KC Y BLUE WAVE SWIM TEAM
New Parent Comprehensive Orientation
BENEFITS OF SWIMMING
A healthy life-long sport
 Healthy life-long lessons
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Organizational skills
 Commitment
 Character development – caring, honesty, respect
and responsibility
 Long-term goal setting
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New friends for swimmers & parents
 Learning a sport most of us did not grow up with
 Community service by volunteering to support
your athlete and swim club
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KEY COMPONENTS OF SWIMMING
Athlete
Coach
Parent
ATHLETE
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Commitment
Attending practice
 Attending swim meets
 Paying attention to coach
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Social Skills – make friends, have fun
 Long/short term goal setting
 Measure performance
 Willingness to do his/her best
 Good sportsmanship
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COACH
Has a passion for the sport
 Is a paid professional
 Is a trained expert in the sport
 Has a comprehensive workout plan for the whole
season including short/long term goals for the
team
 Must deal with many different swimmers all with
different personalities, goals and skill levels
 Must deal with many different parents all with
different personalities and reasons for being on
the team
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PARENT
Let the coach do his job – never coach your child
 Insure your athlete is getting proper nutrition
 Provide unconditional support to your athlete
 Help your athlete deal with both success and
disappointment
 Enter your athletes in swim meets
 Get your athlete to practice and meets on time
 Find the right spot for you to volunteer
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PARENT PROTOCOL
Speak to coach only during his office hours or
arranged time (before/after overall practice for
the day – we run 2-4 practice sessions per day)
 Support your child at meets but empower him as
well.
 Embrace failures as learning opportunities. DQ’s
and bad times are part of learning
 Speak up if you have questions – Ask your Blue
Wave Ambassador, the New Parent Liaison, or
any swim parent. They are all nice!
 Fulfill minimum volunteer hours per season 
PHILOSOPHY OF COMPETITION
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The Blue Wave Swim Team will participate in two
types of swim competition: YMCA dual meets and
USA swim meets.
The following principles apply to all competitions:
Emphasize competition with yourself. Individual
improvement in time or skill is more important than your
place in the race.
 Consideration for fellow teammates, opponents, officials,
and parents is just as important as how you swim. We
encourage support for others; positive attitudes and good
meet behavior.
 We encourage swimmers to learn to set reasonable and
logical goals and to strive for excellence even when they
experience short-term setbacks.
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GOVERNING SWIM ORGANIZATIONS
We participate in swim meets run by two
governing organizations: YMCA Swimming and
Diving and USA Swimming.
 The technical rules of these organizations are
almost identical and the meets are run in similar
fashion.
 YMCA Swimming and Diving is part of the
YMCA of the USA organization.
 United States Swimming is the National
governing body for competitive swimming.
 Missouri Valley Swimming is our Local Swim
Committee (LSC)
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SWIM SEASONS
The short course season is swum in 25-yard pools
(SCY) during the fall and winter months. Meets
generally start in late September and end in late
March.
 The long course season is held in the summer
months and is swum in 50-meter pools (LCM)
generally April to late August.
 Your neighborhood summer swim teams are 25meter pools (SCM) generally Late May to MidJuly 6-8 weeks.
 You may swim both neighborhood and long
course simultaneously.
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USA SWIMMING (USAS) MEETS
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Are comprised of Age Group swimming (8 & under, 10
and under, 11-12, 13-14, and 15-18) and Senior
swimming (any age as long as the requisite cut-off
time has been achieved.)
A schedule of USA Swimming meets is posted on the
web page & the team bulletin board.
A schedule of events called the “meet information
document” is posted on the website.
Once a parent has reviewed the meet information,
they should log on to the team website and declare
the swimmers intentions for the meet.
Swimmers can pick the events and days that they
would like to attend an event, however, the final
choice of events is in the hands of the coach, in
consultation with each swimmer.
Y DUAL MEETS
The Blue Wave Swim Team is exploring
hosting/attending Y dual meets.
 YMCA meets give our team access to a whole
new pool of competition.
 YMCA meets consist of "dual" meets between Y's,
the Y league championship, and Y Nationals in
late March/early April and late July/early
August.
 Swimmers must be current, active members of a
YMCA to compete.
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USA SWIMMING (USAS) MEETS
Entry in a USA swim meet means that each
swimmer's USA account will be billed for each
event, whether or not they actually compete,
since we must submit the entry fees with our
entry. These fees are up to $4.50 per event.
 USA meets are often classified as A, B, C or some
combination of letters. These classifications refer
to the cutoff times for the fastest and slowest
swimmers that are allowed to swim at that meet.
 Most meet BWST attends are called Age Group
(All Ages) meets and have no cut-off times and
are sometimes swum in single year age groups,
e.g. 8 & Under, 10, 11, 12, etc.
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USA SWIMMING (USAS) MEETS
In USA A/B meets anyone with an A or B time
can compete, but C swimmers cannot. In B/C
meets, anyone (even without a time) can
compete, but A or faster swimmers cannot.
 A swimmer's age for a USA meet is his age on the
first day of the meet. A swimmer's age for a Y
meet is his age as of December 1 of that dual
meet season. The swimmer's USA number is the
swimmer’s birthdate followed by the first 3
letters of her first name, her middle initial and
the first 4 letter of her last name:
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Annie M. Jones, born 5/19/79, has a USA Swimming
number of 051979AnnMJone
WHAT TO BRING TO A MEET
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Chairs
Blankets or extra towels to sit on
Coolers with snacks and drinks
Extra pair of goggles, swim cap, team suit
Extra towels, hoodies, pants, flip flops
Parka
Dress in layers – pool areas are HOT & HUMID.
Sharpie and a highlighter
Cash to buy concessions and heat sheets
Plenty of water or Gatorade for your swimmer
Blue Wave Ambassador’s phone number
Patience, positive attitude, team spirit
MEET PREPARATION AND CONDUCT
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Team warm-ups are usually held 1 to 1 1/2 hours
prior to the start of the meet.
Swimmers should be on deck dressed to swim 20
minutes before the start of pool warm-up for
stretching and to check in with the coach so the coach
can turn in the correct scratches and deck entries for
the day. If you are late, you run the risk of being
scratched from your events. You are not refunded for
any scratches. You need to pay $7 for deck entries to
the host team.
For safety reasons, the coaches supervise warm-ups
in the pool. A good warm-up is vital to a successful
meet. The ages and numbers of swimmers determine
warm-up schedules for a given meet.
MEET PREPARATION AND CONDUCT
During warm-up, swimmers must enter the
water feet first with a minimum of jumping to
make sure that no one is injured.
 At the end of warm-up there is usually the "oneway" sprint time when swimmers can practice
diving from the starting blocks.
 After warm-up, swimmers stay warm, but if it is
hot and sunny, stay in the shade and out of the
direct sun.
 Once the meet begins it is important for
swimmers to report to the coach before each race.
 It is the responsibility of the swimmer to know
their event, heat, and lane.
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MEET PREPARATION AND CONDUCT
Discussing the race before the swimmer competes
allows for final instruction and reminders to set
swimmer up to swim their best race.
 Report to the Clerk of the Course and/or blocks in
plenty of time to be by yourself and concentrate
on your race.
 Sit with the team in the team area. Support your
teammates by cheering, offering congratulations,
and being positive.
 Show respect for the meet officials, as well as
other teams and coaches.
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READING A HEAT SHEET
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On Webpage under Team Info, Team Handbooks,
Reading a Heat Sheet
REPORTING TIMES FROM MEETS
If electronic touch pads are used at a meet they
provide the "official" time. Buttons and manual
watches are used only for backup. When watches
are used, the middle of the 3 times is the official
time. Official results are posted throughout the
meet so you can see how your swimmer did.
 Official times are only recorded in individual
events. In general swimmers swimming relays do
not have times recorded for their leg of the relay
since they did not start from a starter's signal.
The exception is the split time for the first
swimmer in a relay, which is an official time and
is reported.
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2013/2014 BWST MEETS
(ALL POSTED ON WWW.KCBLUEWAVE.COM CALENDAR)
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September
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October
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True Blue Igloo
January
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Tsunami Fall RoundUp
Jim Devine – Columbia
December
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Blue Wave Invitational (required)
Splash
Cool Spooktackular
November
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NLU Decathlon
Rock the Blocks
February
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NLU Last Chance
CHAMPIONSHIP MEETS
(QUALIFYING TIMES REQUIRED)
Winter Qualifier – East in December
 Midwestern Winter Classic in December
 MAL 8 & Under in February
 SCY Districts – East in February
 SCY Sectionals in February
 SCY Championships in March
 LCM Districts – East in July
 LCM Championships in July
 LCM Sectionals in July
 Central Zones in August
 Nationals in August
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HOW TO SIGN UP FOR A SWIM MEET
http://www.kcbluewave.com/
 Sign In (contact team administrator for login/password)
 Choose Events
 Find the meet you are interested in
 Click “Attend this Event”
 Click on your swimmer’s name
 Select “Yes” from the drop down box
 Type any notes to the coach in the Notes box, eg “only
attending on Saturday”
 Put a check box next to the desired events (note the day
and session D1/S1)
 Click “Save Changes”
 Send payment immediately to Blue Wave Swim Team.
BLUE WAVE SPONSORED MEETS
The Blue Wave Swim Team sponsors a number of
meets throughout the short course and long
course seasons.
 These meets are important because they give the
Blue Wave Swim Team an opportunity to do
fundraising for the team.
 It is critically important that Blue Wave Swim
Team families support these meets by
volunteering.
 It takes approx. 150 shifts (~450 hours of time) to
host a 3 day meet.
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MEET VOLUNTEER DESCRIPTIONS
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Meet Director – project planner of meet. Must be
USAS member
Timers – operate stop watch, record times
Backup Timer – operate stop watch to use if main
timer makes mistake
Head timer – instruct all timers on duties
Runner – collect timer sheets
Ribbons – place labels on ribbons and sort
Safety Marshalls – wear orange vest, monitor warm
ups, cool-downs, and general meet safety
Hospitality – coordinate and deliver food for coaches
& officials
Officials
OFFICIALS
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Officials provide a critical role in any successful
swim meet.
Every USA Swimming official is an ambassador
for the sport.
To host a USA Swimming meet the following
officials are required: Meet Referee, Deck
Referee, Starter, Chief Judges, and Stroke &
Turn Judges.
The more officials our team has, the more
efficient swim meets will run. We need officials
for both hosted meets as well as meets we attend
as guests.
WEBPAGE BASICS
Checking Meet Results
 Checking Invoices
 Member Directory
 Overview of Menus
 Training Videos
 Missouri Valley Swimming Link
 USA Swimming Link
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GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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‘A’ Time: The qualifying time in a given event for the USA
swimming ‘A’ classification level. Age Group Swimmers
compete in most meets only with those in their respective
age groups. Current USA swimming/MVS age groups are: 8
& under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and senior. YMCA is similar.
Age Group Meet: All USAS registered swimmers, 18
years of age and younger, who have met the qualifying time
standard for the specific event(s) are eligible to compete in
their age category.
‘B’ Time: The qualifying time in a given event for the USA
swimming ‘B’ classification meet.
Block: The starting platform where a swimmer begins a
race with a dive.
Bullpen: The area at a swim meet adjacent to the clerk of
course in which swimmers are assembled and assigned to
their heats in advance of each event. Most meets will have
a bullpen for younger swimmers and sometimes older
swimmers.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
‘C’ Time: The qualifying time in a given event
for the USAS 'C' classification level.
 Circle Swimming: In practice sessions or
warm-ups, by staying to the right of the black
line on the bottom of the pool. When swimming in
a lane with multiple people, it to enables more
swimmers to swim safely in each lane.
 Classification of Meets: A swimmer's ability
level represented by his or her best time at a
previous meet.
 Clerk of Course: The person responsible for
assigning swimmers to heats and lanes. Usually
only available for 8 and Unders.
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GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Consolation Final: A final swim after the preliminary
heats where swimmers, typically, compete for 9th through
16th place. These swimmers cannot receive higher than 9th
place.
Course: The designated distance in yards or meters over
which the competition is conducted.
Cuts: The qualifying times for specific types of
championship meets.
Deck Seeding: Swimmers are assigned heats and lane
right before the session starts. This allows swimmers to
placed in the correct lanes according to times in the event
of scratch.
Declared False Start: If a swimmer decides to scratch
an event or cannot or does not want to swim an event, they
can “Declare a False Start in order to avoid being assessed
a penalty. The swimmer must clear this with their coach
so they can get referee approval.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Disqualification (DQs): Trained officials (judges) watch
each race. Swimmers with improper form or technique are
disqualified and told the reason(s) why. Swimmers should not
be discouraged by a disqualification. Most team members have
experienced a few DQs. Pay close attention to the official's
remarks and work hard (with your coach's direction) to
remedy the problem. Swimmers should swim remaining
events that day and may enter the same event in the next
meet.
Division I Meet: Missouri Valley Swim Meet held in March
for swimmers who have achieved a Division I qualifying time.
The times are available on the Blue Wave Swim Team website
or on MissouriValleySwimming.com. All times are established
by Missouri Valley Swimming.
Division II Meet: Missouri Valley Swim meet held at the
end of February for swimmers who have achieved a Division II
qualifying time. The times are available on the Blue Wave
Swim Team website or on MissouriValleySwimming.com. All
times are established by Missouri Valley swimming.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Dryland Training: Training done out of the water that
aids and enhances swimming performance; can include
stretching, running, calisthenics, and weight lifting.
Dual Meet: Meets conducted between only two teams.
Dual meets usually have a limited number of entrants that
can score in each event.
Event: Any race or series of races (heats) in a given stroke
and distance.
False Start: Occurs if a swimmer on the block is moving
after they are told to take their mark and before the start
gun is sounded. In USA Swimming, a false start will result
in disqualification at the completion of the race.
Final: The championship heat of an event in which,
typically, the top 8 swimmers from the preliminaries
compete for final place. These swimmers cannot receive
worse than 8th place unless they are DQ’d.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Fins: Soft, flexible, and usually made of rubber, fins or
flippers are worn on swimmer's feet in practice during certain
drills. Some swimmers wear thin or old socks inside the fins to
minimize chafing of their feet.
Flags: (Backstroke flags) are placed 5 yards (short course) or
5 meters (long course) from each end of the pool. The flags
enable backstrokers to execute a backstroke turn more
efficiently without having to turn around and find the wall.
Free Relay: Four swimmers comprise the relay team. Each
athlete swims one quarter of the distance using any desired
stroke.
Gutter: The area along the edge of the pool in which water
overflows during a race and is recirculated through the
filtration system.
Heat: A division of an event into a series of separate races.
Each race is one heat. Multiple heats are needed when more
swimmers enter an event than there are lanes in the pool.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Heat Sheet: A list of swimmers entered in each heat of each
event of a meet. They are typically listed in order of seeding
times and sometimes include lane and heat identification. The
host of the meet prepares the heat sheets and sells them for a
nominal fee just before the meet starts.
Individual Medley (IM:) An event where the athlete swims
all four competitive strokes in one race in the following order:
butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle.
MVS, Inc. (Missouri Valley Swimming Incorporated):
The organization that administers and governs the Kansas
and Missouri state programs for USA Swimming.
Junior Olympics (JOs): Now called Age Group State
Championships. This is the final end of the season meet on a
state level for those swimmers that qualify. Limited to 14 year
olds and under.
Kick Board: Flat floatation device used in practice that is
held in front of the swimmer keeping their upper body afloat
to work on strengthening the kick.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Lap Counter: A set of plastic display numbers used to keep track of
laps during a distance race. Also, the person who counts for the
swimmer can also be called the lap counter. This person is stationed
at the opposite end of the pool from the start and places the number
in the water as the swimmer approaches to let them know how far
they have swum.
Level I Swim Meet: Swim meet held in December for those
swimmers who have achieved an “A” time in an event according to
USA Swimming’s Motivation Time Standards. The qualifying times
are posted on the Blue Wave Swim Team website or on the Missouri
Valley Swimming website.
Level II Swim Meet: Swim meet held in December for those
swimmers who have achieved a “C” time in an event according to the
USA Swimming’s Motivation Time Standards. The qualifying times
are posted on the Blue Wave Swim Team website or on the the
Missouri Valley swimming website.
Local Swimming Committee (LSC); Governing body for swimming
at the local (typically State) level. There are 59 LSCs in the country.
Missouri Valley Swimming is the LSC for BWST.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Long Course: The term designated for a 50-meter pool.
Medley Relay: Four swimmers comprise the relay team. Each
athlete swims one quarter of the distance in the following order
backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle.
National Reportable Time (NRT): Time standards set for both
long and short course based on previous years' top 16 achievements.
Only times meeting these standards may be submitted for
consideration each year. The Top 16 submitted timed in each event
are recognized.
Negative Split: Swimming the second half of the race equal to or
faster than the first half.
Official: A judge on the deck of the pool at a sanctioned competition
who enforces USAS or YMCA rules. There are stroke and turn judges,
administrative officials, starters, safety marshalls and referees.
Open Water Race: A distance freestyle swimming event conducted
in a natural body of water.
Pace Clock: A digital or analog clock kept on deck that typically
used to check pace or maintain intervals in practice.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Prelims: Also called preliminaries, heats, or trials; those
races in which swimmers qualify for the championship and
consolation finals in the events.
Paddles: Plastic plates with holes attached to the
swimmer's hands by a short piece of rubber tubing which
used in practice to improve stroke technique and build
strength.
Proof of Time: Meet results signed by an official that can
be used for entering championship meets. Sometimes
brought to another meet to show that the swimmer has
actually swam that time if they fail to swim their entry
time and do not meet the time standard for that event.
Pull Buoy: Floatation devices held between the swimmer's
legs during practice for stroke and pulling drills which are
often used in combination with paddles.
Referee: The lead official at a meet.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Relay: An event where a team of four swimmers is part of
a single race.
Sanction: Official / authorized approval from USAS or
MVS to sponsor a meet.
Scratch: To withdraw an entry from competition. The
proper procedure must be followed or the swimmer could be
barred from competing in their next event(s).
Seeding: Placing swimmers in order of their entry times
for that event. Proper seeding will ensure swimmers in
each heat will be of near or equal ability.
Short Course: The term designated for a 25-yard pool.
Split: The time per lap, or partial distance in an event.
Coaches often record an athlete's splits at a meet or
practice to help the swimmer improve pacing and race
strategy. Relay swimmers can also receive a split time
during a relay depending on the timing system being used
at the meet.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Starter: The official at a meet responsible for the proper, legal, and
safe start of each heat and event.
Streamline: The position used by swimmers when entering the
water after starting off a block or pushing off the walls designed to
reduce water resistance.
Stroke Judge: A certified meet official who determines the legality
of swimmers' strokes. They are an official that can disqualify a
swimmer during a meet for a stroke infraction.
Taper: The final preparation phase prior to a season ending
championship meet where total swimming volume and intensity are
reduced to produce a fast swim. Sometimes referred to as "rest."
Time Standards: Listed qualifying times that have been set by
MVS, USAS or YMCA for each event by age groups for a certain
competition. Time standards are typically for Championship meets.
Timed Finals: A meet where an athlete swims his or her event one
time. The event is scored based on the times recorded for the event
from fastest to slowest.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Time Trial: A time-only swim that is not part of a regular meet; or it
can be a whole meet where there are no awards or places just times
recorded.
Touch Pad: The electronic device placed at the end of each lane in
the water that registers the swimmer's touch and stops the clock.
Turn Judge: A certified meet official who determines the legality of
swimmers' turns and finishes. They are an official that can disqualify
a swimmer during a meet for a turn infraction.
Unattached Swimmers: Swimmers attending meets that are not
members of participating team.
USAS United States of America Swimming, Inc: The governing
body for swimming in the US. The national headquarter are in
Colorado Springs, CO.
Warm Down: Low intensity swimming used by swimmers after a
race or main practice set to rid the body of excess lactic acid, and to
gradually reduce heart rate and respiration.
Warm Up: Low intensity swimming used by the swimmer prior to a
main practice set or race to loosen muscles. A proper warm up
gradually increases heart rate, respiration, and helps prepare the
body for higher levels of physical activity and to prevent injury.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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Zone Meet: A multi-state Championship meet in
which each state competes as a state team. In the
Midwest, teams representing each state or LSC
compete in the annual Zone meet which occurs in
late summer. In order to make the Missouri or
Kansas team, a swimmer must achieve a 'AAA'
time in a sanctioned meet. An application must
be filled out and sent to MVS to be selected.
QUESTIONS?
Email Info@KCBlueWave.com
 Ask your coach
 Use the Contacts on webpage
 Contact your Blue Wave Ambassador
 Use the Member Directory on webpage
 Use the Facebook group
 Attend Parent Advisory Board meetings every 2nd
Wednesday of the month
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