At 10, some parents just drop their kids off like it's day camp, and another kids parent picksup. So if you make friends easily, this helps. Otherwise 5/6pm practice is better. Only 1 parent need to volunteer and put in the required hours. The stay at home moms run the show alot I noticed.

Dive team is so much easier - there are only 5 judges total, plus table workers. Far fewer parents needed at each meet. But scoring can be more subjective.

Last summer I took a video of some heats and found the three-timer method to be very accurate. In one race three swimmers were very close and even in the video DH had to slow it down frame by frame to see who touched first. The times reflected exactly what we saw in the video in terms of time and who came in 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Yup, DH has too much time on his hands. He was also questioning the need for this three-person timing policy and was timing one of those lands and the video showed him why it works pretty well.

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

Wouldn't you want to be there watching your kid anyways? Timing is a great view and a good way to get to know the other swimmers. But somehow I doubt that interests you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

There are 3 timers because unlike the Olympics, no pools around here have touch pads for timing in the pool. If someone's stopwatch doesn't work, you have a way to make sure you get an accurate time. The 3 times are averaged to get the most accurate time. You sound like such an unhappy person. We get it - you hate swim team. Swim team has been a great way for kids to bond with other kids and for parents to meet new people. My kids go to private school so i love coming back in the summer to see the swim friends.

For lots of people, it has taught kids to work hard and support your team, even if you are not the best. A good lesson that more kids and parents need to learn.

It's actually not even a statistical average. They just take the middle time, thus throwing out the high and low. I don't think 3 is excessive and helps keep things fair because having timed at many meets you do notice that reaction times are different with some timers having the lower or higher time more often. Even with this method I have also seem many close finishes where the person who appeared to touch first didn't win because the other swimmer's time was a few hundredths faster.

Plus, these are parent volunteers timing. Even if there is no impropriety there may be perceptions of impropriety when a parent is keeping time in an event that his/her child is swimming in. With averaged times a timekeeper can affect the outcome. When only the middle time is kept any deliberate attempts to unfairly tweak the outcome would be in vain. It makes sense for leagues to use three timers when there aren’t touch pads in use.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

There are 3 timers because unlike the Olympics, no pools around here have touch pads for timing in the pool. If someone's stopwatch doesn't work, you have a way to make sure you get an accurate time. The 3 times are averaged to get the most accurate time. You sound like such an unhappy person. We get it - you hate swim team. Swim team has been a great way for kids to bond with other kids and for parents to meet new people. My kids go to private school so i love coming back in the summer to see the swim friends.

For lots of people, it has taught kids to work hard and support your team, even if you are not the best. A good lesson that more kids and parents need to learn.

It's actually not even a statistical average. They just take the middle time, thus throwing out the high and low. I don't think 3 is excessive and helps keep things fair because having timed at many meets you do notice that reaction times are different with some timers having the lower or higher time more often. Even with this method I have also seem many close finishes where the person who appeared to touch first didn't win because the other swimmer's time was a few hundredths faster.

+1 especially in the A meets, kids are "touched out" all the time. Three timers is absolutely necessary.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

There are 3 timers because unlike the Olympics, no pools around here have touch pads for timing in the pool. If someone's stopwatch doesn't work, you have a way to make sure you get an accurate time. The 3 times are averaged to get the most accurate time. You sound like such an unhappy person. We get it - you hate swim team. Swim team has been a great way for kids to bond with other kids and for parents to meet new people. My kids go to private school so i love coming back in the summer to see the swim friends.

For lots of people, it has taught kids to work hard and support your team, even if you are not the best. A good lesson that more kids and parents need to learn.

It's actually not even a statistical average. They just take the middle time, thus throwing out the high and low. I don't think 3 is excessive and helps keep things fair because having timed at many meets you do notice that reaction times are different with some timers having the lower or higher time more often. Even with this method I have also seem many close finishes where the person who appeared to touch first didn't win because the other swimmer's time was a few hundredths faster.

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

Have your kids never done a sport before? You realize this is set by the league so your pool just can't decide they are having fewer timers and remain in the league?
If you are so much more efficient, volunteer to run the swim meets. You clearly have no idea what you are talking about. Until then, please be quiet. You are making yourself sound lazy and unaware.

For the parent new in town and thinking of joining -
I say go for it! It will likely be hard in the beginning (the pool is cold, your kids will be a bit behind, and not used to the intensity of practice) but if they can power through that, they’ll quickly improve their swimming and the social aspect is fantastic if you’re new in town, both for you and the kids. At least at our pool, it’s fun even for the kids that aren’t great swimmers, though going in new at 11 without knowing all the strokes might be hard as a kid. (Though definitely typical in the 8 and under group, and probably not uncommon in 9-10).

I’d consider signing your kids up now for swim lessons so they get a bit better at their strokes ahead of summer. Stroke and turn clinics can be a good place to start, but private lessons would be great. You might also do lessons while doing the team to help catch them up.

Anonymous wrote:

Oh but OP remember your duties. It apparently takes 35 adult volunteers to run a swim meet.

Another one who doesn't want to pull her weight. Each lane needs three timers. Yes, it really does take that many people and if everyone pitches in, it's not that long. Don't sign up if you don't want a big commitment

You're right! We do not do swim team for this reason. It just seems like a huge model of inefficiency. 3 timers? Really?! You can't trust one another? It's recreational not the Olympics.

There are 3 timers because unlike the Olympics, no pools around here have touch pads for timing in the pool. If someone's stopwatch doesn't work, you have a way to make sure you get an accurate time. The 3 times are averaged to get the most accurate time. You sound like such an unhappy person. We get it - you hate swim team. Swim team has been a great way for kids to bond with other kids and for parents to meet new people. My kids go to private school so i love coming back in the summer to see the swim friends.

For lots of people, it has taught kids to work hard and support your team, even if you are not the best. A good lesson that more kids and parents need to learn.