Freeloading swim team parents suck

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s partly that some official jobs need training and recertification so you need to find parents who want to do those (stroke and turn, ugh) AND take the time to go to training.

Ref, Starter, Stroke and Turn. Only three roles that need certification, which in NVSL is 2hrs one time per year. Others benefit from training like data people. The vast majority of roles from timer to clerk of course to marshall to selling concessions are not rocket science.

True. But our team struggles the most with the trained officials. We have parents who have been doing it but then their kids graduate and no new parents willing to step up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t know why you swim team parents put up with this system. I did summer swim team with people who were later Div I recruited swimmers, and my older sib swam with st least one Olympic qualifier. You know how many parent volunteers there were? Zero. Older kids ran the snack bar (I guess a parent did volunteer to do the Costco run in advance). The coaches or the paid referee monitored for false starts and touch violations. Like what is done in other kids sports. I just don’t know why you swim parents don’t rise up against how ridiculous this system is. I constantly hear people complaining about it but everyone seems to just accept it as a necessary evil. But why is it necessary?

So you swan in an environment that had the funds for paid refs and touch pads and that’s somehow applicable to NVSL?

[Anonymous]

Like most volunteer organizations it sounds like there are some critical needs and a whole lot of “needs” that are really just bloat.
Nobody needs Tuesday morning donuts or a concession stand or robins given out each meet.

Two years ago we got email after email about the need for a concession manager and volunteers for my sons soccer games. And the threat that if no one volunteered we wooodnt have concessions.
Sure enough, no one volunteered and we haven’t had a concession stand the last few years.
It’s wonderful. No kids begging for soda, no harping on about who is going to volunteer before you even know your kids schedules.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s partly that some official jobs need training and recertification so you need to find parents who want to do those (stroke and turn, ugh) AND take the time to go to training.

Ref, Starter, Stroke and Turn. Only three roles that need certification, which in NVSL is 2hrs one time per year. Others benefit from training like data people. The vast majority of roles from timer to clerk of course to marshall to selling concessions are not rocket science.

True. But our team struggles the most with the trained officials. We have parents who have been doing it but then their kids graduate and no new parents willing to step up.

It's hard to recruit because no one wants to wake up and drive across the county on a Saturday morning for a meet that their kid won't participate in. At our pool, most 7, 9, and 11 year olds who were A meet swimmers a year prior just aren't, but they will be next year. There are maybe 1 or 2 exceptions a year. That makes it really hard to recruit parents of young kids

[Anonymous]

I agree, op. There is no way you don’t realize that volunteers are needed. There are multiple emails before each meet, reminders if they need to fill spots, you actually SEE 30 parents timing and running and working automation. If you’re a single parent with an 8 and under, sure you shouldn’t sign up to time a meet because your kid may need you. But I know a family with 2 kids that swim; both parents come to all the meet and they haven’t done a single thing. And no, they’re not working behind the scenes; I know the team reps and they have told me as much.

[Anonymous]

Our swim team has a family point system too. Each family has to contribute 15 points/hours and more if you are dive and pre team too. The system works but there are not enough jobs for all the families to meet the points so it seems like some families are being lazy. Some are freeloading but most just can’t find volunteer hours and some sign up for more than they need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t know I would have to volunteer either. I paid my money for my kid to be on the team. Our meets are at night this year and go until gone 9pm. They always ask for timers but I’m hesitant because I don’t want to be stuck there that late. I have to get up for work at 5am so I usually head out when DD is done.

Honest question, does your child participate in any other rec sport?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Like most volunteer organizations it sounds like there are some critical needs and a whole lot of “needs” that are really just bloat.
Nobody needs Tuesday morning donuts or a concession stand or robins given out each meet.

Two years ago we got email after email about the need for a concession manager and volunteers for my sons soccer games. And the threat that if no one volunteered we wooodnt have concessions.
Sure enough, no one volunteered and we haven’t had a concession stand the last few years.
It’s wonderful. No kids begging for soda, no harping on about who is going to volunteer before you even know your kids schedules.

Sounds like you know nothing about swim meets. Nothing is bloat. We have an 8 lane pool and are required to have 3 timers per lane. That’s 24 people per meet just to time. We also need several clerks of course, computer assistants, time card runners and people to work concessions. None of this is bloat.

Our team is very upfront about the volunteer requirement and gives parents several chances to back out with refund. People who stay and freeload anyway are just scum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t know I would have to volunteer either. I paid my money for my kid to be on the team. Our meets are at night this year and go until gone 9pm. They always ask for timers but I’m hesitant because I don’t want to be stuck there that late. I have to get up for work at 5am so I usually head out when DD is done.

Honest question, does your child participate in any other rec sport?

yes soccer. I sign up to bring snacks once or twice during the season.

[Anonymous]

My kids have played lots of different rec sports. There are on occasion clueless parents who don't understand that kids sports run on parent volunteers. They think they are getting a paid adult soccer or baseball coach for $100/season. Then there are other parents who know things run on volunteers but hope to freeload as much as possible. This is especially true for parents who are used to outsourcing everything. Had a mom two years ago offer to pay $25 to get out of her 5 swim meet volunteer gigs. LOL! No.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t know I would have to volunteer either. I paid my money for my kid to be on the team. Our meets are at night this year and go until gone 9pm. They always ask for timers but I’m hesitant because I don’t want to be stuck there that late. I have to get up for work at 5am so I usually head out when DD is done.

Honest question, does your child participate in any other rec sport?

yes soccer. I sign up to bring snacks once or twice during the season.

No one had brought snacks to soccer in over a year due to Covid.

Also, everyone brings snacks. That's not "volunteering". Who coaches the team? Who is the assistant coach? Who runs the background checks? Who reserves and organizes the field space for practices and games? Who scheduled the refs? Who puts the kids on teams and processes the payments? Who sets up the registration website? Who gets the kids uniforms organized and gets equipment to and back from the coaches?

[Anonymous]

Honest question, if you truly missed seeing all the emails about volunteer requirements, once you saw all the adult volunteers at time trials...didn't it occur to you that you would have to volunteer? You could have quit then and been refunded if you just didn't have the time to volunteer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When the team says prior to registration that volunteering is mandatory to make swim team work, they don’t mean everyone but YOU.

You suck and I judge you. Don’t give excuses, no one forced you to register your kid.

That’s all.

This is why my kids don’t swim. Congrats on your superiority.

You are an example of someone who, knowing the volunteer commitment required for summer swim, chose not to have their kids do summer swim. Good for you for not being a free-loader.

Why are you on this thread?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I didn’t know I would have to volunteer either. I paid my money for my kid to be on the team. Our meets are at night this year and go until gone 9pm. They always ask for timers but I’m hesitant because I don’t want to be stuck there that late. I have to get up for work at 5am so I usually head out when DD is done.



Honest question, does your child participate in any other rec sport?

yes soccer. I sign up to bring snacks once or twice during the season.



No one had brought snacks to soccer in over a year due to Covid.

Also, everyone brings snacks. That's not "volunteering". Who coaches the team? Who is the assistant coach? Who runs the background checks? Who reserves and organizes the field space for practices and games? Who scheduled the refs? Who puts the kids on teams and processes the payments? Who sets up the registration website? Who gets the kids uniforms organized and gets equipment to and back from the coaches?

There are deadbeat parents like the PP above in pretty much every sport and activity. They think their time is more valuable than everyone else's. Sigh.

[Anonymous]

My kids swam for years -- in the summers and all through HS and college; the youngest is now a college sophomore and is coaching. DH and I did our share of volunteering. I agree that yes, it's annoying when people don't volunteer. And, yes, some of the volunteer gigs are unnecessary (though they do contribute to making swim team fun). All that said, my kids have wonderful memories of swim team and are grateful not only for our -- relatively small -- volunteer efforts over the years, but for the work of those parents who made the huge commitment of being A reps. So, know that your kids see you and that you're setting an example of how to build community.