Hello Dolphin families!

What a great season so far! It’s very cool to see the kids having so much fun together and dropping times. We have two home meets left this season. Let’s put on some great events!

This team has a culture of cooperation and giving. Seeing so many examples of volunteers helping at meets and practices warms my heart. It is noticed and appreciated greatly by the kids, coaches, and swim team board.

Everyone wants to watch their kids swim at meets. And everyone likes to have time to grab a bite to eat or cool off in the shade at meets. The reality is it takes a community of volunteers to run a swim meet effectively and create a great experience for swimmers. When volunteer roles are spread out among the 44 families on the team, it’s possible for most if not everyone to do those things. Many hands make light work!

I haven’t done a great job explaining what all is needed for a meet, so I’m going to break it down briefly and ask you to consider signing up for spots for the next two meets.

A home meet requires 29 jobs. All of these roles play a big part in a conducting a successful meet.

Announcer (1) - announces upcoming events so kid pushers know when to get kids to the clerk of course.

Kid Pushers (2) - moves kids from the athlete area to the clerk of course 2-3 events prior to their swim. The focus of this role is the 8 & under group but the 9-10 year olds often need a reminder as well.

Clerk of Course (2) - organizes swimmers in the correct lanes for their events in the waiting area behind the starting blocks.

Starter (1) - Starts races and keeps the meet moving along efficiently.

Timers (6-12) - Records times for swims. For home meets, this is now a lot easier with our new digital timing system. We’re going to try implementing a first and second shift for timers. This would let families with younger kids time for the first half of the meet and leave after the breastroke event if their child isn’t swimming fly or on the last relay.

Meet Admin (1) - Records/checks times as they come into Meet Maestro. Works with coaches ahead of the meet time to ensure the lineup is accurate and heat sheets are ready.

TSA rep (1) - These are the official rule keepers of the meet. They communicate event logistics with the other team prior to the event.They also act as a point of contact for anyone who has a question about the meet.

Kid/Volunteer check-in (1) - Checks off athletes on the roster so coaches know who’s there, writes numbers on swimmers if needed (right arm, left leg), and confirms volunteers are present.

Heat winner and ribbon distributor (2) - gives out duckies to heat (non-main event) winners and participation ribbons.

Runners (1) - checks with Stroke and Turn judges, timers, and clerk of course for sheets that need to go to the Meet Admin.

Stroke and Turn (1) - Records and DQs illegal swims so coaches can make corrections in practice.

Hospitality (1) - Keeps meet volunteers hydrated with ice cold water.

Meet setup/breakdown (3) - Set up/breakdown flags, starting blocks, and ropes.

We have lots of experienced volunteers that can help teach you any of these roles. You can sign up to volunteer by going to the Meets/Events page, and selecting “Job Signup” for the relevant meet. When everyone signs up before the meet, things run much much smoother.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation!

Jake