What Winter Championship meets do you like and why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

Are only certain clubs invited to NCI? It looks like there are swimmers from NY, MA, CT, PA and others there. Frankly it seems more competitive than JOs with so many fast non-PVS swimmers.

The 15&O level is particularly competitive.

But aren't the super fast 15&overs going to Winter Juniors in Columbus?

No. My kids’ RMSC training groups has half a dozen kids with those cuts, they’ll swim here at Holiday Invitational.

Bull. There’s only one RMSC swimmer with any winter junior cuts.

Umm, there are at least 4 in the KSAC NTG group alone. At least the same number at Rockville, and one off the top of my head at MLK.

Also, I know at least four at Olney. I think in past years, some RMSC kids went to both Winter Juniors and then swam at holiday the next week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not talking about the winter champs in Florida, I am referring to the winter juniors east in Columbus, the same weekend as NCAP Invite. Wouldn’t most of the really fast 15&overs go to Columbus? I thought they were all trying to make that meet to get recruited.

NCAPs fastest 15 and overs generally go to NCI.

College coaches come to NCI to watch fast swimmers and talk to recruits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are all the elite age groupers at RMSC? Do they switch to NCAP later?

I do think that they switch. It is not uncommon to move clubs as you go to the higher levels. Sometimes for training groups, or a coach, or you think you are plateauing with your current program.

I am not sure this is true, though perhaps I don't know what is meant by elite. For my kid's age group, I can think of kids at multiple clubs who have AAAA times/top 20 in country in various events.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why are all the elite age groupers at RMSC? Do they switch to NCAP later?

Both clubs have elite age groupers. Some of the switching out of RMSC comes from the fact that once you get to their elite level you aren’t getting the same price break that you get when the kid is a 12 and under. Kids sometimes switch out of NCAP too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

My daughter has the same mixed feelings. Barely made 3 cut times and was wondering the same thing. Told her she should be proud of her achievement and all that matters is doing your best, regardless of which Meet you are at. She can alway go to Turkey Claus but not NCI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

Are only certain clubs invited to NCI? It looks like there are swimmers from NY, MA, CT, PA and others there. Frankly it seems more competitive than JOs with so many fast non-PVS swimmers.

The 15&O level is particularly competitive.

But aren't the super fast 15&overs going to Winter Juniors in Columbus?

No, they go to Invite

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

My daughter has the same mixed feelings. Barely made 3 cut times and was wondering the same thing. Told her she should be proud of her achievement and all that matters is doing your best, regardless of which Meet you are at. She can alway go to Turkey Claus but not NCI.

In case you were thinking she can choose Turkey Claus over NCI, she can’t swim the events that she made NCI in at Turkey Claus because her times are too fast. Shoutout to Machine though for running Turkey Claus like an elite meet so that all the swimmers can get that kind of experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why are all the elite age groupers at RMSC? Do they switch to NCAP later?

Both clubs have elite age groupers. Some of the switching out of RMSC comes from the fact that once you get to their elite level you aren’t getting the same price break that you get when the kid is a 12 and under. Kids sometimes switch out of NCAP too.

For a variety of reasons, fewer kids are going from RMSC to NCAP as they age than was the case in the past. The current junior/senior classes, and even 2023 graduates, have a wealth of kids who have stayed at RMSC their entire career.

[Anonymous]

We had two kids that were probably our best swimmers jump to NCAP. I do not know why though. But it will hurt our club's standings this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

My daughter has the same mixed feelings. Barely made 3 cut times and was wondering the same thing. Told her she should be proud of her achievement and all that matters is doing your best, regardless of which Meet you are at. She can alway go to Turkey Claus but not NCI.

In case you were thinking she can choose Turkey Claus over NCI, she can’t swim the events that she made NCI in at Turkey Claus because her times are too fast. Shoutout to Machine though for running Turkey Claus like an elite meet so that all the swimmers can get that kind of experience.

No, I know she can’t. I just meant that she will not always be invited to NCI because she won’t always make the cut.

Yes. I do appreciate that Machine Runs it so well. Just hate having to drive to UMD 2 weekends in a row.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

We had two kids that were probably our best swimmers jump to NCAP. I do not know why though. But it will hurt our club's standings this year.

Seems to me that kids leaving the smaller clubs (JFD, TOLL, TIBU, SDS...I'm less familiar with VA clubs) by 14 is still fairly common.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

My daughter has the same mixed feelings. Barely made 3 cut times and was wondering the same thing. Told her she should be proud of her achievement and all that matters is doing your best, regardless of which Meet you are at. She can alway go to Turkey Claus but not NCI.

In case you were thinking she can choose Turkey Claus over NCI, she can’t swim the events that she made NCI in at Turkey Claus because her times are too fast. Shoutout to Machine though for running Turkey Claus like an elite meet so that all the swimmers can get that kind of experience.

No, I know she can’t. I just meant that she will not always be invited to NCI because she won’t always make the cut.

Yes. I do appreciate that Machine Runs it so well. Just hate having to drive to UMD 2 weekends in a row.

Me too! But I’m very glad Turkey Claus has a NFT rule. Our club also limits entries to 7 total between the two meets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mom of College Swimmer-I always liked the Potomac Marlin's winter classic at GMU. It wasn't too fast, and a lot of people make finals for the first time. I also like that pool and parking lot. When my kid got faster they went to NCAP, and that meet is super fast, some of the fastest high school swimmers in the country.

NCI is super fast. My kid just made the cut in one event and was a little bummed because he knows he will be at the bottom at NCI vs making the finals at Turkey Claus.

Are only certain clubs invited to NCI? It looks like there are swimmers from NY, MA, CT, PA and others there. Frankly it seems more competitive than JOs with so many fast non-PVS swimmers.

The 15&O level is particularly competitive.

But aren't the super fast 15&overs going to Winter Juniors in Columbus?

No. My kids’ RMSC training groups has half a dozen kids with those cuts, they’ll swim here at Holiday Invitational.

Bull. There’s only one RMSC swimmer with any winter junior cuts.

Not bull. KSAC has 6 seniors with Winter Juniors cuts (5 boys and 1 girl). There may be more; I just looked up the seniors.

[Anonymous]

UMD is probably the best pool in the area for times. So Turkey Claus is fun.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UMD is probably the best pool in the area for times. So Turkey Claus is fun.

What makes it such a good pool?