Swim Meet Relay Policy? What is your summer teams relay policy?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Do most teams require the coach to use ranked times for individual events too? That had always been our team policy but we have a new coach and he skipped a swimmer in one event (but not another event) for today’s meet. And not even back to back events - he skipped her in free and is swimming her in breast. Seems like it would be terrible for morale.

You don't always swim the fastest swimmer since you are limited on events. Coaches swim the top swimmers in each stroke/age/gender which is usually the top six. If you know the other team has a faster swimmer and you can't pick up points with your fastest swimmer, you might move them to other strokes and swim one of your slower swimmers - but still top six generally.

This. In DDs age group, the same two swimmers are the top two in all four strokes, and another swimmer is #3 in three of them, #4 in the fourth. But each kid can only swim two strokes, so when putting together the line up for a meet, the coach is going to have to skip someone somewhere and move down to #s 4-6. Where that happens can change week to week as the coach looks at the best way to earn points against the other team. As pp said, if it's highly unlikely that even the best swimmer will score in one stroke it makes sense to move them somewhere they have a better chance.

I am the person who asked the question, and this is not what I am asking about. Of course kids can only swim three strokes and the coach decides which three, meaning that some kids ranked fourth and fifth get a chance. I was a college swimmer so this isn’t new to me. I am asking about something different - the coach entirely skips a swimmer who is ranked higher and available to swim that day, so that a lower ranked swimmer can swim instead. Meaning the higher ranked swimmer is not being saved for another stroke, but left out of the meet entirely. Our coach has started doing this, and it is toxic.

That’s just wrong. What’s the reasoning for this? Favoritism? I’d be pissed.

This should have you asking to see the ladder and explaining himself. I would definitely bring this up to the team reps, etc.

Do teams not send out the ladder to everyone? Ours does after every meet. I appreciate it because it’s transparent and also because I would lose track of whether or not my kid is eligible to swim in the A meet (and for what) if they didn’t. I don’t have time to be parsing over results from previous meets to see whose times are faster or slower than whatever my kids just did. Our ladder is based on overall best times from any point in the season not just the previous B meet.

No. I think that would be humiliating to some swimmers and not great for morale.

Interesting perspective. My child is still very young so he is oblivious. I am the one who gets the emails and I wait till the lineup comes out to tell him whether he's swimming on Sat (and what). I am purposely not telling him anything about his times or rank unless he asks. I want him to remain blissfully unaware for as long as possible. I'm sure it changes quickly though. I have already overheard the older kids in his age group talking with him about times and in my head I'm like "nooo don't talk about that just talk about what snack you're getting after your event".

Ours shares it for transparency for the meets, which I think is ultimately the way to go but they have threatened that if it starts to be a problem they reserve the right to not circulate it. It hasn’t been a problem as far as I know though.

Oh by the way - speaking of this thread - they are going to do some 25m time trials for relays at our pool! I don’t know if they always did that or if my kids were 8 & under and I didn’t realize they were doing it for older kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do most teams require the coach to use ranked times for individual events too? That had always been our team policy but we have a new coach and he skipped a swimmer in one event (but not another event) for today’s meet. And not even back to back events - he skipped her in free and is swimming her in breast. Seems like it would be terrible for morale.

You don't always swim the fastest swimmer since you are limited on events. Coaches swim the top swimmers in each stroke/age/gender which is usually the top six. If you know the other team has a faster swimmer and you can't pick up points with your fastest swimmer, you might move them to other strokes and swim one of your slower swimmers - but still top six generally.

This. In DDs age group, the same two swimmers are the top two in all four strokes, and another swimmer is #3 in three of them, #4 in the fourth. But each kid can only swim two strokes, so when putting together the line up for a meet, the coach is going to have to skip someone somewhere and move down to #s 4-6. Where that happens can change week to week as the coach looks at the best way to earn points against the other team. As pp said, if it's highly unlikely that even the best swimmer will score in one stroke it makes sense to move them somewhere they have a better chance.

I am the person who asked the question, and this is not what I am asking about. Of course kids can only swim three strokes and the coach decides which three, meaning that some kids ranked fourth and fifth get a chance. I was a college swimmer so this isn’t new to me. I am asking about something different - the coach entirely skips a swimmer who is ranked higher and available to swim that day, so that a lower ranked swimmer can swim instead. Meaning the higher ranked swimmer is not being saved for another stroke, but left out of the meet entirely. Our coach has started doing this, and it is toxic.

Leave coaching decisions to the coaches, or shop for a new coach.

[Anonymous]

In MCSL, it is fastest swims of the day. The only time I have seen something else at our pool is if a kid is fastest in all 4 and swimming back, breast and fly. If no one beats that kids’ seed time, then that kid gets to swim
- which makes sense to me.

[Anonymous]

Too many reps and parents want to make the relay teams. Let the coaches do their jobs. If that parent or rep can do a better job in their mind they should apply/hire themselves. 80+% of coaches are good with lineups and know what they are doing. They know the swimmers better than anyone else.

[Anonymous]

Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I strongly disagree. As a mom of a kid who only swims in the summer, I am so glad the lanes are not clogged up with club swimmers. My kid got a lot of attention he otherwise wouldn’t have if more swimmers would have been there. He made an all star time at divisionals and it was so exciting for him! The club swimmers and non-year round kids all mingle at the pasta dinners and all the meets and there is a ton of team bonding. My kid knows the club kids are practicing every day and deserve all the success they have in the meets. And he is grateful for practices where he gets attention and is corrected.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

That is silly. The summer team practices have to cater to swimmers of all levels, so the practice isn't doing a heck of a lot for some of the more "elite" swimmers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I strongly disagree. As a mom of a kid who only swims in the summer, I am so glad the lanes are not clogged up with club swimmers. My kid got a lot of attention he otherwise wouldn’t have if more swimmers would have been there. He made an all star time at divisionals and it was so exciting for him! The club swimmers and non-year round kids all mingle at the pasta dinners and all the meets and there is a ton of team bonding. My kid knows the club kids are practicing every day and deserve all the success they have in the meets. And he is grateful for practices where he gets attention and is corrected.

Thank you for saying this. I think a lot of people with the attendance complaint aren’t thinking about the opportunity it can take away from the other kids. If my kid is getting coaching elsewhere, that’s more attention and space for others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

At my pool the year round swimmers who swim with the summer team tend to have better summer seasons than those who go to club every day

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

At my pool the year round swimmers who swim with the summer team tend to have better summer seasons than those who go to club every day

I would agree with this too. My kids swim with the Marlins. Good club. But my summer team does a much better job of tweaking my kids' strokes and seeing issues. Plus with two meets a week they get the racing opportunity to see if it works.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

At my pool the year round swimmers who swim with the summer team tend to have better summer seasons than those who go to club every day

You must have a small team and an excellent coach because our summer team practices are a free for all with very little attention paid to to the year round swimmers. They get put in a lane together and they swim laps and have some fun together. My club swimmer goes to summer practice once a week just because it’s fun and she gets to hang out with her friends, but she gets no instruction from her summer club coach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

At my pool the year round swimmers who swim with the summer team tend to have better summer seasons than those who go to club every day

That is great! But no reason to require practices for kids who prefer to go to club - which is what I was arguing against (the policy of seeding relays based on whether you have practiced with summer team or not).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Frankly I think coaches should require at least two practices a week with the summer team in order to do A meet that week unless you are on vacation.

My DD swims year round but she splits the difference between summer and year round practices since she has both teams.

I disagree with this as well. We are a large team (over 200 swimmers) and it would be really difficult to accommodate practice for all of the kids. The fact that the year round swimmers aren’t taking up lanes and coaching time makes it a better experience for the summer swim only kids, not to mention the fact that the year round swimmers aren’t getting anything out of a practice that is geared to level of the kids that don’t swim year round. The year round and summer only kids are all still friendly and hang out together at the social events, etc., so it’s not as if the year round swimmers distance themselves from the rest of the team and don’t participate in team activities. They just don’t take up practice lanes and practice time.

At my pool the year round swimmers who swim with the summer team tend to have better summer seasons than those who go to club every day

You must have a small team and an excellent coach because our summer team practices are a free for all with very little attention paid to to the year round swimmers. They get put in a lane together and they swim laps and have some fun together. My club swimmer goes to summer practice once a week just because it’s fun and she gets to hang out with her friends, but she gets no instruction from her summer club coach.

our summer coach and assistant are club coaches and they tend to pay a lot of attention to kids whose strokes need tweaking. They aren't turning a kid who can't make A meets into an allstar, but they are shaving time off of swimmers including the year round kids

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 9 year old just made his first A meet. He does not do club swim but our summer pool has a weekly indoor rec center practice which I think is great. Anyhoo - the real reason I’m excited about it was because he was poised to do great his 8 year old summer & swim A meets & then the season didn’t happen! So I am happily surprised that he was able to transition to 50s (except 25 fly which is great that they still can do).

Anyway - I see those 9 year old swimming this summer and appreciate their effort after no 8 real year old summer season! Good for them from me

This happened to our kid too. She was absolutely crushing it at the end of her 7 yo year. There was some tears of frustration this year, but by the last meet she had times that would have qualified her for an A meet and she is now really excited for next season.