Hello,
my name is Lisa
Harvey and I am the mother of Murran Harvey who has been swimming at
the club
since she was 7. She is now 12.
I
also work full time and am
the club’s social secretary.
I thought it may be helpful, (or not) to write down some of the things I have learnt about swimming over the last 5 years to help those of you become initiated into the sport.
Training
Up
until your child is 9
it’s probably best to swim about twice a week but the coaches are
always
available to talk about the requirements of your child.
Make
sure your child has a
swimming hat, goggles (and a spare because they get chewed and snap at
the
least appropriate moment!) and a non fizzy drink.
Training
fins are also a
good idea, longer ones for the little ones are best.
Arrive
at the pool with
plenty of time to get changed and be at pool side. Missing the
instructions at
the beginning of a session not only disrupts your child but everyone
elses and
the coaches.
Above
all, always ask if you
don’t know something, there will always be someone around to have a
chat with.
It is in your interest to find out requirements for your child. I had
to
sometimes ask several people before I got the answers I needed.
The
lanes in the early
sessions are set up 1 to 5, with Lane 1 being the newest or least
experienced
swimmers.
The
aim of the coaches and
the swimmers are to progress up lanes. It should be viewed as an
achievement to
move up a lane and eventually be asked to second session or squad night.
Encourage
your child to
listen to the coaches and lane helpers as they are constantly
explaining
techniques and swimming rules as well as ensuring that stamina is
increased for
competitive swimming.
Club
Championships
These club run events happen
several times a year around May/June, October and November.
They are a must for any club
swimmer and allow your child to swim competitively in a known
environment.
Also, if your child aspires to go to open meets and other external
events these
are the competitions you should be going to first. My advice is to
enter as
much as you can or your child wants.
Don’t be surprised if your
child gets disqualified, it happens to all swimmers at some point. It
is heart
breaking to see the little ones upset but they all learn by their
mistakes.
Things like incorrect turns,
incorrect leg kick or just falling in at the start of the race are an
experience
they are unlikely to repeat. If your child does get disqualified always
follow
it up with the coaching team who will explain what has happened and how
to
correct the mistake next time.
To enter club championships
you must fill out a form before the closing date and also part with a
sum of
money. This is the start of the slippery slope as your cheque book will
be
forever in constant use!!!
On the day of the
championships it’s all hands on deck and parents are encouraged to
volunteer
even if its taking money on the door or serving drinks. The club needs
your
full support to run these events. Children are encouraged to go on pool
side
with their team mates at the other side of the pool to their parents.
This is
because stewards are attempting to get the kids into race order and if
little
Suzy or Jonny is not around it can slow the whole proceedings or even
mean that
the child misses their slot.
A drink and some clothes
like a t-shirt and track suit bottoms will help keep the fluid levels
up and
muscles warm while your child is waiting for their race. The kids are
also
encouraged to cheer their friends on at the end of the pool if they are
not
next in line for an event.
The aim of these galas is to
get a time for each event. The club records each time. The next time
your child
swims that event the aim is to better the time and get a personal best
(PB).
Competitive swimming revolves around PB’s and getting times to swim at
open
meets which I will come to next….
Also at club championships
there is a medal ceremony at the end and each child receives a
certificate with
their times and the place they came in the race.
Look out on the notice board
or read your email so you don’t miss out as these events are must for
any club
swimmer.
Open Meets
Once your child has gained a
few times (or even if they have not got times – speak to the coach)
they can
enter open meets.
These are events run by
various clubs in the county. They are various levels. Level 3 or 4 open
meets
are the best place to start. This is because all open meets have set
times that
a swimmer must meet before they can enter. The lower the level the
easier the
times for entry to the event will be. As your swimmer gets faster they
may be
too fast to enter the lower level open meets and need to go to level 3
or 2
open meets. Level 1 open meets are usually for those looking for
national level
times!
You need to develop a
survival technique once your child starts attending open meets. After
you have
filled out the entry form, dusted off the cheque book yet again (each
swim
costs around £4.) you will receive a swim card that you need to bring
to the
event. This card contains info about warm up times, start times, event
number
and competitor numbers.
Getting to the event is also
tricky and usually involves a very early start at a weekend. Pack
plenty of
food to survive the day as you will be at the event for hours getting a
very
numb bum and sweating profusely! The swimmer needs pasta style food
that last
in the system and you also need to take out shares in Lucozade sport as
this is
the energy drink that all swimmers seem to prefer!
Once you have got to the
event (usually after being behind the slowest vehicle on the road for
what
seems like hours) the next hurdle to get over is parking. At most
events there
is little or no parking so here is an insiders guide.
On arrival at the event
there will be a huge queue but hopefully some one in it that you know.
Your
child needs to by pass the queueing adults and post their cards in a
box that
will be easily located. Each card must be put in a slot for the race
the card
is for. Failure to put the card in the slots before warm up means the
organisers think you are not there and delete your child’s entry off
the list.
Make sure your child has
enough money for a locker as big bags are often not allowed pools side.
Make
sure you have enough money to get into the event as it can cost as much
as £6
each for the day to spectate! The numb bum is free!!!
Once pool side there will
usually be one of the coaches or team manager to organise your child.
They may
even be seated in another part of the pool. The kids all try to cheer
each
other on and parents can shout at their child as loud as they like to
spur them
on during races!!. At Wantage we all try to sit together as it helps
keep up
the team atmosphere. Your child will also need plenty of clothes for
wearing
over the swimming costume and flip flops or equivalent as they need to
queue
for their races and therefore need something on their feet and plenty
of
towels.
It also helps to keep a
track of your child’s times and record PB’s in a log book. Next time
you enter
an open meet the new time can be submitted.
Above all despite all the
trials of getting to an open meet they are good fun and if lots of
children are
there they all enjoy each others company and entertain themselves
through the
day. Parents can have a good old chat too!
Between September and
January all swimmers should be looking to get times that are good
enough to go
to the county championships in Feb and March.
These events are very like
open meets will all the county’s swimming clubs in attendance. It is a
bit like
a mini Swimming Olympics and all competitive swimmers should aspire to
attend.
All the above said about Open meets applies. Additionally your child
may get
picked for the relay teams which are great fun.
Gala’s
Gala’s
are team events and
swimmers are picked to attend. They are usually against another club or
clubs.
Traditionally Wantage has gala’s against Witney and
I
have had a great time
being a swimming parent over the years and I know it is daunting when
you first
start getting involved with the sport so I hope you have found this
useful
information.
Lisa
Harvey
March
2009