New to swim meets?  Below is some information we hope will help you prepare. 

As always, if you still need more information or help feel free to contact Coach Joy at [email protected]

What you should bring:

1. Suit , cap and goggles (an extra pair of goggles is a good idea!)  

2. Have your child wear their team T-shirt if they have one.  

3. Heat Sheet (if emailed) or money for heat sheet..

4. Chairs

5. Towels- at least 2

6. Something to sit on. Example: sleeping bag, old blanket, or anything that will be comfortable to sit on. The swimmers will be spending a lot of time on it.

7. Sweat shirts , pants and/or Parka.   

8. Flip-flops or deck shoes

9. Games: travel games, coloring books, books, anything to pass the time.

10. Food:  Snacks for in between races.

11. Sharpies- some of the kids like to write their events/lanes etc. on their arm.  

12. Sunscreen outdoor meets.

When you arrive at the pool:

1. ALL swimmer should report at the warm up time that will be emailed a few days before the meet.

2. Look for other Makos  swimmers and parents. The coaches would like the kids to sit together as a team.  

3.  The coaches will then collect the swimmers for a team warm up.  They will stretch, swim, work on turns, starts and finishes at this time.   Warm up is very important for each swimmer to attend so the coaches know who is there, the kids get acclimated to the pool, we can talk about their upcoming races and we get out some of those last minute jitters.

The Heat Sheet:

1. The heat sheet is the program of the meet. It will help you follow along with the meet to know when your child will be swimming.

2 .The very first time your child swims a race they will be listed as ‘NT’ meaning they do not have an official time in that event.  Once they have an official time, their time will be recorded as their ‘seed time’ at the next swim meet and their heat will be based on this time.  

3. The events are posted in order alternating girls (odd) and boys (even) events.  

4.  The first few meets your child swims the coaches will help them to get to the proper heat and lane.  

5. After their race, they should report to their coach to review their race and talk about pointer for the future races.

6. More experienced swimmers will need to ALWAYS report to their coach before their race and then report to their heat and lane.  After the race the will also need to report back to their coach.

Very Basic Swimming Rules *rules for swimming are very in depth, these are just a few quick pointers you can watch for*

Starts: The swimmers are not allowed a false start. If they jump the start and the starter thinks they are trying to get an advantage (whether intentional or not),
 
Turns and finishes:

1. Freestyle: feet have to touch the wall

2. Backstroke: swimmers have to be on their back when they touch the wall. After they touch, they can then turn around, but they must push off on their back. More advanced swimmers may use a flip turn, where they will roll onto their stomach right before the wall and execute a flip turn which must be done in one continuous motion. At the finish a swimmer must finish on their back. A swimmer may not roll over and grab the wall until they have first touched it.

3. Breaststroke and Butterfly: 

        A. Swimmers have to touch with both hands at the same time.

        B. A swimmer may not freestyle kick off the wall in either breaststroke or butterfly.

        C. When swimming butterfly, both arms must move at the same time.

        D. No scissor kick is allowed.
 

Finally, Have fun!  Cheer for your swimmer and all the Makos!