1st Swim Meet Details!!
Dove Tree Families -
This Thursday, May 21st is our 1st HOME meet against Stonehaven! Excitement is building!
First of all, as your schedules open up from school letting out, the coaches are available and excited to offer private lessons. Their contact information is posted on the Coaches tab and the Practices page.
Second, please remember to encourage your little fins or big fins at the meet. Many of our fins like to buy small surprises/ gifts for each meet. This is not required, but encouragement is! :)
Third - make sure you have the Swimtopia app on your phone for meet information, live updates, and alerts. If you have the app, then you will receive the push notifications. If you do not have the app, you will receive an email instead. I think the same is true for Remind texts as well.
Finally, we coaches will be prepping your swimmers more and more each day for the meet procedures and proper protocol. We, of course, cover clerk of course, starts, turns, finishes, etc., but we also heavily discuss sportsmanship on deck and in the tent. We strongly believe that such great life lessons are learned from sports -- teamwork, hard work, cheering for others, listening to instruction, but also how to win and lose with grace. See more on the SAIL Code of Conduct below...
As for the swimmers' events and relays...the entries for each swimmer should be in your Swimtopia app. Under Events, click on this meet, and your swimmer(s)' events should be listed. If the swimmer has never swam that event, an NT means "no time." As for the relays, a pdf attachment will be posted to our website (under this week's meet). This version includes alternates if needed. Notations are in parentheses for which stroke the swimmer is doing in the medley. Free relays are the very last event. **Please note that in order to swim as many swimmers in relays, we "age up" sometimes!
The Swimtopia app also shows the swimmers' events and history. Previous year's times stay in the system. *Note: we are swimming Short Course (SC) Meters if you are checking Best Times for your swimmer. Times for this meet will be uploaded into the app during/ after the meet. So you will always have your times to watch improvements!
TIMELINE: Thursday's meet has a 5pm start time. Anyone able to help with setup should arrive to the pool by 2:30pm. Swimmers should arrive to our pool by 3:30pm. 10& unders will warm up first from 3:45-4:00pm. 11&older swimmers will warm up from 4-4:15pm. The away team will warm up from 4:15-4:45pm. After the meet, we need everyone's help cleaning up the tent area, the pool deck, clubhouse, etc. Once the swimmers' area is clean, EVENT 81: POPSICLES & PJ's will begin at the pool while the parents continue to clean the clubhouse, finish ribbons, etc. (Note: approximate meet ending is 9:30pm-ish. (We will know better once the heat sheet is finalized.) The Event 81 flyer is posted to the website.
RIBBONS: Because we (or some of us!) have school on Friday, we are going to hold the 1st meet ribbons until after Meet #2. So we will have a DOUBLE RIBBONS ceremony on Friday, May 29th at approximately 10am (following team and individual pictures). But... we WILL recognize Swimmers of the Week for each practice group after Meet #1 this Friday during practice. Note: only 12&unders receive ribbons ... the 13 &ups will receive a small treat from the team instead.
CONCESSIONS: One of our biggest fundraisers for the season is selling concessions at home meets. Leslie Latimer will send the assignments to those who did not pay the concessions donation at registration. If you do not hear from Leslie, then you paid the concessions donation during registration.
*All of you -- plan to eat dinner at the pool! We always have several meal options, desserts, candy, drinks, etc.
SWIMMER AREA: We will provide tents for our swimmers in the grassy area outside the pool deck opposite the clubhouse. Make sure you pack a chair, cap, goggles, towels and a sweatshirt or jacket as once the sun goes down the kids can get cold. Please also remind your swimmer that they are to stay in the team area when they are not swimming unless they have informed the tent parent. We will have 93 swimmers from our team, not including Stonehaven's swimmers. In order to keep the meet running smoothly, keeping the kids in the team area when they are not swimming is essential. Thank you for assisting us with this. Our tent parents will do "body marking" on our swimmers with their event #s so that they know exactly when they are swimming. Parents- feel free to do this ahead of time with a sharpie. The Tent Reports with each swimmer's event #s will be posted under the meet on the website once they are ready.
**Please do NOT leave the meet without checking in with the coaches first. If your swimmer leaves early and is supposed to be in a relay, the other 3 swimmers on that relay will be greatly disappointed because the relay will have to be scratched. Furthermore, in the event of an emergency or illness, the coaches may need an alternate swimmer for the final relay. So please check in before leaving.
**A note about swim caps: swimmers must wear a team cap (any current or previous DT cap) or a solid color cap. Caps may not have any other advertisement or other team logo on them besides our team or the swimmer will be disqualified.
SPECTATORS: Tailgate chairs are allowed on the side of the pool nearest the deep end. Coaches will be set up on the far side (nearest the playground), so no chairs are permitted on that side of the deck. But there is also plenty of grassy space outside the fence with good views of the pool.
HEAT SHEETS: The heat sheet will be posted to the website under this week’s meet event. Please print your own copy or refer to it online to know heat/ lane #s. For parents who can/want to do their swimmers’ event #s in sharpie, the tent reports will be posted as well. We do NOT recommend writing lane #s in case those get moved around. Just event # is enough.
SEVERE WEATHER PLAN: In the event of severe weather, we will follow SAIL's severe weather policy. If we clear the deck, everyone will be asked to return to their cars. We will send a Remind text/ Swimtopia alert for when the swimmers can return to the pool area.
VOLUNTEERS: First half volunteers (working events 1 - 40) should be behind the blocks in starting position no later than 4:40pm -- except we do need first half tent parents to report by 3:30pm. All volunteers will need to check in at the volunteer table that will be set up inside the main pool entrance. Second half volunteers should sign in as well and be ready to work anytime around 7-7:15p.m. as you take over at event 41. Second half tent parents should check in with first half tent parents periodically as you begin working when you start calling swimmers for Event 41 which will happen 20 - 30 minutes BEFORE this event is in the water. The starter will make announcements for second half volunteers when your start time is approaching.
Wes Plyler will send out your volunteer assignments separately.
PARKING: The pool parking lot is mostly reserved for the handicapped, officials, concessions, coaches, etc from both teams. Parents may drive through the one-way lot to drop off swimmers then find a place to park along ONE side of neighborhood roads. Some houses will have No Parking signs, so please respect those homeowners. You may also park on Oak Grove Lake Rd and in the adjacent grassy area beside the tennis courts. We will have a few golf carts shuttling people to the pool since some may have to park farther than usual!
Please carpool or walk when possible to limit the distance people have to walk to the pool.
SAIL has very strong words about "code of conduct" and disciplinary actions. Technical rule 3.4 explicitly lists conduct violations for swimmers, coaches, and spectators. The referee has the authority to remove violators from the premises. Other penalties include team fines and probation, suspension, or permanent ban of individuals from SAIL. "Disrespectful and/ or unsportsmanlike behaviors" in rule 3.4 may include, but are not limited to, taunting, physical or verbal abuse, harassment, misuse of facilities, or interference with the operation of a meet. Some specific violations are 1. use of profanity, 2. sale and/or use of alcohol, 3. smoking, 4. disrespectful or unsportsmanlike behavior. These rules apply to all areas at the meet venue. So... as members of SAIL and of Dove Tree, we beg all of you to create a mature, healthy, and fair atmosphere for ALL swimmers at all times. Please discuss this with your swimmers. (They should even watch what they write on their bodymarkings!) I have no doubt that the Riptides will host and compete graciously!
For the new parents and swimmers, there is a tab called "SAIL Swim Meet Primer" on the website under Meets & Events that will help you understand your 1st meet.
We hope all of this helps! Have a great week!
Coach Janie, Coach Darcy, Coach William, & Coach Tiffany
P.S. Happy Graduation to all of our 7 senior guys! They all graduate tomorrow (Tuesday)!