What time should we be at swim meets?
At home meets we warm up at 4:45 p.m. Allow extra time for getting swimmer and area settled.
At away meets, we warm up last and should be ready to be in the pool by 5:15 p.m.
Our swim meets start at 6:00 p.m. Mini-monarchs swim at 5:45 p.m.
How do we know what events we are swimming?
The coaches will e-mail the heat sheet the day of the swim meet.
Your swimmer will know their events at practice the day of the meet.
The meet will also be posted at the swim meet on a board that is posted in our team area.
Experienced swimmers can help new swimmers (and parents) read the line-up.
What is an IM?
IM stands for Individual Medley (one swimmer, 4 lengths of the pool, 4 strokes) and the order is Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke and Freestyle.
The Medley Relay order is Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Freestyle.
This relay is accomplished with four different swimmers.
When should our swimmers report to the starting area?
Every event has an event number the announcer will make a 1st call, 2nd call and 3rd call.
Your swimmer should report to the starting area on the first call. Relay teams should gather and report together. The announcer will keep telling the audience what number event we are on and what event should report.
We cannot emphasize enough the importance of parent involvement in getting swimmers to their events on time - the first call! Help your swimmers report on time and stay aware of the current event number.
This helps our meets go much smoother and faster.
Do we need to bring food and what should my swimmer eat during a long meet?
Everyone is welcome to bring food but concessions are provided at every meet.
We encourage our swim team families to support our concessions, as it offsets our swim team operations and keeps us from having to put together additional fundraisers.
Swimmers should stay away from heavy foods and sugar treats until they are done swimming, but should eat lightly throughout the meet to maintain strength and energy.
What else do we need to bring to a meet?
Staying warm is a necessity for success and survival, so bring plenty of warm clothes and dry towels.
Please mark everything with your name.
Goggles are especially hard to keep track of during a meet, so have your swimmer keep careful watch over their own pair.
When will my swimmer get his/her ribbons?
Ribbons will generally be distributed to the family files at the pool house the day following the meet.
We will do our best to correct any situation in which a swimmer is missing a ribbon for their accomplishments.
Please let a coach know if you are missing any awards.
What is an "A" meet, "B" meet and Exhibition Event?
Our goal is to get as many swimmers in the pool as possible at each meet.
"A" meets - Coach will put the fastest swimmers in their strongest events to earn as many points as possible.
"B" meets - Once an "A" (faster) time has been achieved by a swimmer in an event, they are disqualified to compete in that event at a "B" meet. Swimmers who have not achieved an "A" time will be entered in the scoring heats and will have the chance to earn points for the team.
Exhibition events are not scored,but allow swimmers more practice at an event on which they are working, achieve a best time and allow us the opportunity to let more kids participate in both A and B meets.
My swimmer was disqualified. What happened?
At each meet, there are two stroke and turn judges who walk the length of the pool to watch for stroke violations. They may disqualify your swimmer for doing an incorrect stroke, kick, hand touch, or flip turn.
Disqualifications also happen during the start of an event. If your swimmer is disqualified, our coaches will help your swimmer understand the disqualification.
It is important to understand and learn from disqualifications.
It's not the end of the world - Stay positive!
Who do I talk to if I have other questions or concerns?
Contact Candis Brink for questions related to your swimmer.
If you have questions or concerns about swim team operations, please contact Kate Tremblay.
