Tollefson Swim Team

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP... So you were not a witness, thanks for the confirmation.

This is all hearsay.

One person's interpretation is not the entire story. There are TWO SIDES to every story.

You’ve repeated over and over that there’s 2 sides, but without knowing the second side it doesn’t change my opinion that the club handled it poorly and that it reflects badly on them to people considering joining the club.

Why do you care so much? You’re clearly not on Toll and who knows if you even swim.

People should judge not based on silly posts on an anonymous forum but based on personal experience- that said I am shocked more at the parent for posting here so obviously and outing their child. It obviously wasn’t a match so just move on, geez.

Well, if a team is basically kicking off a paid swimmer mid-season because they declared an intention to leave in the fall-- that's kind of a big deal. And if that idea caught on for all the PVS teams, that could affect my kids sooner or later. So if that's NOT what happened, just say so.

Well, clearly you aren't reading other posts... This happens all the time. It's not a big deal. When we switched we were NOT REIMBURSED by our old club for LC Season but were offered practice from our new team. This is NOT UNCOMMON

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP... So you were not a witness, thanks for the confirmation.

This is all hearsay.

One person's interpretation is not the entire story. There are TWO SIDES to every story.

You’ve repeated over and over that there’s 2 sides, but without knowing the second side it doesn’t change my opinion that the club handled it poorly and that it reflects badly on them to people considering joining the club.

Why do you care so much? You’re clearly not on Toll and who knows if you even swim.

People should judge not based on silly posts on an anonymous forum but based on personal experience- that said I am shocked more at the parent for posting here so obviously and outing their child. It obviously wasn’t a match so just move on, geez.

Well, if a team is basically kicking off a paid swimmer mid-season because they declared an intention to leave in the fall-- that's kind of a big deal. And if that idea caught on for all the PVS teams, that could affect my kids sooner or later. So if that's NOT what happened, just say so.

Well, clearly you aren't reading other posts... This happens all the time. It's not a big deal. When we switched we were NOT REIMBURSED by our old club for LC Season but were offered practice from our new team. This is NOT UNCOMMON

Yes, if a swimmer leaves mid-season that is the norm. What would NOT be normal is booting them because they were not continuing the following season. And that's what OP said happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP... So you were not a witness, thanks for the confirmation.

This is all hearsay.

One person's interpretation is not the entire story. There are TWO SIDES to every story.

You’ve repeated over and over that there’s 2 sides, but without knowing the second side it doesn’t change my opinion that the club handled it poorly and that it reflects badly on them to people considering joining the club.

Why do you care so much? You’re clearly not on Toll and who knows if you even swim.

People should judge not based on silly posts on an anonymous forum but based on personal experience- that said I am shocked more at the parent for posting here so obviously and outing their child. It obviously wasn’t a match so just move on, geez.

My kid swims with a big club. We actually considered TOLL when they first started but wanted a more competitive club and had heard some less than flattering things about some of the coaches.

Everyone has an opinion, glad your kids are happy. Mine are excelling at TOLL and adore their coaches. Both swam for a big club but the personal attention and training are much better for my swimmers, we've been champs qualifiers ever since. Every club isn't for everybody, but to defame/slam a club is not OKAY. We were unhappy with our previous club, as it wasn't a good fit for us, but I didn't go posting on DC Urban Mom to tell everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP... So you were not a witness, thanks for the confirmation.

This is all hearsay.

One person's interpretation is not the entire story. There are TWO SIDES to every story.

You’ve repeated over and over that there’s 2 sides, but without knowing the second side it doesn’t change my opinion that the club handled it poorly and that it reflects badly on them to people considering joining the club.

Why do you care so much? You’re clearly not on Toll and who knows if you even swim.

People should judge not based on silly posts on an anonymous forum but based on personal experience- that said I am shocked more at the parent for posting here so obviously and outing their child. It obviously wasn’t a match so just move on, geez.

Well, if a team is basically kicking off a paid swimmer mid-season because they declared an intention to leave in the fall-- that's kind of a big deal. And if that idea caught on for all the PVS teams, that could affect my kids sooner or later. So if that's NOT what happened, just say so.

Well, clearly you aren't reading other posts... This happens all the time. It's not a big deal. When we switched we were NOT REIMBURSED by our old club for LC Season but were offered practice from our new team. This is NOT UNCOMMON

Yes, if a swimmer leaves mid-season that is the norm. What would NOT be normal is booting them because they were not continuing the following season. And that's what OP said happened.

No this is not true. Check your facts. Curious if you even have a swimmer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You keep posting- are you OP? Why do you care??? Get over it. My kid was recruited by other teams and they wanted them to switch mid-season. All this stuff is to be expected.

Lol I mean you keep posting and getting more and more bent out of shape. And I’m sorry it’s not expected that a kid will be immediately kicked off a team once they’ve decided to swim elsewhere next season.

[Anonymous]

NP. Swim parent but not Toll. Kids switch clubs all the time for various reasons and it’s normal to lose some $ and to be listed as unattached when it happens - this is actually a requirement and has to happen to move to a new clubs (someone mentioned it upthread but I’m getting the impression some posters aren’t aware of that). What doesn’t sit well with me with this post is this stuff happens ALL the time with every sport - kids switch, coaches or teammates get upset, etc. but what is unusual is to post the name of the club on DCUM as well as identifying information about your kid. I hope you consider removing this post because it reflects really poorly on the parent in this situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So this family was at Toll for eight years, became a great swimmer with them, then you expect the team to shower then with affection when they leave?

Yeah the team handled it wrong for sure- they should have said bye, and let the kid go. But the kid is in for a surprise when they move- teams pay the most attention to their fastest swimmers. And the fastest kids at NCap are Olympic caliber swimmers and the rest of the swimmers are just there to pay the coaches’ salaries

Big fish little pond becomes small fish big pond. But hope it works out for the swimmer and next time this happens Toll just lets the kid go quietly- bc the kid may regret leaving anyway.

Regret is a waste of time, as is gloating. We all make decisions in life. How others react to those decisions is irrelevant unless their opinions matter - which in the vast majority of cases they don't. In the business world, long-time executives leave companies leave for competitors all the time. If a company handles such departure poorly enough, its reputation will suffer and executives from other companies will be hesitant to join that company.

In this swimming scenario, it sounds like Tollefson didn't want the kid swimming competitively for them for the remaining time because he's leaving for another team. Giving the kid a Tollefson competition slot means that another swimmer - who isn't leaving - won't get that slot. Can you blame Tollefson for wanting to give that slot to an ongoing paying customer, possibly for a kid who is an up-and-coming swimmer that just needs more competitive meet experience? Allowing the departing kid to practice for the remaining season would be reasonable (since his parents paid for it), but he shouldn't expect to receive much from the coaching staff.

I am guessing you are not familiars with swimming: meets don’t have limits about how many kids can swim. A team can take as many kids as have the qualifying times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So this family was at Toll for eight years, became a great swimmer with them, then you expect the team to shower then with affection when they leave?

Yeah the team handled it wrong for sure- they should have said bye, and let the kid go. But the kid is in for a surprise when they move- teams pay the most attention to their fastest swimmers. And the fastest kids at NCap are Olympic caliber swimmers and the rest of the swimmers are just there to pay the coaches’ salaries

Big fish little pond becomes small fish big pond. But hope it works out for the swimmer and next time this happens Toll just lets the kid go quietly- bc the kid may regret leaving anyway.

Regret is a waste of time, as is gloating. We all make decisions in life. How others react to those decisions is irrelevant unless their opinions matter - which in the vast majority of cases they don't. In the business world, long-time executives leave companies leave for competitors all the time. If a company handles such departure poorly enough, its reputation will suffer and executives from other companies will be hesitant to join that company.

In this swimming scenario, it sounds like Tollefson didn't want the kid swimming competitively for them for the remaining time because he's leaving for another team. Giving the kid a Tollefson competition slot means that another swimmer - who isn't leaving - won't get that slot. Can you blame Tollefson for wanting to give that slot to an ongoing paying customer, possibly for a kid who is an up-and-coming swimmer that just needs more competitive meet experience? Allowing the departing kid to practice for the remaining season would be reasonable (since his parents paid for it), but he shouldn't expect to receive much from the coaching staff.

I am guessing you are not familiars with swimming: meets don’t have limits about how many kids can swim. A team can take as many kids as have the qualifying times.

Everyone in winter swimming knows this. Meets don't have limits but practice lanes do get crowded. If a kid is moving on, it's normal for them to move onto their new team ASAP. As others switching teams do the same. And it does open up slots for new swimmers to join that team.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. Swim parent but not Toll. Kids switch clubs all the time for various reasons and it’s normal to lose some $ and to be listed as unattached when it happens - this is actually a requirement and has to happen to move to a new clubs (someone mentioned it upthread but I’m getting the impression some posters aren’t aware of that). What doesn’t sit well with me with this post is this stuff happens ALL the time with every sport - kids switch, coaches or teammates get upset, etc. but what is unusual is to post the name of the club on DCUM as well as identifying information about your kid. I hope you consider removing this post because it reflects really poorly on the parent in this situation.

Exactly. I feel bad for this swimmer. I hope the OP (who I hope is a parent) realizes that it's time to remove the post. Nothing good is going to come out of this, except the swimmer might learn about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So this family was at Toll for eight years, became a great swimmer with them, then you expect the team to shower then with affection when they leave?

Yeah the team handled it wrong for sure- they should have said bye, and let the kid go. But the kid is in for a surprise when they move- teams pay the most attention to their fastest swimmers. And the fastest kids at NCap are Olympic caliber swimmers and the rest of the swimmers are just there to pay the coaches’ salaries

Big fish little pond becomes small fish big pond. But hope it works out for the swimmer and next time this happens Toll just lets the kid go quietly- bc the kid may regret leaving anyway.

Regret is a waste of time, as is gloating. We all make decisions in life. How others react to those decisions is irrelevant unless their opinions matter - which in the vast majority of cases they don't. In the business world, long-time executives leave companies leave for competitors all the time. If a company handles such departure poorly enough, its reputation will suffer and executives from other companies will be hesitant to join that company.

In this swimming scenario, it sounds like Tollefson didn't want the kid swimming competitively for them for the remaining time because he's leaving for another team. Giving the kid a Tollefson competition slot means that another swimmer - who isn't leaving - won't get that slot. Can you blame Tollefson for wanting to give that slot to an ongoing paying customer, possibly for a kid who is an up-and-coming swimmer that just needs more competitive meet experience? Allowing the departing kid to practice for the remaining season would be reasonable (since his parents paid for it), but he shouldn't expect to receive much from the coaching staff.

I am guessing you are not familiars with swimming: meets don’t have limits about how many kids can swim. A team can take as many kids as have the qualifying times.

Everyone in winter swimming knows this. Meets don't have limits but practice lanes do get crowded. If a kid is moving on, it's normal for them to move onto their new team ASAP. As others switching teams do the same. And it does open up slots for new swimmers to join that team.

At our big club it is not normal for kids to join mid season unless it’s a swimmer whose family moved during the season and they have times that can be used to fit them into a group. I can understand not wanting to pay the registration fee for next year knowing that you’re not coming back, but let this be a cautionary tale going forward.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So this family was at Toll for eight years, became a great swimmer with them, then you expect the team to shower then with affection when they leave?

Yeah the team handled it wrong for sure- they should have said bye, and let the kid go. But the kid is in for a surprise when they move- teams pay the most attention to their fastest swimmers. And the fastest kids at NCap are Olympic caliber swimmers and the rest of the swimmers are just there to pay the coaches’ salaries

Big fish little pond becomes small fish big pond. But hope it works out for the swimmer and next time this happens Toll just lets the kid go quietly- bc the kid may regret leaving anyway.

Regret is a waste of time, as is gloating. We all make decisions in life. How others react to those decisions is irrelevant unless their opinions matter - which in the vast majority of cases they don't. In the business world, long-time executives leave companies leave for competitors all the time. If a company handles such departure poorly enough, its reputation will suffer and executives from other companies will be hesitant to join that company.

In this swimming scenario, it sounds like Tollefson didn't want the kid swimming competitively for them for the remaining time because he's leaving for another team. Giving the kid a Tollefson competition slot means that another swimmer - who isn't leaving - won't get that slot. Can you blame Tollefson for wanting to give that slot to an ongoing paying customer, possibly for a kid who is an up-and-coming swimmer that just needs more competitive meet experience? Allowing the departing kid to practice for the remaining season would be reasonable (since his parents paid for it), but he shouldn't expect to receive much from the coaching staff.

I am guessing you are not familiars with swimming: meets don’t have limits about how many kids can swim. A team can take as many kids as have the qualifying times.

Everyone in winter swimming knows this. Meets don't have limits but practice lanes do get crowded. If a kid is moving on, it's normal for them to move onto their new team ASAP. As others switching teams do the same. And it does open up slots for new swimmers to join that team.

At our big club it is not normal for kids to join mid season unless it’s a swimmer whose family moved during the season and they have times that can be used to fit them into a group. I can understand not wanting to pay the registration fee for next year knowing that you’re not coming back, but let this be a cautionary tale going forward.

The season started in September, it's May and registration is due sometime in June for next year, I don't define that as mid season. I believe LC is a normal break for kids to switch teams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. Swim parent but not Toll. Kids switch clubs all the time for various reasons and it’s normal to lose some $ and to be listed as unattached when it happens - this is actually a requirement and has to happen to move to a new clubs (someone mentioned it upthread but I’m getting the impression some posters aren’t aware of that). What doesn’t sit well with me with this post is this stuff happens ALL the time with every sport - kids switch, coaches or teammates get upset, etc. but what is unusual is to post the name of the club on DCUM as well as identifying information about your kid. I hope you consider removing this post because it reflects really poorly on the parent in this situation.

Agree- my swimmer is with a different team and knows who the kid is. The parent was obviously out for blood and threw her kid under the bus to make the team look bad.

[Anonymous]

NP. My personal experience has also been that the current TOLL head is petty and vindictive. I’m glad that we moved on and are thriving at another club. Wish we had made the switch earlier.

I think OP did everyone a service by sharing this PSA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. My personal experience has also been that the current TOLL head is petty and vindictive. I’m glad that we moved on and are thriving at another club. Wish we had made the switch earlier.

I think OP did everyone a service by sharing this PSA.

Agree. The people who have no previous affiliation with TOLL and are defending them don’t understand the personalities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. My personal experience has also been that the current TOLL head is petty and vindictive. I’m glad that we moved on and are thriving at another club. Wish we had made the switch earlier.

I think OP did everyone a service by sharing this PSA.

Agree. The people who have no previous affiliation with TOLL and are defending them don’t understand the personalities.

I am pretty surprised to hear of this story and some of the criticism of Toll. I swam for Toll long ago. I have coached for Toll some over the years. There has been some coaching staff turnover, but I think very highly of John, Henry, Andrew and Elizabeth. I consider myself fortunate to have been able to learn from and alongside these coaches. From my experiences with them they only ever showed me and other Toll swimmers and coaches kindness, empathy and flexibility.

I hope this story doesn’t cause people to not give Toll a try. Just like any team, Toll isn’t perfect. But I think for many swimmers it is a really great fit and a place to get individual attention and master stroke technique. Finding a club swim team is all about finding the right balance of location, coaching, teammates and cost.

This sounds like a bad situation and sorry to hear about your experiences and I hope your swimmer is able to make a smooth transition and find success in the future.