Agree that you should try to find a summer team next summer. It really is fun for the kids and a good family/community building atmosphere.

In the meantime, if she enjoys swimming, I’d consider trying to find some kind of weekly swim clinic to help keep her in the water and develop skills. Montgomery County Stroke and Turn was great for that and is what a lot of younger kids on our summer team do in the off season, but it may be too late to get a spot. Most places with indoor pools (the Y, Aspen Hill club, etc) offer similar. You could also wait until early swim to start that.

If she really enjoys swimming after the summer, you can consider year round “club” swim. RMSC is very popular for that in Montgomery County (and less expensive than other clubs) but hard to get a spot in. Most people figure out what club to join in summer as summer swim wraps up (RMSC tryouts are in July) but some clubs have spring programs and/or are easier to join mid-season.

The people who distinguished between summer and club swim are right. For most kids, summer swim is the “fun” swim that makes kids want to do the sport. Club swim is more intense/less fun but great for kids who want to become good swimmers. Our experience has been that as they get older, club swim also leads to camaraderie and friendship, but less so for younger kids - and nothing like the multi-age friendships and team spirit you get with summer swim,

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks all. I sounded unclear about summer vs club swim because I was/am unclear. We have never done any kind of swim team before, just lessons, so I'm still trying to understand what the options are in order to figure out what might work for us.

It sounds like if we want to start with something low-key and fun, we should just wait for next summer and see how she likes it, is that right? In an ideal world we'd start sooner but I don't want to turn her off the whole idea if the school-year options aren't the best starting point.

And then you basically have to join a private pool to get the summer swim team experience, is that right? (Or would the summer options at the Silver Spring YMCA or the public pools still be fun?) Any suggestions for SS/Wheaton area pools that have no wait list, evening practices, aren't picky about kids attending every practice, and have a fun swim team atmosphere for an 8 year old joining as a newbie? (The pool where most of the neighborhood kids go has a huge waitlist so that's out.)

So your timing is a little off for most(but not all!) current club swim options - they typically have tryouts over the summer(Jun/July) for the club swim "year" that starts in September. PPs have mentioned possibilities at Fairland and that is probably your best bet at this point if you want to try and get started now.

There are also options between now and next summer that might actally be a better fit for her(and your expectations) -- FINS, Stroke and Turn through MoCo Rec, SwiMontgomery through MoCo Rec to name a few that would work for where you live - these may not have opening at this very moment but could have openings over the next months.

Personally, if I were in your shoes, I would not wait until next summer, I would try to keep her in the pool with lessons or something at least a few times a month, if possible. Then she can "hit the water" ready to go next summer and be ready for club tryouts next summer it that's something she's interested in.

In terms of a pool, several of the public pools in the county that swim in the summer in MCSL(Bethesda and Glenmont, for example) so that's an option. Many of the private area pools do have a waitlist so you'd need to check with each to find out their status. I know there is one larger pool in Silver Spring/Wheaton, Connecticut Belair, that the last time I checked, did not have a waitlist.

OP -- I live near you. My kid is older than yours, but we stumbled into competitive swim from Goldfish.

Summer swim and winter swim are, at your kid's age, different pools and different programs.

While I'd love to have you at West Hillandale (my pool) this summer, there's a waitlist. It's not as long as the lists for Glenwood, Northwest Branch, Franklin Knolls, or Daleview, but there is a list. In your shoes, I'd go to Long Branch for the summer. Long Branch has a solid team and the kids are so happy. Between neighborhood and winter swim friends, I know a lot of families there. You can always put in for a private pool and wait to come off the list while at Long Branch. Some pools will offer August-only memberships (no swim team), which gives you preference for a full summer membership the next season.

Winter swim is not as fun, but the kids who love it ... they LOVE it. At this point, your best bet is to call around to find space at non-county programs. RMSC did tryouts in the summer, and it was intense. I know the Y in Silver Spring is currently doing tryouts. They do twice a week practice. Other programs in the area:

FAST
MSSC
ASA (probably full)
Joe Flaherty's Dolphins (probably full)
Hydrosonic Tiburones
NCAP (probably full)
Tollefson (also has stroke development classes)
Machine

MoCo Stroke and Turn is great, but you'd have to wait until the next session.

I'm sure I missed some!

My kid enjoyed Goldfish's swim team prep class as well.

Your options might be more limited than two months ago, but there's a way to swim.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks all. I sounded unclear about summer vs club swim because I was/am unclear. We have never done any kind of swim team before, just lessons, so I'm still trying to understand what the options are in order to figure out what might work for us.

It sounds like if we want to start with something low-key and fun, we should just wait for next summer and see how she likes it, is that right? In an ideal world we'd start sooner but I don't want to turn her off the whole idea if the school-year options aren't the best starting point.

And then you basically have to join a private pool to get the summer swim team experience, is that right? (Or would the summer options at the Silver Spring YMCA or the public pools still be fun?) Any suggestions for SS/Wheaton area pools that have no wait list, evening practices, aren't picky about kids attending every practice, and have a fun swim team atmosphere for an 8 year old joining as a newbie? (The pool where most of the neighborhood kids go has a huge waitlist so that's out.)

So your timing is a little off for most(but not all!) current club swim options - they typically have tryouts over the summer(Jun/July) for the club swim "year" that starts in September. PPs have mentioned possibilities at Fairland and that is probably your best bet at this point if you want to try and get started now.

There are also options between now and next summer that might actally be a better fit for her(and your expectations) -- FINS, Stroke and Turn through MoCo Rec, SwiMontgomery through MoCo Rec to name a few that would work for where you live - these may not have opening at this very moment but could have openings over the next months.

Personally, if I were in your shoes, I would not wait until next summer, I would try to keep her in the pool with lessons or something at least a few times a month, if possible. Then she can "hit the water" ready to go next summer and be ready for club tryouts next summer it that's something she's interested in.

In terms of a pool, several of the public pools in the county that swim in the summer in MCSL(Bethesda and Glenmont, for example) so that's an option. Many of the private area pools do have a waitlist so you'd need to check with each to find out their status. I know there is one larger pool in Silver Spring/Wheaton, Connecticut Belair, that the last time I checked, did not have a waitlist.

DP and want to +1 for the bolded. Swimming even once a week throughout the year is a big step up from not swimming at all. And then, as PP said, you can see where she is next summer and be ready to look at the various clubs, if she wants to. Our kids had great experiences with FINS and the G'town Prep location is fairly convenient for close-in Silver Spring.

If they loved summer swim, that's great! Like other posters said, at this point. most of the year round club swim is already filled up, but for a child that is that young I'm not sure that I'd throw them into year round swimming - the atmosphere is significantly different.

Swim Montgomery at MLK sounds like a perfect fit for your child - get them all tuned up and ready for next summer, and then come next summer you'll be ready to look at the options of club swim and do the tryouts etc and see what options are available.

LB has evening practices, has a fun atmosphere, and no waitlist and nobody cares if you don't come to most of them. Of course, the more you go, the better your swimmer will get.