How to Survive the Summer… as a Parklawn Piranha Dive Parent. Welcome to the Parklawn Piranhas Dive Team! You didn’t think it was just your CHILD that has joined the team, did you?? GREAT NEWS: YOU are also a CRITICAL member of this team! 😊

1: Yikes, what do I do first?

A1: First things first, prepare to volunteer! The whole team, and really the whole league, operates on volunteers. The dive meets require numerous people to run; if your child is diving in a meet, at least one parent should work that meet unless all work slots are already filled. Working the meet can involve simple things like operating the concession stand, or more technical things like judging or helping at the meet results table. The Northern Virginia Swim League (NVSL) provides free courses and internally we will also can provide training for the more technical jobs; usually most parents start with something simple.

When working at a meet you should wear a white top over navy blue bottoms, such as navy shorts/skorts/pants. 

We also need help with social events, spirit gear, banquet, planning, organizing, etc.—there are lots of ways to be involved! Most can find something that they enjoy doing, and there are plenty of friendly folks to teach you what you need to know.

Finally, each family is required to work three shifts at the pool Snack Bar over the course of the summer, four total if your child does both swim and dive. You have to sign up for shifts during registration though you may swap with other parents if your schedule changes.

Volunteering is a great way to get to know the divers and your fellow parents (meaning more places where you’ll feel VERY welcome to sit when the pool is crowded). It also shows your diver that you take this seriously!

Q2: How long is this dive team thing again??

A2: Summer dive is typically 8 weeks with practices/events/meets running 6 days a week. Dive Practices – Generally, practices occur in the mornings at the beginning of summer after school ends. While schools are still in session, practices occur in the evenings only, Monday through Friday. In the summer the pool is not open for members during much of the dive team practice schedule. Parents are encouraged to not be on deck while practice is in progress to avoid distracting divers. So ideally parents drop of children for practice and pick them up when practice is complete.

Q3: What should I bring to meets/practices??

A3: For meets, your diver should wear a team T-shirt and team swimsuit. They should also bring water to stay hydrated, a towel, bug spray, and sunscreen. In addition, at meets, concessions are sold to raise money for the hosting team, so providing your child cash for that or your own snacks is usually a good idea. It is considered good sportsmanship to buy yummy treats from the host pool. Remember to also account for weather and temperatures (umbrellas, sweatshirts, etc).

Q4: How can I learn the Super Cool Dive Team Lingo??

A4:SHHHH, don’t tell anyone where you heard it… but see below: “Being Legal in a Dive” – able to complete all dives required for an age group A meet.

Disqualifying (DQing). “DQ” – When people say this at a dive meet they are NOT talking about Dairy Queen. What they mean is “Disqualified.” Why do you care?? Well… if your child DQs in an “A” meet, then he/she is not eligible for points for that dive. If the dive is one of the required dives for the age group then your child cannot score points for the team in the meet.

Diving Up – As long as a diver can complete the required dives for an older age group a coach can select the diver to Dive Up and compete against the older age group. Often this happens if the team has other strong divers in the same age group as your child that can still win points in the event and our team or the other team does not have many divers or strong divers in the higher age group.

Q6: OK, so I figured out where and when the first meet is (THANKS Swimtopia!)… But how does it work? There are A-meets, and B-meets, and judges, and scoring, and where did that guy find a hotdog? Also, how does everyone already know what to do?

A6(a): Ok, breathe… Let’s break down the A-meets first. Those are the NVSL (league) meets where the team’s goal is to compete against another team in our NVSL dive division. Each division has six teams and five meets. The objective is to score as many points as possible; the team with the highest points wins the meet. Points are awarded for each individual: 1st place gets five points, 2nd place three points, and 3rd place one point.

Prior to the meet, the coaches review the divers scores from both our team and the opponent. They use this information to identify who will dive in the meet. This is all based on your child’s ability to complete required dives legally and which divers give the team the best ability to win. In Dive a coach can enter as many divers in any age group as available as long as the total divers for the team does not exceed 32 (for both boys and girls). Diving meets are not all about winning. However, the coach will try to win each dive meet as long as the strategy benefits the team.

The coaches place divers with the intention of the best way to score points at the meet. In order for your child to be eligible to dive in an A-meet, you MUST mark that your child is available for that meet at least one week prior to the meet (this is done in Swimtopia; get the app or use the desktop version).

A6(b): B-meets are team events where the team dives against a local area pool, but they are not NVSL/league meets where points are awarded and a score is tracked; the results have no effect in the division. It is like a scrimmage or exhibition match. All divers who did not place 1^st or 2^nd in the last A meet should dive in B-meets. B-meets are all about the diver gaining meet experience, improving dives, and building confidence, with no goal of team points.

All divers should attend B-meets to support the team.

B-meets are fun because since they usually against local pools outside of our division and the divers often know the divers on the other team from school, sports or other activities. B-meets can also take a bit longer than A-meets due to more kids diving. B-meets offer the coaches an opportunity to evaluate divers in a competition setting, give divers meet experience. All divers receive ribbons for diving in B-meets.

Q7: This all sounds intense. Do the kids ever kick back and have fun, team-build and bond??? Possibly with cake and singing off-key?

A7: The team holds pep rallies and activities for all divers and swimmers on the team on Friday nights. It is how they make friends and bond with one another. Practices are for practicing and meets are about people getting where they need to be to dive – but the pep rallies such as karaoke, games, cake bakes, etc. are about having fun and many of them are all done by age group to help bond the swimmers. This is more about the team as a whole and friendships, as well as letting the kids rest and raising spirits for the following meet.

Q8: OK, how on earth do we keep track of all these events, plus how do I ask if someone has found my favorite towel—it has cats with little sombreros and tacos on it?

A8: For this, we use Swimtopia. It’s a great resource to know when and where meets and events are happening. It is also a means to communicate with the rest of the team. You can look under the roster tab and pull up emails and telephone numbers of your fellow parents and it has a group chat feature to ask questions or request help. Also, this is where you would indicate whether your diver is available for an NVSL meet – A-meets, Wally Martin or Cracker Jack.

Q9: OK, there are several grownups walking around in cool team shirts; they look important… who are they?

A9: Those would be our coaches and team reps. We will have 2 main coaches for the team. All the coaches are there to help the kids improve their dives, and the main coaches also handle all the meet placement. If you have questions for the coaches, save them for after meets and practices. During meets and practices the coaches are busy with the divers. The other fancy-shirt-wearing folks are the team reps, who handle most of the logistics of the team and work closely with the coaches to help the team do its best. Team reps are here to help; they are a wealth of information and can answer your questions or find you who can. That Team Reps are also volunteers from the pool membership as well, not paid staff.

Q10: So what is this Wally Martin, Cracker Jack and Divisionals —I hear they are a big deal? I’m guessing the kids get to pass around funnel cake and cotton candy or something?

A10: Wally Martin Memorial Event –The Wally Martin Memorial Event (Sunday early July) is an individual event on the 3 meter board, also known as the “high” board. The NVSL Dive uses a 1 meter board and Parklawn Pool does not have a 3 meter board (most pools don’t). Both Parklawn Pool boards are 1 meet boards. The Wally Martin is a USA Dive event meant for more seasoned divers who practice in the off-season or otherwise during the summer on 3 meter boards. If your diver does this our coaches are more than happy to enter them in and support them in the event. Please notify your coach if you think your child is qualified to participate in the Wally Martin.

Cracker Jack (Sunday mid-July) – This is an individual dive even for divers at a certain dive skill aptitude yet who are unlikely to participate in the Divisional meet. This is not a required event to attend but the Dive Coaches may request your divers participate to continue to improve their skills and experience. Divers who dive in Cracker Jack cannot compete in the Divisional meet.

The Divisional Championship Meet, or “Divisionals”, concludes the regular season of competition. It takes place on the Sunday morning following the final Dual/A Meet of the season with all six teams of the Division. The Division Champion Team is recognized with a trophy and the Sportsmanship Award is announced. Divers compete within their age groups and complete the same required dives as in the regular season. Each team may enter 16 divers in total (combined boys and girls) and divers must dive in their assigned age group. In each age group, the top five finishers receive a plaque, and the top two finishers qualify for Individual All Stars (third place is an alternate in case first or second place cannot attend). In terms of volunteers, the most experienced judges and referees are chosen from across the division.

All Stars (Usually first Sunday in August) – Divers qualify by placing in the top 2 in their age group at the Divisional meet. All Stars includes divers from any team in the entire NVSL dive league and represents the top divers in the league.

Banquet Dinner (The Finale of the Season) – This season-end dinner honors the ENTIRE dive team. The dinner is on the Saturday after the Divisional meet. PLEASE make sure your diver can attend this great event. It is all about the divers and all of their hard work. The coaches will recognize every diver on the team. The competition for paper plate awards is FIERCE!

Sportsmanship – The Parklawn Piranhas often win the good sportsmanship award within our division; it is important to always be a good sport. This includes shaking hands with other divers, cheering our own team, and not booing or being negative to the other team. At the end of the day, this is about the kids having fun, improving their skills, and learning to be good competitors.