Feedback on Glenmont Gators and Bethesda Barracudas

[Anonymous]

I am looking for feedback on Glenmont Gators and Bethesda Barracudas swim teams. Is one more organized or have better coaches than the other. This will be our first experience with swim team. I am looking for a friendly setting where DS can improve on swimming skills. We are looking to ease DS into the meet/competition experience and think he will mostly participate in the B meets.

TIA

[Anonymous]

The one you can get on. Bethesda Barracuda's is a much better team. A lot of people left the Gators due to issues within the team/management and the coach leaving. Not sure if the new coach is decent or not but many of us ended up at private pools instead. How old?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The one you can get on. Bethesda Barracuda's is a much better team. A lot of people left the Gators due to issues within the team/management and the coach leaving. Not sure if the new coach is decent or not but many of us ended up at private pools instead. How old?

Thanks for the feedback. DS is 8 so will be in the 8 and under group.

[Anonymous]

FYI, you may want to make sure you can still register for the team - several teams I know have already closed registration (bc practice began already).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The one you can get on. Bethesda Barracuda's is a much better team. A lot of people left the Gators due to issues within the team/management and the coach leaving. Not sure if the new coach is decent or not but many of us ended up at private pools instead. How old?

Thanks for the feedback. DS is 8 so will be in the 8 and under group.

It’s all one team and same coaches. Like previous poster said, they generally fill up quickly so they may not have space. They usually have tryouts but you may have missed it.

[Anonymous]

New swimmers have until June 10 to register at Connecticut Belair. We are just down the road from the Glenmont pool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am looking for feedback on Glenmont Gators and Bethesda Barracudas swim teams. Is one more organized or have better coaches than the other. This will be our first experience with swim team. I am looking for a friendly setting where DS can improve on swimming skills. We are looking to ease DS into the meet/competition experience and think he will mostly participate in the B meets.

TIA

Bethesda is not much of a team. They recruit the best area club swimmers who only show up on saturdays. Last year polled a group of their top swimmers and they stepped foot at their home pool twice last year (just for their 2 home A meets).

Coach is a bit incompetent and not very spirited. If money is an issue than swim for one of these public pools but the experience is 3rd rate compared to swimming at a decently spirited or a very spirited private pool team. Not much fun happening in Bethesda and even if you kid is somewhat successful they’ll just recruit over you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:New swimmers have until June 10 to register at Connecticut Belair. We are just down the road from the Glenmont pool.

Its a huge team, good coach but very little to no personal attention. We almost went to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am looking for feedback on Glenmont Gators and Bethesda Barracudas swim teams. Is one more organized or have better coaches than the other. This will be our first experience with swim team. I am looking for a friendly setting where DS can improve on swimming skills. We are looking to ease DS into the meet/competition experience and think he will mostly participate in the B meets.

TIA

Bethesda is not much of a team. They recruit the best area club swimmers who only show up on saturdays. Last year polled a group of their top swimmers and they stepped foot at their home pool twice last year (just for their 2 home A meets).

Coach is a bit incompetent and not very spirited. If money is an issue than swim for one of these public pools but the experience is 3rd rate compared to swimming at a decently spirited or a very spirited private pool team. Not much fun happening in Bethesda and even if you kid is somewhat successful they’ll just recruit over you

Very little cheering at bethesda. the coach barely knows the swimmers names. this team is just for people chasing glory. make lifelong friends at your neighborhood pool

[Anonymous]

Wildwood Manor in Bethesda is a fun pool if that’s near you.

[Anonymous]

Our team swam away at Glenmont in a meet last year. They were not particularly competitive, that can be good or bad I suppose, depending what level your kid is at. From memory there did not seem to be much team spirit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:New swimmers have until June 10 to register at Connecticut Belair. We are just down the road from the Glenmont pool.

It's a lot more expensive to join CB and then sign up for swim team as opposed to joining one of these county-based teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our team swam away at Glenmont in a meet last year. They were not particularly competitive, that can be good or bad I suppose, depending what level your kid is at. From memory there did not seem to be much team spirit.

Glenmont was in our division last year, and they had a handful of kids that were good RMSC swimmers, but they weren’t deep enough to be competitive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our team swam away at Glenmont in a meet last year. They were not particularly competitive, that can be good or bad I suppose, depending what level your kid is at. From memory there did not seem to be much team spirit.

Glenmont was in our division last year, and they had a handful of kids that were good RMSC swimmers, but they weren’t deep enough to be competitive.

+1

But also, it's summer swim. One of the teams in our division had an abundance of team spirit, to the point of being obnoxious. Summer swim, to me, should first and foremost be fun and safe for the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New swimmers have until June 10 to register at Connecticut Belair. We are just down the road from the Glenmont pool.

Its a huge team, good coach but very little to no personal attention. We almost went to them.

We’re you a former member of the team? I’m confused how you came to this concluding. When my oldest was 8 she had an assistant coach in the water with her moving her feet for breaststroke while the head coach was on deck coaching her arm movements. She got this level of personal attention for several weeks to ensure she was legal in that stroke to participate in A meets.

I will say the evening practices have less personal attention compared to the morning practices. There are more coaches in the morning and the kids are split into smaller age groups compared to evening practices. Morning kids get 5 full practices a week versus evening kids getting just Monday, Tuesday and Thursday due to B meets and Pep Rallies.