Team News October 12, 2023

Purpose and roles of the Booster Club can be found here on the team website. Thank you, boosters and parents, for making Sea Snakes swim great for our kids! 

If you missed the October 9 Parent Booster meeting, please email [email protected].  Also, as a reminder, that if you can't make the meetings but would like to read through the meeting minutes, they can be found on our website HERE.   

Next Booster Club meeting is Monday November 13, 7-8 pm at the Wellness Center.  

Beginning with Session 2, volunteering is mandatory. Please sign up here to start working with one of the committees. There are also sign-up sheets at practices. Your time contribution can be small or large, but it is necessary and appreciated! Please reach out to Coach Erica or the Booster President, Brian McBean ([email protected]), if you have any questions or concerns.  Anyone not signed up by October 27, 2023 will be assigned to a committee.  Committees include: 

Fundraising Committee 

Spirit Wear Committee 

Swim Meet Committee 

Team Spirit/Activities Committee 

Fundraising is a required part of being on the Sea Snakes Team. Fundraising helps reduce the costs for all swimmers to attend meets and other activities, as well as overall costs for all families.  We are currently selling raffle tickets for a Paul Reed Smith Guitar.  Your swimmers’ assigned tickets will be in a file box under your family’s name at the Booster Club table in the pool area. Tickets are 1 for $20 or 3 for $50. Sold tickets and money are due back November 24.  
 

Find required gear HERE.  For example, fins are indispensable tools for swimmers to learn correct kicking technique.  The Wellness Center has pull buoys, kickboards, etc., for swimmers to use if they forget, but there are not enough to support an entire large team with swimmers of varying size and skill.  It is challenging to run an effective practice when swimmers do not have the necessary equipment to complete the sets the coaching staff has planned for them. 

Deadline to have required gear: October 27, 2023.   

If you are having a hard time finding or financing gear, please reach out to Coach Erica at ewheatle@shepherd.edu.  

Swimmers will be invited to watch practice from the side of the pool instead of swimming if they do not have required gear.   

Write your name on all your gear and Team Shirt/Sweatshirt (maybe on the inside of bottom hem). Check the lost and found in the meet office (we try to collect it there after practice specifically). Also check in the lost and found behind the front desk.    

Late policy:    

Practice begins with stretching at 5:45 or 6:45pm.  Swimmers are expected to meet their coach promptly for stretching and then make a quick transition from stretching to the pool.   

We love the friendships and comradery that we see developing on our team.  Please encourage your swimmers to save those fun conversations with their friends for the lobby after practice. 

We understand that swimmers are part of a larger family with work and other obligations, but we appreciate when swimmers and families check in with their coaches  if arriving on time is going to be a challenge due to other commitments. 

Practice attendance:    

50% attendance is required to hold your priority registration spot moving forward  

Swimming is a team sport. If your swimmer misses practice, they are not only missing out on their own development.  When coaches have to divert time from the practice plans they developed specifically for their swim groups in order to catch up swimmers on new drills or accommodate swimmers who haven’t built up the requisite endurance due to frequent absences, the entire swim group is impacted. 

If you are going to be out for more than a few days due to illness or vacation, please check in with your coaches and/or email the head coach, Erica Wheatley, at [email protected]. We worry about you when we don’t see you! Also, it helps the coaches plan their practices with the swimmers they know will be in attendance.  

Swimmers that are being disruptive during practice (i.e. horseplay, talking over coaches, going under water/not listening) will be removed from the pool for the remainder of practice for that day. If you have suggestions or concerns about your swimmer in this regard, please check in with us. We want to do anything we can to help each athlete enjoy their time at swim while also keeping all swimmers safe.  

October 7-8 - Mercersburg Academy – Great job, swimmers! Meet results are updated in your TeamUnify account and you can find the results .pdf in the event posting under Past and Archived Events. You will also find there a replay of the event (link to Day 2 may not be working).  

October 21-22 – FOX Invitational  Opt-In is closed. Meet fees have been billed. Swimmers entered into this meet will receive a meet specific email early next week.  

November 4-5 – Mountain State Storm meet Opt-In is October 11- October 24. 

December 15 – In-House Time Trials/Mock Meet. Invite your friends and family to watch! We will need timers, officials, and computer operators for this meet. Great chance for swimmers and swim families to become familiar with the workings of a swim meet.  

There is an increase in fees for Fall Session 2, due to the session being two weeks longer and due to the cost of attending swim meets. 

For Fall Session 1, we did not have set meets prior to the start of the season, so we did not charge or assess fees when setting session costs.     

Fall Session 2, and all sessions to follow, meet costs are incorporated into the practice pricing.  

3 hours of practice time has been added to competitive team groups to cover the cost of coaches attending the Mountain State Storm Meet on November 4-5 and the preparation time that goes into setting up the meet for the swimmers  

3 hours of practice time has been added to all competitive team groups for Time Trials on December 15.  

Each meet assesses fees that are collected by the host team to cover their cost or raise money for their team  

Likely to vary each meet. You can find these fees on the meet notices on the event pages. 

Will be billed to your Team Unify account, and collected by a Booster Club Member or Sea Snakes coach.  No Swimmer Meet Fees should be given to the Wellness Center front desk staff. No online, card, or cash payments can be accepted. CHECK ONLY made out to the host team. We will collect, account, credit your account for the payment, and turn them into the host team in one envelope.  

The coaches will organize swimmers who are registered in a meet into relays as they see best.  

A very specific set of rules apply to organizing and swimming relays. Most of the time we need 4 swimmers in a particular gender and age bracket.  

Some meets have no charge for relays, and other meets have a per-relay surcharge that is divided amongst the four swimmers.  

For more information on how relays are put together, see this resource HERE.   

USA Swimming Premium Membership - Full access to practice participation and all swim meets for the year including championships.     

USA Swimming Flex Membership- Full access to practice participation and up to only TWO swim meets for the year, NOT including championships. Flex is for 12 and under only.   

Outreach memberships are Premium-level USA Swimming memberships offered by our LSC (Local Swim Committee) at a reduced cost to those who apply and qualify. Please reach out to Coach Erica for an application.