Farmington team tells us we can park in the circle in
front of the pool and along the roads. As a special treat, they supply
ice cream sandwiches to all the swimmers at the end of the meet. If there
are younger swimmers leaving early, they will have some at the halfway mark as
well. Swimmers, be sure to thank Farmington for their hospitality.
Most of our volunteer jobs are filled -- thanks to everyone
for signing up early. We still need some volunteer check-in assistants
and second half timers, so if you haven't signed up, please take a look at the
remaining jobs. Look for the volunteer check in table when you arrive so
that the volunteer coordinator knows you're here!
Thanks to everyone. Fingers crossed for clear skies
Wednesday night ...
GO SWORDFISH!
Home meet against Culpeper this Wednesday
We are looking forward to hosting the Country Club of Culpeper, This is their first year swimming with the JSL, so we want to make sure they feel especially welcome. They've heard the rumors that we run an efficient meet with many friendly volunteers, so let's keep our reputation up. Below is the usual information for home meets. Please note that we are still short a number of jobs, particularly timers and concession stand workers, Based on the business done last week, we expect that the concession stand will make the team a good amount of money. Please sign up as soon as possible -- it saves Meghan Eddy, our tireless volunteer coordinator, a lot of stress to be able to see who will be available for jobs!
Also, Cherry Stewert is selling heat sheet ads. The money earned on those ads is returned to the team as well. Please look for Cherry at practices to get your ad placed. Hint: this is a great way for grandparents to send a note of encouragement to their special swimmers at CHAMPS.
And speaking of CHAMPS ... more information will be coming soon, but be ready! New parents, ALL swimmers swim at CHAMPS -- not just selected swimmers. We need as many swimmers as possible to earn as many points as possible! Our division ranking for next season is not based on how well we perform in the dual meet season, but how well we do at CHAMPS.
What time do my swimmers need to be at the pool?
Please have your swimmer at the pool with googles and cap on, ready to swim by 4:30. We will warm up first. Note that no one will be allowed in the pool before 4:15 to allow for enough time to clean up before the meet.
What do I need to bring?
Cap and googles, your swimmer, towels, warm clothes to wear between events, a Sharpie to write your swimmer's events on her or his hand. Your own chairs will make you more comfortable. Remember, if you erect a tent, please be mindful of the space you are taking. Do not erect a tent near the edge of the pool blocking the view. Share your space, realizing that there isn't enough space if every family were to bring a tent. We will have concessions this week -- sno cones, hot dogs, hamburgers, salads, candy and more. Proceeds go to the team's parents committee.
Where do I park?
Parking for home meets is always an issue. The City Recreation director makes the following request: In the past, we have received complaints from the Washington Park Pool neighborhood concerning swim meet patrons parking in front of homes on Charlton and Henry Avenue. We are asking for voluntary compliance with not parking along Henry or Charlton Avenue. You may park in the upper or lower Washington Park lots (upper located next to pool on 10th St, lower accessed from Preston Ave across from Madison Ave).[editors note: visiting team only please!] You may also park at Burley Middle School at Henry Street and Rose Hill Drive. The police will be enforcing parking laws will necessary and will offer assistance. Out of respect for the neighborhood residents, we ask both teams to consider that you may be inconveniencing a homeowner when parking. Thank you and best of luck!
As a team, we ask that City families park at Burley Middle School and leave the Washington Park lots to the visiting teams if at all possible. We will have volunteers stationed at the parking lots to remind Swordfish families to park at Burley. Remember, we warm up first, so those spaces will likely be available when we arrive -- we don't want to leave our guests without parking.
How do I sign up for volunteer jobs?
I'm so glad you asked! We still need some help. Use the signup genius link in the footer of this email. All families are expected to provide one person to work at least half of every meet. If you have special needs (young kids, physical limitations, etc) there is still lots you can do to help out, so contact us. Remember, if you aren't working at the meet, it is likely that there is a family doing double duty in your place.
All timers and potential timers, please take a few minutes and watch the timing video that JSL has made: http://www.jsl.org/supp
As in years past, we'll have a volunteer check in table at the entrance. Please stop by and say hi so that we know you've arrived and are ready to work.
GO SWORDFISH!!!!
Thursday Update, June 19 edition
Our first home meet is done. I don't have the final score but can report that we won! A great effort by our swimmers against a tough team. As usual, thanks so much to all our great coaches. And Meghan Eddy, volunteer coordinator, sends a HUGE thank you to the parents who helped out. By the end of the night, the City team supplied over 75% of the volunteers for the meet last night. All of you were very gracious with your time and commitment to the team. AMAZING!!
Thank Meghan for all her hard work wrangling volunteers before and during the meet, as well as running the table. Below, she has sent some information to help clarify volunteer expectations, so the next meet can go even more smoothly than last nights. Please take the time to read through it all.
Missing a meet?
We had a number of families who did not use the opt-out to let the coaches know that their swimmers would not be at the meet. We have a limited number of swimmers who can be listed as 'official' (and thereby earn points for the team) in each event. Those meet entries have to be done by a specific deadline, days ahead of the meet. We cannot substitute swimmers at the meet. If the coaches enter your swimmers and they do not attend the meet, they have taken the place of another swimmer who might have earned points for the team. Note that because of how the scoring is done, it is not just the top few swimmers who earn points -- they can be earned fairly far down the list of finishers. Don't think your swimmer doesn't contribute to the team just because he or she doesn't end up in the top three spots in their events! Please use to the opt-out link to let the coaches know your swimmers status by 10:30 on the Friday before the meet,
A few clarifications for volunteers from Meghan:
*Please stop by the volunteer table as soon as you arrive to pick up your name tag. This allows us to know you are at the meet and not scramble to find you.
*First Half Workers, you must be ready at 5:45PM. If you are timing, listen for the timers' meeting. If you are not there, we have to go looking for you. Stroke and turn judges likewise need to listen for the officials meeting, usually held around 5:45. If you are working S&T in the second half and will miss that meeting, please emailswordfishswimteam@gmail.com so that we know you are coming.
*Second half workers should all report to their positions before the breaststroke ends. Breaststroke ends at event 40. It is your responsibility to pay attention and report to your volunteer position on time. You cannot wait until you hear they are on backstrokes and then decide to walk over. That is too late.
*We will not stop the meet to switch workers. It is the first half workers' responsibility to make sure the second half worker to replace them understands the position. We have several new families and they need some orientation. Thanks!
*As backstroke begins, I will go around and check that all first half workers have been relieved. You may end up timing 3 or four heats of backstroke, but I promise, you will get relief.
*NEVER, leave your volunteer slot until you are relieved. At Wednesday's meet, we had some timers leave even though their replacement had not arrived. (Not sure which team, so just wanted to remind everyone.)
*We do assign timers by lane to help with the transition from first to second half. Sometimes we need to be flexible and switch lanes. Please check that all lanes have relief before leaving the swim deck.
Remember, it takes 90+ volunteers from our team to run a meet. We can't do this without help from all families.
Thanks and GO SWORDFISH!!!!
Wednesday Home Meet against FAST
Our first home meet is this Wednesday! We are looking forward to hosting FAST.
What time do my swimmers need to be at the pool?
Please have your swimmer at the pool with googles and cap on, ready to swim by 4:30. We will warm up first. Note that no one will be allowed in the pool before 4:15 to allow for enough time to clean up before the meet.
What do I need to bring?
Cap and googles, your swimmer, towels, warm clothes to wear between events, a Sharpie to write your swimmer's events on her or his hand. Your own chairs will make you more comfortable. Remember, if you erect a tent, please be mindful of the space you are taking. Do not erect a tent near the edge of the pool blocking the view. Share your space, realizing that there isn't enough space if every family were to bring a tent. We will have concessions this week -- sno cones, hot dogs, hamburgers, salads, candy and more. Proceeds go to the team's parents committee.
Where do I park?
Parking for home meets is always an issue. The City Recreation director makes the following request: In the past, we have received complaints from the Washington Park Pool neighborhood concerning swim meet patrons parking in front of homes on Charlton and Henry Avenue. We are asking for voluntary compliance with not parking along Henry or Charlton Avenue. You may park in the upper or lower Washington Park lots (upper located next to pool on 10th St, lower accessed from Preston Ave across from Madison Ave).[editors note: visiting team only please!] You may also park at Burley Middle School at Henry Street and Rose Hill Drive. The police will be enforcing parking laws will necessary and will offer assistance. Out of respect for the neighborhood residents, we ask both teams to consider that you may be inconveniencing a homeowner when parking. Thank you and best of luck!
As a team, we ask that City families park at Burley Middle School and leave the Washington Park lots to the visiting teams if at all possible. We will have volunteers stationed at the parking lots to remind Swordfish families to park at Burley. Remember, we warm up first, so those spaces will likely be available when we arrive -- we don't want to leave our guests without parking.
How do I sign up for volunteer jobs?
I'm so glad you asked! We still need some help. Use the signup genius link, please. All families are expected to provide one person to work at least half of every meet. If you have special needs (young kids, physical limitations, etc) there is still lots you can do to help out, so contact us. Remember, if you aren't working at the meet, it is likely that there is a family doing double duty in your place.
All timers and potential timers, please take a few minutes and watch the timing video that JSL has made: http://www.jsl.org/
As in years past, we'll have a volunteer check in table at the entrance. Please stop by and say hi so that we know you've arrived and are ready to work.
GO SWORDFISH!!!!
What a great first meet!
Thanks so much to everyone for your flexibility and good cheer. We made it through the first meet, relays and all! A big thank you to our coaches, especially Coach Andrea and Coach Irene. All our coaches are terrific. And thanks to our terrific swimmers -- the FLST team made a point of telling us that they really appreciated the good sportmanship of our swimmers. Our swimmers were high-fiving and encouraging each other and FLST swimmers in the clerk area. Thank your kids for making such a great impression and thanks to the coaches who set the tone for this kind of behavior. And we can't run a meet without the help of our volunteers, who were willing to step up two nights in a row. As usual, the first meet was unscored and served to give the swimmers official times for seeding in subsequent meets.
Special note to parents of 5&6-year-olds who couldn't swim: Please hug your kids and tell them we are so sorry that we had to make that decision. We've never done that before and don't anticipate ever doing it again. The weather forecast for last night was nearly as bad as the forecast for Wednesday night and we wanted to streamline the meet as much as possible to obtain as many official times as possible. (Seed times matter much less for the P events). All swimmers at Champs are required to have competed in two official JSL meets. All 5-6 year olds who were entered in the Wednesday meet but not allowed to swim WILL receive credit for attending a JSL meet since their non-participation was not their fault. If for some reason your family plans only allow you to attend one more meet, your swimmers will be eligible to swim at Champs.
When is our next meet?
We swim at home against FAST next Wednesday June 18. Because the home team warms up first, we need to have our swimmers there by 4:30, caps and goggles on, ready to swim.Note that no one will be allowed in the pool before 4:15 to allow for enough time to clean up before the meet. If your swimmer CANNOT swim next week, please do not forget to opt-outby 10:30 this morning. We still need volunteers -- please use the signup genius link. Our team is usually recognized for running an organized and efficient meet with unusually good hospitality. We need all our volunteers to make this happen!
Concessions
This year, the usual concession vendor will not be open during meets. We are therefore trying something different. A vendor has agreed to come sell hamburgers, hotdogs, drinks and other food. There may be some food trucks as well. The City Parents Committee will receive a percentage of the sales. We are therefore asking parents to contribute some food items -- they have been added to the signup genius. We've tried to make these items simple. We also need four large coolers for the time of the meet. You can bring these things to the meet and drop them off by the concession area.
Email
We typically try to keep our team emails to two per week. One typically comes on Thursday, after the week's meet. A second is usually sent on Sunday or Monday, giving information about the upcoming meet. Because of our rocky start, you've received a small flood of emails to keep you updated. Sorry about that! We'll try to get back to our regular schedule. We might need to send an extra email this week, so apologies in advance.
Questions? If they are general questions about logistics, volunteering, etc, send them to the parents committee at swordfishswimteam@gmail.com
You can reach Andrea Ross & Coach Irene, head coaches, at headcoachcity@gmail.com
GO SWORDFISH!
June 11 Meet Information
Our
first meet is rapidly approaching! Please have your swimmers at Forest Lakes
with their goggles and caps on, ready to warm up at 4:45 pm. Remember
to write your swimmers’ event numbers on their hand in black Sharpie.
(Please remember to bring a permanent black Sharpie for this purpose.) This
will increase the odds that your swimmers get to their events on time!
The
Forest Lake meet director has sent us the following information. Pay
particular attention to the parking and traffic enforcement issues:
The pool is located in the Forest Lakes South community at
1650 Ashwood Boulevard. The pool and clubhouse is about 1 mile off of 29N
after you turn onto Ashwood Blvd. We have been informed that the speed limit
during the meets will be reduced to 25mph heading up on Ashwood Blvd.
Please observe large flashing school crossing sign that will indicate the
reduction in speed. [note: the meet director indicated that it
is very likely police will be out enforcing the speed limits.]
Our parking situation will be overcrowded. We welcome you to
park in the paved parking areas around our pool. We will be reserving the front
parking spaces along the front of the clubhouse for drop off. Your
coaches and officials will have reserved parking in the paved parking lot.
There are a number of handicapped parking spots in front of the pool area.
Street parking is permitted on Ashwood Blvd. The Forest Lakes
Community Association will have a county police officer patrol; please do not
park at the immediate entrance of any side street or near stop signs, near any
fire hydrants, near any driveways. Additionally there is no parking on Powell
Creek Drive, or in any of the nearby neighborhoods of Empress Place or
Thornridge (across from the pool).
While you are at our meet we invite you to partake of our
team concessions. We offer a variety of hot foods from local business including
Baja Bean, Oriental Express, 2 businesses owned and operated by our swim team
families. We will also have pizza from END ZONE. At our outside booth we offer
snow cones, water, sodas, G2 and a selection of candy.
The
meet director also shared that in the event of thunder they are required to
clear the entire deck. We will need to return to your car until the deck
is reopened. If we leave our personal belongings and the deck is not
reopened due to a storm, we will not be allowed back in to retrieve our
things. This is a rule imposed by the pool management company, not
by the swim team or the JSL.
If
the weather is bad, it is highly unlikely that the meet will be canceled in
advance. Even if the weather is poor, we ask that you come to the
meet. In the unusual event that a decision about cancellation or delay is
made in advance, it will be communicated via email and on the weather hotline (434) 293-7399.
Late afternoon thunderstorms are not unusual in the summer.
Typically, they pass over and allow us to finish the meet, however.
Because the decision is made very locally based on conditions at the pool
itself, we need to have our swimmers close by.
Note
that our team blog has a meet FAQ you
might want to take a look at. Also, the JSL has a Welcome Manual
that is worth looking at. If you ‘like’ the League on Facebook, you can
receive updates about League-related events throughout the season.
We
look forward to seeing everyone at the meet! GO SWORDFISH!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)