Frequently Asked Questions
How do I sign my swimmer IN or OUT for meets?
Please go to the website under Meet 101. Go to Signup Calendar. There are directions: (Declaring for a Meet Instructions). There is also a video!
Best practice: sign your swimmer IN for all the meets from the beginning! If something changes, you can switch your sign up, but this way they are declared and you won't take the chance of missing a meet due to not signing a swimmer in.
Our expectation is that YOU will be signing in your swimmers before each meet by 9am on Friday mornings.
What if our family is going on vacation and we will miss a week of practice and a meet?
No problem. Make sure your swimmer is signed OUT of the meet before the Friday 9am deadline.
What if we have a week of camp scheduled for my swimmer and they will miss practices that week, but they are still available for the meet?
You can let a coach know you will miss practice, but just make sure your swimmer is signed IN for the meet before the deadline.
What if my swimmer will be late for the meet or needs to leave early?
When you are signing your swimmer in or out of a meet, there is a place to leave notes for the coach to say if you will be late or leaving early.
What if I have an emergency during a meet?
Please do NOT leave without letting a coordinator know. Coaches do not always have time to let the coordinator know and this could leave a relay without a swimmer. If you leave without a coordinator knowing, your child will not be able to be in relays for the following meet.
What if I don’t want my swimmer to stay late at a meet?
When signing a swimmer into a meet, there is a place for you to say if you do NOT want late events. Younger swimmers will most likely be done around 8:30pm, but we cannot guarantee this. If you plan to leave, please mark them out of later events. Please do not just leave a meet. Kids in the relays are depending on their teammates. If you leave without a coordinator knowing, your child will not be able to be in relays for the following meet.
I know you know your kid best. If you think they cannot stay past 8:30pm, that is your choice, but know the meets are a ton of fun and kids usually love the opportunity to stay late with their friends. We start practices a little later for the early group the day following a meet.
Do I need a team swimsuit?
You do NOT need a team suit, but it is highly recommended and a great option for the meets. During practices, any color suit is fine. During meets, please have a team suit or a coordinating blue suit. We have TWO team options on our website for suits that would be great!
What do I bring to a meet?
Sharpie marker, sunscreen, goggles, swim cap, 1-2 towels, a chair, your patience, and your smile! And money to support the concessions! Concessions are a huge fundraiser for teams. Please support our teams!
When do we arrive to the meet?
You can start setting up at home meets at 4pm. Parking is scarce for any of the meets! All meets start at 6pm, but if it’s a home meet, we will warmup at 5pm. At an Away meet, our team will warmup at 5:30pm.
How do I know what events my child is swimming in?
Although it may show up on Swimtopia before the meet, all events are subject to change before the meet with last minute scratches. Therefore, only rely on the heat slip your coach hands each swimmer when they get to the meet.
How long are meets?
Meets begin at 6pm and MUST end by 11pm by CSSL rules. In general, they will end around 10pm on average.
5/6 year olds are generally done around 8:30pm.
Rain delays will cause meets to run late.
What if it rains?
We will swim with light rain. If it is worse than a light rain, it will depend on the officials. If there is thunder and lightning, we will have to clear the deck, but do not leave! It's everyone's goal to finish the meet that night. It is always very difficult to reschedule a meet. Please be patient with the decisions made regarding the weather. All weather updates will be sent on the Swimtopia App.
What do I wear/need to do for Picture Day?Do we have practice after?
We will wear our team shirts for the team picture. You may wear any suit for your individual pictures. Everyone registered is given a team shirt and is expected to have it for picture day.
You will get an email before pictures with an option to buy credits beforehand. This gives the company your information and speeds up the process on the day. This is the company’s policy and required to do any individual pictures. Then you will get a link after the picture day to choose what you want and pay any balance.
If you are not interested in individual pictures, please still come at 9:45am to be a part of our team picture. We use our team banner as advertising and the banner stays up throughout the entire season.
Who can participate in swim clinics?
Swim clinics are for any of our Dolphins. They concentrate on a specific stroke each day. Look for the specific date on the calendar and check the color coding for ages BEFORE signing up. Clinics are non-refundable. If the team must cancel due to weather, we will do what we can to make it up.
What is the Swim-a-thon?
Swimathon is a community AND team fundraiser. Kids will collect pledges or one-time donations. ON the day of the event, they will swim as many laps as possible in their time allotment. Money collected will be split between our team and a nonprofit. Please see the website page for all the details.
