Our pool doesn’t give away free shirts or caps, but does charge each all star an extra $3.50 for the coaching. Does that make you feel better, OP?

Two extra practices for divisionals following the final B meet and a pot luck breakfast by divisional practice parents. All stars is one extra practice to practice relay starts. I don’t recall any extra for the individuals. Seems fair to me. Divisionals and All stars get special caps.

Our pool has one extra week of practices for all stars, my kids have never gone but I never cared about the extra week, I am always ready for swim team to be over by this point. Either the parents pay for the cap, or maybe the team, I’m not sure. The kids that are going get to stand up and be clapped for at our banquet, but that’s about it. I would be annoyed though if they were getting bags/an expensive meal paid for by the team.

No, but we only send 0-4 kids to all stars each year. Practices go up to divisionals for everyone. All star kids are on their own for the week between divisionals and all stars, although some make private arrangements with a coach (which I assume they pay for, I know the team doesn't). No special dinner or anything. I guess they get a free cap. My kid has gone once but not the other years, I don't feel like he gets more or less from the team either way.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What benefit do the rest of the kids get from a few kids getting to go a special all star meet?

Per a previous poster it is supposed to inspire them.

LMAO!

We have a buffet breakfast for All Stars. Parents pay for divisionals and All stars caps. But it’s 2 extra weeks of practices in McSl. Never thought about charging a separate fee beyond the normal swim team.

Anonymous wrote:The fee for summer swim is so reasonable at our pool that I certainly don't begrudge the kids who get an bathing cap and some extra practices (that are open for anyone to attend). I also see some of it as motivational for younger swimmers to aspire to. The junior coaches put up the yard signs for Divisionals and All Stars and have a lot of fun doing it--it's a sweet tradition.

Are you sure about that?

At my pool the extra practices are most definitely not open for anyone to attend. It’s only for the kids who are invited to divisionals and all stars

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Short of the insane backpacks and a 30 person dinner, none of this sounds like a big ask for AS swimmers. AS is good for the entire team, whether you go or not.

Why is it good for the entire team?

DP. If a team has swimmers in AS, it makes the team look good. That said, the top division teams send quite a few swimmers, while lower division teams may only send 1-2 swimmers.

We have an HOA/closed pool. We don't need for our team to "look good". We have a captive customer pool.

We belong to an HOA/closed pool. You still have to have members that want to be on your swim team. Closed pools are in a more difficult predicament because you can’t open membership to folks outside of your neighborhood AND you have to make your swim team desirable for the limited population. On the converse, your pool members have other choices.

We weren’t enjoying our HOA/closed pool swim team. Too high strung for kids and I got tired fielding complaints as a volunteer. So we actually found another swim team happy to have kids and it was cheaper than HOA/closed pool. We don’t have the pep rallies, pancake breakfasts, all star caps, thousands of awards, etc. but we’re good with that. Kids feel appreciated and enjoying it.

Don’t get too jaded that you have a captive audience and therefore folks are stuck with your swim team because they’re not.

PS - next neighbor also went this option a few years ago too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Short of the insane backpacks and a 30 person dinner, none of this sounds like a big ask for AS swimmers. AS is good for the entire team, whether you go or not.

Why is it good for the entire team?

DP. If a team has swimmers in AS, it makes the team look good. That said, the top division teams send quite a few swimmers, while lower division teams may only send 1-2 swimmers.

It makes the team look good to who? I'm being sincere. To NVSL? The other coaches? Other parents? And what is the point of this? Bragging rights?

To the pre-team parents and new families looking to join a swim team. AS is the summer swim championship, so sending people there means you have top swimmers to whom younger swimmers can look up and ask advice.

This is delusional. Pre-team families are not at all paying attention to all-star swim meets. Who even knows about all-stars until they are on the team?

Also I would argue that it’s one swim on one given day at a pool that is probably not your home pool. There are no cuts like in real club swimming. The AS lineup all hinges on how you perform on one hot Saturday in July.

Our team has many Divisional swimmers who qualify for AS and not even close to everyone goes, by choice. At that point in the season people want to go on vacation and be done with Summer swimming! Then for the older kids who swim club they are swimming at elite level meets like Futures, Zones, etc depending on what is slated for the AS weekend. You’re getting watered down competition at All Stars.

Anonymous wrote:What benefit do the rest of the kids get from a few kids getting to go a special all star meet?

Per a previous poster it is supposed to inspire them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Short of the insane backpacks and a 30 person dinner, none of this sounds like a big ask for AS swimmers. AS is good for the entire team, whether you go or not.

Why is it good for the entire team?

DP. If a team has swimmers in AS, it makes the team look good. That said, the top division teams send quite a few swimmers, while lower division teams may only send 1-2 swimmers.

We have an HOA/closed pool. We don't need for our team to "look good". We have a captive customer pool.

What benefit do the rest of the kids get from a few kids getting to go a special all star meet?

Our team only send one or two kids to all stars every year. The all star kids get an extra few practices. And at the beginning of the year our team buys a huge number of blank caps that they decorate with sharpies for all sorts of things through the season. You get a sharpie decorated swim cap for all stars too.

Anonymous wrote:Short of the insane backpacks and a 30 person dinner, none of this sounds like a big ask for AS swimmers. AS is good for the entire team, whether you go or not.

I think our team spends way too much on A team activities that don't benefit the whole team. All-star pool time is one of them. Though, by this time of season all of the other kids are pretty much done with the crowded pools and canceled B-meets.

On our team everyone practices the week before Divisionals and there are all the same team activities minus a Friday PEP Rally. The following week only swimmers participating in All Stars continue to practice and only our head coach and asst head coaches ( who are salaried versus hourly) continue to work. A small breakfast on Friday is the only “perk” the kids who are still competing get. No one complains.

Frankly All Stars is a miserable meet and I am glad my kid stopped wanting to compete at it!