Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Untrue - On the board at one of those 'top Division 1 pools' and there is absolutely no 'back-door' for fast swimmers. Take a look at the meet sheets year to year, these are the same kids swimming year after year and participating in year-round club swim.

+1. I belong to one of the "top Division 1 pools" and we have friends who are on their 4th year of waiting. Even this year, they've already been notified they won't get a spot.

Not sure why this idea keeps getting passed around, but there's no way to jump the waitlist. Sorry.

I think it’s just trolls that like to spout this. They refuse to believe that those three pools just have natural advantages that allows them consistent deep, strong teams. Their relatively large membership and affluent surroundings (even compared to most of other Nova) ensures they have a lot of very good swimmers that do year round swim.

We are members of a nearby upper division. Our pool has about half a dozen or so swimmers that could be the top swimmer for their respective age group vs. any of the big 3. But because we are a much smaller pool, we don’t have the depth across age groups to compete with them. And probably couldn’t win a single relay for the same reason.

Anonymous wrote:Untrue - On the board at one of those 'top Division 1 pools' and there is absolutely no 'back-door' for fast swimmers. Take a look at the meet sheets year to year, these are the same kids swimming year after year and participating in year-round club swim.

+1. I belong to one of the "top Division 1 pools" and we have friends who are on their 4th year of waiting. Even this year, they've already been notified they won't get a spot.

Not sure why this idea keeps getting passed around, but there's no way to jump the waitlist. Sorry.

Anonymous wrote:D2 team parent here. Happy for OKM swimmers, coaches and families. They were gracious and spirited competitors when they swam at the LC - and when we crossed paths at the Divisionals meets. The comment about team T-shirts was trite and small-minded. No one has a monopoly on the color red or the flag. Stay on the high road OKM, and do well in D1!

Me too! They were great sports at Divisionals. My children swim with most of their club swimmers at NCAP, and they are such nice kids and parents. Unfortunately, it looks like last season their club swimmers were all at the top of the age group (with a few exceptions), so it stinks that they moved up when most are in the down year. They don’t have the depth of the other D1 teams, so the relays will not be as competitive this year as they were last year. But somehow that team rises to the occasion.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Explain how Overlee (or any of those pools) remain on top when they have 10 year waitlists.

They should have no kids under the age of 12 to seed a meet - yet, somehow by magic they do.

Even accounting for large families with kids of all ages, it does not add up. Those teams should die because of their membership situation. It does with other pools, but not them.

There is no wait list if your kid is fast and any of the top 3 Division 1 pools

I think it’s more that kids at these pools start club swim very young.

Untrue - On the board at one of those 'top Division 1 pools' and there is absolutely no 'back-door' for fast swimmers. Take a look at the meet sheets year to year, these are the same kids swimming year after year and participating in year-round club swim.

Anonymous wrote:Explain how Overlee (or any of those pools) remain on top when they have 10 year waitlists.

They should have no kids under the age of 12 to seed a meet - yet, somehow by magic they do.

Even accounting for large families with kids of all ages, it does not add up. Those teams should die because of their membership situation. It does with other pools, but not them.

There is no wait list if your kid is fast and any of the top 3 Division 1 pools

D2 team parent here. Happy for OKM swimmers, coaches and families. They were gracious and spirited competitors when they swam at the LC - and when we crossed paths at the Divisionals meets. The comment about team T-shirts was trite and small-minded. No one has a monopoly on the color red or the flag. Stay on the high road OKM, and do well in D1!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'd be happy to see OKM do well and represent pools in our area of the county!

Agree, but mostly hope the OKM families and swimmers will rub their positive sportsmanship off on the teams in D1 who are lacking. As a parent of a team that competed against OKM last year, I noticed how gracious, humble, and kind the swimmers, reps, and parents were, even with season-after-season of going undefeated. I hope they show these teams what true winners are, and it has nothing to do with the scoreboard. Maybe the D1 parents on this thread will take this to heart as well.

Huh. I am rooting for OKM so that there is new blood in D1, but we also competed against them last year and did NOT experience any sort of good sportsmanship. In fact, a few of our families commented how they would fit right in with the other D1 teams.

+1. And the borderline MAGA tshirts. It’ll be an interesting summer.

Oh, that’s too bad you experienced the team that way. Well, maybe all the swim parents and swimmers about whom others are complaining on this thread will stumble across this conversation. Maybe it will serve as a reminder of how to treat others, even during intense competition. If members of certain teams have a negative reputation, perhaps they will look inward and make some changes. In any event, if an OKM family sees my comment about positive observations of their team, maybe they will work with the parents and children to implement kindness and positive sportsmanship (and to take the high road) this summer.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here sorry, highlighted the wrong comment. Was curious about the prior commenter who said they have a shallow pool and All Star Caliber swimmers should ready their shallow dives.... what pool is that?

I'm pretty sure the poster was referring to Pinecrest (PC). A number of pools have shallow starting ends so it's not really a big deal or something that takes months to prepare for.

DP but the above poster is correct. Pinecrest is on the shallow side, but if you’re an all star swimmer you should know how to navigate that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

If it gets any harder to find volunteer pools, they will have to. Hosting is not great for the pool- you lose your facilities for a whole day in the middle of pool season for an event that you may note even have swimmers participating.

PC here: You lose your pool for more than a day. Two days for set up (per NVSL request) plus day of. We are fortunate to have an agreement with Fox Mill Estates for our members to use the other when either of us are closed but it’s still a huge burden and inconvenience for the membership.
The NVSL does give some money, but it’s understood it’s just enough to cover port-a-potties, traffic cops, and other expenses incurred by the host pool. The only hope for a profit is concessions if done well.

Orange Hunt was able to do the same. There is an agreement that members can use 4 or 5 other pools when one of the pools is closed for something like this. They split the membership list between the clubs.

Anonymous wrote:Good idea. Entry fees would lessen the burden. Also having pools with a lot of swimmers provide the volunteers. I think Orange Hunt did that.
ASR always seems like a bigger burden to me. Plus the risk of storms in the evening is tough to handle.

This is done every summer.

Anonymous wrote:PP here sorry, highlighted the wrong comment. Was curious about the prior commenter who said they have a shallow pool and All Star Caliber swimmers should ready their shallow dives.... what pool is that?

I'm pretty sure the poster was referring to Pinecrest (PC). A number of pools have shallow starting ends so it's not really a big deal or something that takes months to prepare for.

Anonymous wrote:PP here sorry, highlighted the wrong comment. Was curious about the prior commenter who said they have a shallow pool and All Star Caliber swimmers should ready their shallow dives.... what pool is that?

Pinecrest

PP here sorry, highlighted the wrong comment. Was curious about the prior commenter who said they have a shallow pool and All Star Caliber swimmers should ready their shallow dives.... what pool is that?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PC again: we are also fully aware that we are not an ideal pool for a meet like this. They were desperate, we offered. If you have an all-star caliber swimmer, have them start practicing their shallow dives.

You guys are awesome for making it work. I’m sure it will be a great meet.

Which pool does the above commenter come from? Why not have pools do a rotation schedule?

Not every pool has the space for teams, tents, facilities, etc. nor sufficient nearby parking and/or an hoa or board that would permit hosting this scale of an event and ensuing neighborhood traffic. Not sure what you’re insinuating about the above commenter, but way to take a positive dialogue and make it snarky. DC Urban Mom never disappoints…