AND WE SURVIVED THE FIRST WEEK OF PRACTICE…GOOD JOB, US!
We did it—survived an amazingly busy week! Guess what—there’s more yet to come! This will hopefully answer a lot of questions you may have about what’s coming up. And, if you forgot to read our parent meeting slides, please make it your bedtime reading now. You will have fewer questions if you do!
FOUR FYIs FOR THIS WEEK: 1) Zero-Tolerance– We talked about our zero-tolerance, anti-bullying policy at our parent meeting, our coaches had the swimmers sign a code of conduct on Friday, and we are asking parents to set aside some time to discuss with your family. See our parent meeting slides for more information. 2) No Helicopter Parenting– we continue to have too many parents on the upper deck and sitting in the lounge chairs near the lanes watching, leaning over the railing, talking to swimmers and coaches during practice, etc. If you are standing near where the coaches and swimmers are practicing, you are too close. Go check out the real estate near the playground equipment or stake a claim on the upper deck near the baby pool. 3) Sign up to volunteer for Time Trials – To sign up for a job, log on to Swimtopia, click on the calendar tab, and next to Time Trials you will see a green button that says "Job Signup". Click on that button and then the blue “Sign Up for Jobs” Button, and let us know what you can do. Here is a handy link too: https://parklawnswimteam.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/1NHnEtMhA9MK8OdhcOFO3eDafqZBCq8vF/edit?usp=docslist_api&filetype=msexcel .
Availability for NVSL Meets (Saturday morning A-meets, Relay Carnival, and Divisionals) due by Friday June 10. All swimmers must indicate their availability for an NVSL meetto be considered for placement in the meet. This must be done via Swimtopia. We are not calling/texting/emailing families to confirm availability – we don’t have time to chase your swimmer down. There are other swimmers on the team who would love to swim at an A-meet and took the time to indicate their availability.
Time Trials on Saturday, June 11. The coaches have mentioned Time Trials... are they required? Yes. Time Trials go in the same order as a regular meet: freestyle is swum first, starting with the youngest age group and working up to the oldest age group. This is then repeated for backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly in that order.
Swimmers are expected to arrive by 7:30 AM. Warm-ups start at 7:40 a.m.; event starts at 8:00 a.m. Swimmers should arrive no later than 7:30 a.m. and be ready to warm up (caps and goggles on).
All swimmers (including Junior Piranhas) should attend Time Trials—this is a team event. All swimmers (including Junior Piranhas) will do free. Coaches will determine which swimmers do back, breast & fly. If your swimmer arrives late and their age group already swam freestyle, for example, their next opportunity to swim that event is the B-meet. We are not going back and running additional heats/events for late arrivals.
If you don’t make it to Time Trials, it is possible that your swimmer will not be placed in the first A-meet, as the coaches have no official time from 2022 with which to place your swimmer. There is no Time Trials make-up; the next chance you’ll have to get a recorded time will be the first B-meet that your child swims in, but your swimmer can only swim two events at a B-meet (not all four strokes if eligible).
And one parent from each family is expected to volunteer: See FYI #3 above.As in regular meets, one parent should volunteer to work as a timer, runner, etc. during Time Trials. A few quick reminders about volunteer positions:
●Marshal volunteers must arrive when swimmers are expected to arrive. We can’t start warm-ups without our marshals.
●Timers, Stroke & Turn Judges, and Clerk of Course volunteers should arrive 30 minutes before the meet starts. Timers have a meeting with the Chief Timer and Stroke & Turn Judges will have a meeting with the Referee before the national anthem.
No Excuses… Attend a NVSL Training Clinic. We need every parent from each swim team family to attend one or more training clinics. Your team reps are attending these clinics so you too can find the time. Newly trained parents do not officiate at an A meet, and we will have our experienced officials around to show you the ropes.
If this is your swimmer’s first year on the team, we recommend that you attend Stroke & Turn clinic (you will learn a ton about swimming!):
| Sunday, June 12 – 9:30 AM | New/Recertification Stroke and Turn Clinic @ Brookfield, Hunt Valley or Holmes Run New Referee @ Long Branch New Starter @ Long Branch |
| Wednesday June 15 – 7 PM | New/Recertification Stroke and Turn Clinics @ Stratford or Vienna Woods |
Sunday Clinic Led by Coach Kevin – Sunday Mornings starting June 12
Coach Kevin will run a 40-minute clinic for the 11 & Up Swimmers on Sundays starting June 12. Coach Kevin will be focusing on starts, breakouts, finishes and turns. Clinic Runs from June 12 to July 10 (No Clinic on July 3):
From 8:00 to 8:40 AM - 11/12 Swimmers
From 8:40 to 9:20 AM - 13/14 Swimmers
From 9:20 to 10 AM - 15-18 Swimmers
This clinic is limited to 11/12, 13/14 and 15-18 swimmers who have legal times from 2021 or 2022 in all four strokes for their age group as of June 11. Swimmers must commit to attending 3 out of 4 sessions. Sign-up is first come and first served at https://www.signupgenius.com/
Cake Bake Age Group Social – Sunday, June 12 from 6:30 to 7:30 PM.Cake Bake will be at the pool this year! Age Groups will gather and decorate cakes, and coaches will judge the cakes for the best Piranha spirt, best summer theme, and more. Questions – please reach out to Ali Supple and Kelsey Gutierrez, our Pep Rally & Social chairs. We would love to have all swimmers participate. It is a great way for the swimmers and parents to meet other Parklawn families. Wear your Parklawn gear! See also FYI #4 above.
Away B-Meet on Monday, June 13 at Broyhill Crest.Our first B-meet of the season is at Broyhill Crest (7212 Early Street, Annandale, VA 22003). Swimmers should arrive by 5:10 PM; warm-ups start at 5:20 PM. Show your team spirit by wearing your Piranhas gear (T-shirts, hoodies, etc.). Also, this meet’s theme is “Parklawn Rockstars.” Think Crazy Hats, Wigs, and Glasses.
At this meet, swimmers may swim two events (free, back, breast, fly or IM) if they are eligible. Coaches decide whether swimmers are eligible to swim back, breast, fly and IM. Swimmers must select the strokes that they wish to swim by Saturday, June 11 at 3 PM on Swimtopia. Coaches will review & approve the strokes prior to the B-meet.
Afternoon Clinics Led by Coach Armi.Coach Armi will be running afternoon clinics on Tuesdays & Thursdays between 1:30 and 3:00 PM starting the week of June 13. These clinics will focus on swimmers who were recommended for some extra technique work and for some additional coaching to address DQs. More information to come in our next Piranha News update.
AND WHAT ELSE DO I NEED TO KNOW?
Practice Attendance.If your swimmer is not able to attend practice because he/she is sick or has a conflict, that is okay. Please take care of your swimmer and family. NVSL meets are a different story, of course!
Practice Weather Policy. Piranhas practice and swim in the rain! We will delay practice for 30 minutes if there is thunder and follow the pool rules. We cancel practice if the pool closes or the thunderstorms are non-stop. We wish we could give lots of advance notice when practice will be delayed or canceled. Watch TeamSnap chat and Swimtopia for alerts if we cancel practice – Coach Dan will send a message if practice is cancelled. Weather predictions are just predictions and it can be sunny at the pool and rainy two miles away. We appreciate your patience and understanding. If practice is still scheduled and you feel that the weather conditions are not safe for you to travel to the pool, make the best decision for your family. We will support that decision and there is no penalty or consequence for not showing up for a rainy practice.
AND TO POST ON YOUR FRIDGE…
Attached is a handy UPDATED ‘Key Dates’ reference guide. Always rely on Swimtopia for current information.