Swim Team handbook
Swim Team Handbook
Absences
As soon as you know your vacation dates, please sign out of any meets you will not attend. At minimum you need to meet the sign-out deadlines below; however, it helps the coach to have as much time as possible.
Sign-Out Deadlines:
Adherence to the deadlines is mandatory because the coaches must submit meet entries 48 hours before dual meets and approximately 2 weeks before invitational meets. Sign-outs for meets are on the website.
Dual Meets: The sign-out deadline for dual meets is noon of the day that is one week before the meet. e.g, for a Wednesday meet, the deadline is noon of the previous Wednesday.
Invitational Meets: Most invitationals are "sign-in". For any that are sign-out, the deadline is typically 2-3 weeks before the meet. See the invitational web page for specific sign-out deadlines.
League Championship Meet: The coaches need to know this ASAP, but no less than 2 weeks before the meet. This meet is the culmination of the season so all swimmers are strongly encouraged to attend.
A $25 fine will be assessed for any swimmer that is entered in a meet and a) fails to show up; or b) after the sign-out deadline, notifies the Assistant Director that the swimmer will not participate in the meet (a "Late Sign-out."). If you are signing out the day of the meet or the day before, you may call or email the assistant director. If you are signing out late, but prior to the day before, you must go to the coaches' shack and sign out on the clipboard outside the door. A LST board member will contact you via email to notify you of your obligation to pay the fine. You will have one week from that time to pay your fine. If the fine is not paid by that time, the swimmer will be suspended for one meet. Exceptions will be made in case of illness so long as the Director or Assistant Director is notified prior to the start of the meet.
Please remember you are still responsible for the meets that you have been scheduled to work, even if your child is not swimming. Trade with another parent, or hire a substitute. Parents will be required to pay a $100 fine for each meet job missed, or if they fail to adequately fulfill the job requirement.
It is not necessary to attend all practices and meets. We realize that family plans or illness may result in your absence. If you become ill on the day of the meet, please email the Director and Meet Director and let them know you are unable to swim.
Awards and Awards Ceremony
Each pool sets its own policy for awarding ribbons. Ribbons are written at the meet. The information on the ribbon usually includes the swimmer's name, age group, meet, event, distance, time, and date. Ribbons are not given out at the meets. They will be placed in your family's file folder.
Recognition is given throughout the season to swimmers who reach or break Award Times (at a dual meet, not at time trials) as listed on this website. Minimum times are categorized by Medal, Honor, and County. The times listed are the goals for all swimmers.
Each swimmer who participates in a competitive meet will receive an award at the season end ceremony. This is the time to recognize the efforts expended by each swimmer, not just those who did exceptionally well.
Communication
All families and coaches have a folder kept in alphabetical order near the Guard Shack. Please check your folder often. The folder will have your swimmer's ribbons as well as other LST items. In addition, this website and email will be used as much as possible.
If you need to discuss a team policy or wish to speak with a coach, please contact the Director. DO NOT INTERRUPT WORKOUTS, MEETS, OR LESSONS! If the Director cannot resolve your issue and you still wish to speak with the coach, the Director will arrange an appointment.
Fund Raising
Fundraising is necessary because the registration fees do not cover all the team's expenses. Additional funds help support our team social programs, pay for invitationals, as well as give us the ability to upgrade some of our aging equipment. To supplement registration fees, we ask that you help us in our various fund raising efforts throughout the season.
We will be looking for businesses in the area that are interested in sponsoring the swim team. If you know anyone or are interested in sponsorship or have any questions about fundraising, please contact the fundraising coordinator of the Livorna Swim Team Board of Directors.
Guidelines for Meets
• Check the meet entries posted prior to the meet. It is important to confirm what and when you're swimming. When you arrive at the meet, check the final entry posting -- there may be changes!
• Arrive 10 minutes prior to warm-ups. The coaches will remind you of the exact time.
• Come prepared for the swim meets with the following:
- Suits
- Towels (one per event swimming)
- Sleeping bag (especially evening meets)
- Heavy jacket and/or team sweatsuit
- Sunscreen
- Swim Caps and powder
• Know your swim schedule before the meet! You must be lined up for your stroke 10 minutes prior to your swim. It is your responsibility to find out what strokes, what heat, and what lane you will be swimming (see pool bulletin board). All events will be announced over the loud speaker. Login to your SwimTopia app for all the current information.
• Listen to the announcer
• Talk to a coach before and after your events.
• Give your name to the recorder.
• Ask the recorder for your time after each event.
• Show respect to the other swimmers and meet officials.
• Honor your fellow competitors by remaining in the water until all swimmers in the heat have finished; shake hands before exiting the water.
• Keep your team area clean. Pick up trash and your belongings before you leave the meet.
• Cheer for your teammates!!!
Guidelines for Parents
Parent participation is crucial to the success of any swim team. Your cooperation is encouraged in the following ways:
• Plan to attend meets in which your child is swimming.
• Please be on time for meets, especially if your child is swimming in a relay. Our coaches have been instructed to insert a substitute for any relay swimmer not present at the pool fifteen minutes before the start of the meet. Substitutions, when made, shall be final and not be reversed when/if the missing swimmer arrives just in time for the race.
• Remember that encouragement and praise are essential for every swimmer's self esteem.
• Plan to work or find a replacement for your job assignments. Your child may be scratched from the meet if this happens more than once. Let's all make a conscientious effort!
• If you have volunteered to assist on a committee, please be cooperative when called upon by the committee chairperson during the summer.
• Use the sign out process on the website to keep the coaches informed in advance of your swimmer's absences. This enables the coaches to effectively use all lanes allocated to LST. Please inform the Meet Director as soon as possible if your child is ill the day of a meet. Scratched relays leave three other swimmers disappointed.
• Keep informed! Read the newsletters and the bulletin board.
• If you have an 8 and under swimmer, please get your child to the appropriate lane in time for his/her swim. IT IS THE PARENT’S RESPONSIBILITY TO DELIVER THEIR CHILD TO THE LANE IN WHICH THEY ARE SWIMMING. Stress to your child that he/she needs to stay in the team area during meets.
• Bring plenty of dry towels.
• Bring sun and fog protection.
• Plan food -- when and what.
• Check family folder in guard shack regularly.
• When in doubt -- call and ask.
• Arrive early.
• Consider bringing chairs.
• Parents are responsible for knowing their swimmer's events and lane assignments and for getting their swimmer to the blocks on time. The coaches are not responsible for getting swimmers to the blocks. Coaches are responsible for stroke development, critiquing and evaluating the swimmers at meets and practices.
• Please keep your family area clean. Encourage your child to do the same.
• Cheer for all the swimmers -- not just your own. Learn other swimmers' names.
• If you don't understand something, ask.
• The coaches are not babysitters - please don't leave younger children unattended.
• The showers are for showering; please monitor your children's proper use of them.
• Have a positive, helpful attitude and encourage your child to do the same. LST is run by volunteers. Please support those people who have volunteered above and beyond the regular meet jobs -- consider doing more than the minimum.
Guidelines for Practices
• Arrive on time.
• Get into the pool immediately following the coaches' directions.
• Do all finishes correctly.
• Stay in water unless told otherwise.
• Listen to instructions. Keep quiet while the coach is talking. You won't know what to do if you are under the water.
• Ask questions of the coach if you don't understand the instructions.
Guidelines for Swimmers
• NO running on the pool deck.
• NO pushing others in the water.
• NO entering the water for workouts until told to do so by the coach.
• NO glass at the pool deck.
• NO riding bikes, skateboards, scooters, or rollerblades on pool deck.
• NO crazy diving off the starting blocks.
• Respect the rights of others, including their personal property.
• Treat team equipment as if it were your own (kickboards, etc.).
• Put your name on goggles and clothing.
• Keep track of your own things. Don't expect others to remind you where you left them.
• Remember to list your vacations in the sign-out binder as far in advance as possible.
• Check the bulletin board and family file folder daily for team information.
• Arrive on time for workouts and meets.
• All individuals associated with LST are to observe the Paddock Hills Homeowners' Association pool rules as posted at the entrance and at poolside. This same policy extends to the pools of host teams.
• Swimmers are excluded from the baby pool at all times.
• If a swimmer's conduct becomes a problem and disrupts other swimmers, the coaches may eject them from the pool premises and bar them from future workouts and meets. The length of the dismissal will be at the discretion of the coaching staff and board.
League Association
Livorna Swim Team is a member of the Diablo Community Swim League (DCSL) with seven other teams. Following is a list of the other seven DCSL members and their addresses.
Las Trampas --- 640 Saint Mary's Road, Lafayette
Pleasant Hill Aquatics --- 468 Boyd Road, Pleasant Hill
Forest Hills --- 375 Lindsey Drive, Martinez
Rancho San Miguel --- 2727 San Carlos Drive, Walnut Creek
Scottsdale --- 500 Walnut Avenue, Walnut Creek
Springwood --- 4554 Concord Boulevard, Concord
Walnut Country --- 4498 Lawson Court, Concord
LST also competes with various other recreational swim teams (non-league) from the area.
Lost & Found
LST has a Lost and Found area. Check it for missing articles. LST will donate contents of the barrel to a charitable organization at the end of the season.
Meet Information
Wednesday evening meets typically begin at 5:30 p.m. Warm-ups are typically at 4:45 p.m. for home meets and 4:30 p.m. for away meets. Wednesday meets usually end by 9 p.m.
Saturday morning meets begin at 9 a.m. Warm-ups are at 8:15 a.m. for home meets and 8:00 a.m. for away meets. Saturday meets usually end by 12:30p.m.
Each swimmer is responsible for reviewing his or her assigned events as posted and getting to the starting block or lane clerk on time. Events will be posted online and you can refer to your SwimTopia app. Be sure to check the final meet program posted at the meet as there may have been changes from earlier postings. Parents must be alert to their younger swimmers' whereabouts and get them to the lane clerks well in advance of the event start.
Swimmers must remain at least until their last event or relay has been swum. Swimmers are strongly encouraged to remain for the full meet to cheer on their teammates.
Meet Results
Meet results will be posted within a day or two of the meet on the team web site. If you have any questions about a swimmer's meet results, please contact the Meet Director. Sometimes, events beyond our control, such as computer issues involving the other team, may come up that keep us from posting meet results. Please be patient and know that we will get the results up as soon as possible.
Parent Participation
Parents of all swimmers are required to administer the team business and run home meets. Parents can choose their job(s) or their jobs will be assigned for them. Parents agree to participate in the running of the meets when they register their swimmers. This includes home, away and Invitational meets. Each family is required to work at meets plus Invitational meets. It takes about 60 people to run a home meet and 25 people to help at away meets. We need each and every one of you.
If you cannot attend to your job as planned, then it is your responsibility to find a replacement. This can be done by looking on the roster and making telephone calls. If you are excessively late, fail to complete the job requirements entirely, or do not work an assigned job without finding a replacement, you will be required to pay a $100 fine for each job missed. Please notify the jobs coordinator in advance if you have traded jobs with another parent or have found a replacement for your assigned job.
Parents also participate by ensuring that their children attend daily workouts, attend parent meetings and the awards ceremony, and by participating in fundraising activities.
LST has many social events during the course of the year. We need several people to work with the Social Chair to sponsor and/or organize these events. In recognition of this extra effort, you can receive credits against the number of swim meet jobs you are required to do. For those folks who are kind enough to do an Annual Job as well as helping with a social event, we really appreciate the extra effort. These events really make a difference for our team because they provide parents and swimmers alike with several fun things to do over the summer in addition to swimming.
Posting of Meet Entries & Jobs
• Entries for all meets will be posted on the website at least one day before the meet.
• Final entries, with lane assignments, will be posted on our website.
• Jobs for all meets will be available online two days before the meet.
Refund Policy
Refunds of season registration fees paid, minus a $100 charge, are available to all swimmers for the first week after pre-season practice begins. Once this deadline passes, no refunds of any kind will be given.
Registration Fees
Each year the financial goal of the Livorna Swim Team is to run a balanced budget. To that end, the LST Board of Directors determines registration fees. Registration fees cover the coaches' wages and associated taxes, the Paddock Hills Homeowners' Association pool use fee, swim team supplies, league insurance and dues as well as other team operating expenses. The registration fees cover some social event costs as well as the entry fees for the DCSL League Meet and County Meet. Additional fees will be charged for participation in any remaining invitational meets and some of the other social events.
Swim team fees are due and payable at registration. Additional fees may be required by Paddock Hills Homeowners Association - these additional fees depend on your Paddock Hills Homeowners' Association membership status.
If you would like a copy of the team’s annual budget, please contact our Treasurer.
Suits
All swimmers must wear appropriate "competition-style" swim attire. Boys must wear either a jammer or a speedo style suit. Baggy "board" shorts are not permitted. Each family purchases their swimmer's suit. Team suits are required at meets. Suits may be ordered early in the season though the current Livorna vendor. Team suits are not required at daily workouts but should be worn for all League meets and for team pictures.
Team Pictures
Team pictures are usually scheduled for the week after school lets out for the summer. Swimmers are required to come in their team suits. Parents will have the opportunity to select and purchase from a variety of packages including a group photo. Payment is due the day the photos are taken.
Types of Meets
Time Trials. This is the first chance to see our swimmers compete. This is our own meet with the members swimming against each other. Every swimmer is timed in every event. There are no relays. This is a very important meet, to obtain times so that future meets can be seeded correctly. Due to time constraints no make up for time trials is possible.
League Meets. We compete in a dual meet against each of the other DCSL teams during the season. League meets will be scheduled in a manner that allows our team to be competitive and is subject to the coach's discretion. The current size of the team does not allow all of the children to swim in these meets, but every swimmer will have an opportunity to swim at least once at a League meet during the season. These meets generally involve the fastest swimmers on both teams. Faster swimmers will get more swims at League meets.
Non-League Meets. Non-League meets are used to make sure the number of swims is equitable by the end of the season. The format is the same as league meets (same events) but the focus is on balancing the number of swims. Faster swimmers will generally get fewer swims at non-league meets.
Invitational Meets. These are meets in which we are invited to compete along with many other swim teams. Invitational meets are hosted by a swim team at their facility, unless otherwise noted. Swimmers are sometimes allowed to choose in which events they wish to swim (this is a coach decision). Check the meet schedule to see when this year's invitationals are scheduled.
DCSL Championship. This is the culmination of the season, when the eight teams in the DCSL compete in a season finale meet. This is a single day meet held on Saturday, and the entire team is encouraged to participate. This is the best meet for the entire team to compete against all the individual teams in our League. A summer highlight!
County Championship Meet. Swimmers who qualify by swimming a qualifying time at a scored dual meet are eligible to swim in the County Championship Meet. Relay entries need not have made a qualifying time.
