Dolphin Update: June 10, 2025. Mock Meet & Meet Prep Info

Tonight at evening practice, the coaches and I will be running a walk through of the upcoming home meet. Swimmers will experience the process of the swim meet. The goal is to help swimmers feel comfortable with what to expect and to start training parents, who will informally act as timers. Clarification: there was discussion that we might postpone the meet walkthrough until Friday, but the final decision was to stick to the schedule as planned.

For tonight, we will go over:

-clerk of course set up

-parent volunteers/timers

-starter app; speaker microphone

-lifeguards

-relays

-how to sign out for meets; how to sign up for events

-clipboards to record times on paper. use phone to record

Next Monday (the 16th), I will load all of our swim meet supplies into the pool area and we will do an additional meet prep experience at Monday evening practice.

2) Communications: recognizing that things have gotten to a rocky start with communication due to the changes in Remind. We have come up with the following amendments to alleviate confusion:

-First, ANYTIME you are unsure of something, please text or call me. I cannot be aware of something supernaturally. IT IS NOT A BOTHER. What is a bother, is becoming aware of something too late to have made an impactful and positive difference.

Second, please commit to reading the website and BOOKMARK THE WEBSITE blog. It is the responsibility of every family to access the provided information. The blog is a wealth of information for this year (and year's past) and can help you know what to expect.

-Third, Swimmingly Emails: not liking the swimmingly communication format, we are to pivot to mass BCC emails via gmail. Please save contact spotswooddolphins1980@gmail.com into your own email accounts so that it doesn't go to spam.

-Gmail: I will be sending a group email later this week. I will create one group for juniors and one group for the standard team.

-I will send a follow up Remind and swimmingly notification informing you that there is new information to check.

ALL information is ALWAYS on the website. This is so it is compiled and gathered in one place.

3) Our first meet is next Tuesday, AT SCC. Starting the season with a home meet means we also get to have our post meet pizza party. I will send a separate update for this event on Friday morning.

-Regarding home meets, the SCC Pool will close at 3PM for prep. On these days, team members should plan to arrive by 4:15PM. Here is a diagram of how the SCC pool will be set up on home meet days (I will talk through this tonight as well):

Here is a diagram of how the pool is set up for meets.

5) Meet Sign Outs. If you are on vacation this summer and will miss a meet, it's okay. We just need to know who and when. We will go over the online meet sign out procedure tonight, but the short of it is that there are two options:

a) using swimmingly website (step by step process TBA).

b) using the swim team bulletin board at the pool entrance. There will be sign out sheets posted on the boards. Please write the name(s) of your child(ren) on the list by 7PM on the Monday prior to the meet.

6) Volunteering: we cannot run the swim team without volunteers. We need many volunteers to run the meets themselves as well.

• Signup genius: I will send out another update with links to the signup genius after the evening practice tonight. This will enable you to sign up for the entire season, if you'd like.

• For your information, here are specific roles needing filled and the teams of parents that typically sign up for the task. We ideally have a handful of parents able to do multiple jobs:

  • Computer (swimmingly): Jenny, Patrice, Sarah Sawyer, and _______________

  • Announcer: Gannon, and Don and _______________

  • Place Judge: Justin and _____________

  • Clerk of Course: Holly Michael, Sarah Sawyer and _________________

  • Hospitality (prepping and passing out refreshments for volunteers):

  • Timers: (super easy job, no training required. If you can use an iphone, you can time)

  • Home Meet Pizza Party Coordinator:

  • Stroke & Turn (training required):

Kara, Mike, Emma, Joan, Kelly, Laura, Keri, Joel

7) Keri Davis has volunteered to be the Team Director going forward in future; she is going to shadow me for sake of learning the ropes and will also be communicating with you at times, especially when I am out of town this season.

8) Thank you to Hannah Hutman for being willing to provide bagels every week this year. What an incredible and generous act of care!

9) This past spring, I organized a small board of parents to help run the swim team going forward. We have been at work prepping the season well before and they have been instrumental in making decisions.

Elizabeth Kistler, Courtney Leach, Emma Thacker, Katie Robinson, (and me).

If you are interested in taking a more official role on the team, we can always use more people. Text me to volunteer. An area of high need: a person ready to take on being our team VSL rep. Must be able to attend meetings on the second Tuesday of each month (except july, august, december).

10) Bulletin Board: Keri will be updating our bulletin board at the pool. This is where Sign out sheets will be located. More information on this tonight.

11) Junior Dolphins: will have a separate means of communication. You should have received an email from me on Friday. Juniors begins this coming week.

12) Pictures makeups Friday the 20th: details to come.

13) Banquet: Tentatively Thursday the 24th. Same as last year: meal, posters; then pool party. We are going to seek approval from the new club manager to repeat what we did last year, but this remains TBD.

14) Swim-a-thon: is on the schedule; will not be a fundraiser. If there are parents interested in executing fundraisers this year, please connect with me to discuss.

Thank You!

Go Dolphins!!