Swimarin Family Handbook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
1. Welcome and Family Expectations
2. Practice Information
3. Required gear and optional merchandise
4. Meets
5. Social Events
6. Volunteer Requirements
7. Awards Banquet
8. Coaches FAQ
WELCOME TO SWIMARIN!
Congratulations! You are signing up to be a part of a fun family and community-based swim program. Welcome! Our season runs from the end of February through the end of June, with meets typically beginning in April and occurring most Saturdays until the league-wide end-of-season meet (Champs) at the end of June. During the season, our practices occur every weekday, Monday through Friday (unless otherwise specified due to events occurring at the high school or special events on our team).
FAMILY EXPECTATIONS
For you, your family and your athlete to get the most out of the Swimarin program you need to do the following, to the best of your ability:
1) Sign up for the team app, OnDeck, to keep up to date. This portal has all the info you need, and you can register for each of the Saturday meets through this system.
2) Attend practice and listen to your Coaches.
3) Attend the Saturday meets – this is where all their hard work at practice pays off. The kids have a fun time seeing their progress over the season, working towards best times, and supporting each other along the way.
4) Attend the team events – past events included pizza nights, dine and donate, and camping overnights. Every year we have our end-of-season awards picnic at McNears Beach. We pride ourselves on being family/community-based and building lasting friendships while supporting all our athletes.
5) Buy a team suit – you can do that at T&B sports. The goal is to have your suit ordered in time to show your Swimarin pride at Time Trials; our first intra-team meet, prior to the first dual-meet competition.
6) Sign-up for volunteer jobs – each family needs to fill 5 shifts a year. This is an all-volunteer-run organization (except the paid coaches). The meets, both home and away, require all our parents to volunteer in the various jobs (see Volunteers tab for descriptions). If you can’t volunteer at the event due to (work, younger children, etc.), there are non-meet roles that count towards your obligation. There is a buy-out option, but it is discouraged as we need your presence and help to make these meets happen. Don’t be intimidated by the various jobs; as a parent, you are overqualified to perform all of them! Plus, we are here to help.
PRACTICE INFORMATION
Practice Location: Marin Academy Aquatic Center, 1532 Fifth Ave. San Rafael
Swimmers will learn stroke techniques, competitive breathing, diving, flip turns, and more…
Monday – Friday
Swimmers will be assigned a Group based on their skill level and coachability.
- Group 1: 5:00pm – 5:30pm
- Group 2: 5:30pm – 6:00pm
- Group 3: 5:30pm – 6:30pm
First Practices
Assessment days are held during the first week of practice (or by appointment) for new swimmers to determine if your child is swim team-ready or if they require further lessons through our Shark Pup program. Returning swimmers practice as normal.
Note: Your child may require more than one day of assessment, this is not uncommon for new and/or younger swimmers.
We practice in all weather conditions except when there is thunder and lightning. Kids love swimming in the rain! It is generally more daunting for the parents than the swimmers to come to practice on rainy days.
It is not necessary to attend every practice, but our Head Coach recommends you attend as much as your schedule permits. Typically, a good goal is any 3 days per week that you can attend. This will offer the best opportunities for your children to see improvements in endurance, speed, and technique.
REQUIRED GEAR AND OPTIONAL MERCHANDISE
Required Gear
- Team Suit: These are required for swim meets. They identify your child as a Swimarin team member. They can be purchased at T&B sports or through our online store at the beginning of the season.
- Goggles
- Swim Caps: latex or silicone options.
Optional Merchandise Available for Purchase
T&B Sports is our official Swimarin gear provider. We also sell our merchandise at Time Trials and HOME meets.
- Sweatshirts
- Parkas
- T-shirts
- Hats
- Jackets
- And more…
SWIM MEETS
Swim meets occur nearly every Saturday from the end of April through June. Every swimmer is expected to attend the majority of the meets. Time Trials is a get way to see how a meet is run.
Meet Locations: Home meets will take place at the Archie Williams pool (while the San Rafael High School pool is under construction). Away meets take place at the hosting team's pool.
Meet Format: Every event (eg. Medley relay, freestyle, breaststroke, etc.) will be run in this order and then repeated for each event:
1. 8 and under girls, 8 and under boys
2. 9-10 girls, 9-10 boys
3. 11-12 girls, 11-12 boys
4. 13-14 girls, 13-14 boys
5. 15-18 girls, 15-18 boys
Order of Events:
1. Boys & Girls mixed medley (IM) relay
2. Freestyle
3. Backstroke
4. 15-min break
5. Breaststroke
6. Butterfly
7. Individual Medley (IM)
8. Boys & Girls mixed freestyle relay
Declaring attendance for meets: By Tuesday before every meet, you must log into the website to declare if your child is going to attend the meet and choose the events they are doing (up to 3 events, not including relays.) This is critical if your child is to be seeded for the meet! You will get an email prior to each meet telling you exactly how to do this. Your coach will let you know if you are on a relay for each upcoming meet. If you have been chosen to be on a relay, congratulations!
Tips for a successful meet:
- Arrive early to get a good spot to set up and get your swimmer ready to warm up with the team.
- Be sure of your volunteer role and check-in time.
- Consider bringing a sport tent or other shade where your swimmer can hang out away from the sun. Bring camping chairs to sit in.
- Bring plenty of water and snacks (or money for the snack bar) and possibly books, etc for the kids to play with between events.
- Mark your child’s hand the night before so they know when/where to line up for their events.
- Have sunscreen and extra towels on hand.
- Pay attention to the meet so you are aware when your child needs to get ready to line up. This is imperative for a successful meet experience. For new swimmers and 8 & under swimmers, allow yourself extra time to locate them if they are playing with another swimmer and help get them ready.
Time Trials: Our first meet is our time trials meet which involves only our team. It is a meet to get baseline times for your child in order to be seeded appropriately in subsequent meets. We generally ask all swimmers to swim every event at this meet unless your coach advises otherwise. It is also an opportunity to learn various volunteering jobs which will be required for the season. All other meets are dual meets: Swimarin vs. another swim team.
All-Stars: This is an invite-only meet that swimmers may qualify for based on swim times (qualifying times can be found on the Marin Swim League website at www.marinswimleague.org) You will be notified if your child has qualified for this meet.
Champs: This is the final swim meet at the end of the season where every team in the Marin Swim League competes against each other to determine the top team in the League.
There are 10 teams in the League and up to 1500-2000 swimmers! It is held at Indian Valley Campus of College of Marin. Every team is required to volunteer to help put this meet on so we require all families to attend.
VOLUNTEER REQUIREMENTS
Every family must volunteer. Besides coaching, Swimarin is a parent-led, all-volunteer team (this includes the Board and leadership and all jobs at the meets.) It takes nearly 90 volunteers to run every home meet!
The number of volunteer jobs required each year is dependent upon the number of families registered for the team and the number of jobs needed to fill each season. It varies slightly from season to season. You will be given an opportunity to sign up for jobs as we get closer to the start of the season. You can choose to sign up for jobs individually, sign up for a season-long job, or take the lead on any given job.
Some of the meet jobs typically available include:
- Timer
- Officiating
- Snack Bar
- Data Desk
- Set up and tear down
Some season-long jobs include:
- Board positions (President, Treasurer, Secretary, etc.)
- Events Coordinator
- Merchandise
- Volunteer Coordinator
- Facilities
- Snack Bar Coordinator
Descriptions of the jobs can be found under the Volunteers tab on the team website. Once job sign-ups end, you are responsible for finding replacements for a job if you cannot make it. If you're a no-show, there is a $100 penalty. We would much rather have volunteers than money from buyouts and missed jobs.
SOCIAL EVENTS
We have various social events during the season for team building and to get to know the Swimarin community better. These include:
Family Socials - held at the beginning of the season and other times throughout. Casual gatherings for the swimmers and their families to get to know each other, the coaches, and the Board.
Hot Chocolate or Popsicle Days – Typically, about once a month, we have a fun “surprise” snack for our swimmers!
Shark Practice Reward Days – Swimmers earn rewards for coming to practice! Kids get to pick out prizes based on practice attendance.
Memorial Day Weekend Event – There are no meets during Memorial Day weekend, but we still gather up as a team to have some FUN.
Shark-A-Thon - One of the most fun nights of Swimarin! We swim laps to raise money for our team, and there are many other contests and prizes during the night, including prizes for laps swam, a raffle, a treasure dive, parent relays, and culminating in the famous greased watermelon polo! It’s a night not to be missed!
END OF SEASON AWARDS PICNIC CELEBRATION
Our season culminates in an awards picnic the day after the Champs meet at McNears Beach where we honor the swimmers and volunteers for their accomplishments during the season.
Kids and parents alike really look forward to this event as an important end to their season and a time to hang out with all their new friends. A catered meal on the beach to celebrate the end of another great season. You do not miss this special end-of-season event! Information on how to RSVP will be sent out toward the end of the season.
COACH'S FAQs
Are swimmers expected to show up for practice even if it is raining or windy? Of course! Swimming is an all-weather sport, and swimming in the rain is fun. We will cancel practice, however, if there is thunder, lightning, or high winds in the area.
How many practices is a swimmer supposed to attend each week? As many as possible. At a minimum, we expect swimmers to attend three practices a week. This is especially important during the early part of the season as we emphasize conditioning and basic technique. If your child can’t make this commitment, please discuss this with us.
My 8&Under child is afraid to race. What do I do? Most new swimmers are nervous before their first few races; some swimmers are always nervous. Simply encourage your child, but please do not force them to participate. Many swimmers will build up to their first meet participation. Please be patient and remember that the stress this puts on you as a parent is usually nothing compared to the stress your child is feeling. Our coaching staff is used to working with new swimmers and introducing the competitive side in different ways depending on the swimmer.
My child does not know how to dive, so how can he/she swim in a meet? Your child will gradually become more confident with diving, especially once we go through more diving drills during practice.
My child still can’t (comfortably) swim 25 yards. Will he/she be able to compete? Not yet. Swimmers must be able to swim 25 yards without putting themselves at risk and have demonstrated this on various occasions to their coach(es). Until they reach this point, we will work on building endurance and strength in the water.
What is the Shark Pups Program and when will it start? The Shark Pups Program is designed to teach beginning and non-swimmers basic swimming technique after learning primary water safety skills. See the website for more information.
Are swimmers required to wear swim caps during practice? No, but caps do create better hydrodynamics in the water which can lead to faster times and help protect hair from the effects of chlorine. Caps are required at races to identify a swimmer by a team, which is most important for the coaches to watch swimmers' races.
