It’s a long one, but please read through it all. As always thank you for your patience in this crazy year, lets have some FUN!

Exciting news! ‘Virtual’ Meets have been scheduled. They are as follows (see details following):

Tuesday, June 30^th Fox Den @ Gulf Park – arrive by 5pm at the latest – Theme: BLUE AND WHITE – SHOW YOUR SPIRIT by Wearing your Best BLUE or WHITE attire (check to see which ‘Team’ you are on – posted by Friday, June 26^th on display board in pavilion) *. *Remember no body paint, keep our pool looking great!

Tuesday, July 14^th Holston Hills @ Gulf Park – arrive by 5pm at the latest – Theme: NEON

Tuesday, July 21^st Gettysvue @ Gulf Park – arrive by 5pm at the latest – Theme: STAR WARS

What is a ‘virtual’ meet? This means that we will swim at our pool with our team at the same time as another team swims at their pool and our scores will be entered as if we had a dual meet. Below is a summary 'to know' for our virtual meets, how to sign up to volunteer (we NEED ALL HANDS on deck!) and a note on 2^nd half swim team and Sponsorships Program...

Virtual Meet Social Distancing Protocol:

More details may be included in the swim meet director’s email before each individual meet. In general, the following social distancing protocol MUST be followed during ALL meets this season.

PARKING: All families should park in our lower parking lot at 528 Pensacola Rd or along one side of the street in the neighborhood. It is CRITICAL that you be mindful of the residents in the neighborhood when street parking. Please do not park in the cul-de-sac (past the upper tennis courts), do not block driveways, and only park on ONE SIDE of the street throughout the neighborhood. It is also critical that you do NOT park in the upper pool lot off of Cedar Bluff or block that driveway - we must keep that clear to allow for emergency vehicles, as is the case for ALL practices. (Please take note of the one side of the street parking regulations or you may have to leave the meet to move your car!).

FAMILY AREA:
Our main team area will be to the right of the main pool entrance – by the playground between the tennis courts and pool in the grassy area. Please help keep swimmers out of the water in the unused areas of the pool. Consider only having as few family members as necessary attend each meet in order to keep our on-site numbers low. Entrance to the pool area will only be allowed through the main gate, exit only gate by basketball court (then walk around fence in grass back to family area) and ONLY volunteers, swimmers prepping to swim in current event and parents viewing swimmer in current event should be on/around pool deck at any given time.

Bring tents, bug spray, chairs, blanket or tarp and a flashlight; it can be dark walking back to your car. We ask that ONLY immediate family members share non-individually wrapped food or drink items between one another. We also ask that card games, toys, etc.. be played/shared ONLY between immediate/household family members. Alcoholic beverages and smoking are not allowed in the pool area during GKAISA meets.

‘PREP’ PAVILLION AREA

Pavilion on pool deck will be 'prep' area for heats with swimmers socially distanced. ONLY Swimmers that have been called onto pool deck should be in this area.

For Every Meet, you will

1. RSVP your swimmer(s) by the FRIDAY BEFORE before our TUESDAY meets and Sign up for a volunteer spot - *We have about 1 volunteer spot needed for every swimmer on the team, so please consider having each adult in the family sign up for AT LEAST 1 volunteer spot. Since our meets are only our team, most volunteer spots are for the entire meet (but this also gives you access to the pool deck for the whole meet – perk 😊). You MUST have completed your registration, fees AND Waivers (GPRA if non member AND GKAISA for all) AND RSVP by the Friday before the first meet – or your swimmer(s) will not be able to swim at the meet and we NEED EVERY swimmer to swim at EVERY meet they can.

2. Bring: Make sure to wear your meet swimsuit (don't have one? go to swim and tri ASAP to purchase), bring your gulf park cap (see me if you haven't got yours yet), goggles (and maybe extra goggles in case), towel, chair(s), tarp/tent (we will be setting up families in the grassy area OUTSIDE Gate this year in order to maintain social distancing), sweat shirt/warm cover up, can even bring hand-warmers for those wet and chilly nights like we have had lately. You will also want at least 1 sharpie (see below for why).

SWIM SUIT AND CAP
You'll get a free swim cap from us when the season starts. You can buy/see the team swim suit at http://swimandtri.com - click "Team Portal" on the left navigation and enter "sharks" to see ours.

2. Arrive by 5 – for ALL Meets. See meet director email coming soon for more details. Warmups will be at 5:15 - but you need to arrive at Gulf Park by 5 so you have time to check in - see next steps. Note some volunteer spots need earlier arrival times.

**CANCELLATIONS AND TEXT ALERT SYSTEM

We swim in the rain! However, thunder and lightning can cause a delay if at, so a stormy day could cancel practice of delay a meet. If practices cancel, we'll notify you via text and Facebook. Assume the meet/practice is ON until official word is sent.

Subscribe to text alerts: Text GPSHARKS to 84483 ($7+ annual fee this year – will have to opt in) – will also post on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/GPBlueSharks

3. When you arrive - make sure to set up in the grassy area (around swing set/playground) maintaining 6 ft social distance between family groups – see meet director email for details and Check in with Volunteer Coordinator and listen for Workers Meeting announcement - Check in your swimmer(s) on the posted Heat Sheet on Display Board under pavilion (put a check by your swimmers names and note what event(s) they are swimming – additional copies will be posted in display board by main gate). *PLEASE remind swimmers to maintain social distancing whenever possible. Note that there will be one print out with boy/girl (may be separate sections) swimmers and individual events, relays are usually printed on a separate sheet. All swimmers should have 4 events - if you have less - double check with clerks/coaches. Enter the sharpie: Younger swimmers usually write their names and age on their back, which helps greatly when trying to organize them. Parents will write events on their hands also or take a quick cell phone pic, which prevents having to keep up with something written. Kids will also write competitive phrases and funny stuff like “eat my bubbles.”

What is a Heat Sheet?

A heat sheet is kind of like a line up or a program for a play. It lists all the events, all the times, all the heats, and every individual swimmer at the meet. This is how you know what the event number is, what heat and lane your child is in. The first number is the event number, followed by a description of the event, then the Heat number/Lane number. When in doubt - just ask and we will help you figure it all out :).

4. Stay for WHOLE meet - relays are at the end of the meet for ALL ages - we need ALL swimmers to stay. If a swimmer leaves early, their WHOLE relay team CAN'T compete. NOTE: we may/may not have relays at the first meet due to social distancing concerns, so pay close attention to emails and directions from coaches.

5. Some Swim Team Terminology

IM – This stands for “Individual Medley” – The swimming event where the swimmer swims all four strokes (in this order): butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle.

Medley Relay – The relay that includes all four strokes – with one (of the four) swimmers swimming each stroke in the relay.

DQ – This is short for “Disqualified.” Stroke and Turn Judges are required to watch all swimmers and make sure that all strokes and turns are “legal.”

About those DQs

There is absolutely no shame in getting a DQ in a meet! It’s the same as misspelling a word on a spelling test. You made a mistake, they wrote the thing to correct down, and you learn and improve.

6. After the Meet

Meet Ribbons

Every swimmer 10 and under gets a ribbon denoting how they did at dual meets (like a 1^st place or 6^th place ribbon). If your younger swimmer does NOT want the ribbons, let us know. Also if your OLDER swimmer does want them, we’d be happy to provide them – just let us know!

Pictures!

We always do an end-of-the-summer banquet complete with photo slide show – so be sure to get some great pictures and send them in!

We also take professional individual and team photos so that you can have a great lasting memento of this summer. It is so much fun to look back at those pictures as your kids grow. Watch for information about when picture day is scheduled.

6. 2^nd Swim Team Session Sign Ups by June 24^th - If you only signed up for ½ summer – note that this ends on June 26^th. Please register for 2^nd session so you can participate in the meets– plus we will MISS YOU and want you to have the full experience for swim team. Also if you have friends or family that were hesitant at the start of the summer, check with them and let them know to sign up TODAY so they can participate in 2nd session. With the meets – we would like 2^nd session swim team registrations by June 24^th so they can participate in the first meet. They are also welcome to come out and try swim team next week in preparation. Stay tuned for and exciting membership offer from GPRA beginning July 4^th as well. Let me know if you have any questions or send an email to [email protected]

7. SPONSORSHIP INCENTIVE!

Meets are a GREAT time for our sponsor to GET SEEN! If you, your family or friends have a company/business that could use some incredible advertising – Sponsor the Swim Team TODAY!. It’s a great way to reach an incredible new audience of families... it's a win-win-win! Let me know at [email protected] if you have a sponsor to sign up, need more details, or have questions. Attached are the details for our sponsorship program. Note that advertisements on swim team apparel may be applied to the 2021 season.

As Always GO SHARKS!

Jennifer Manrod

Swim Team Director

Gulf Park Blue Sharks