The time trials are almost here, so I thought I'd give you some guidelines on what to expect.  It's a little crazy, a lot of fun, and a great way to kickoff the season as a team.  Given our size, we decided to break up the time trials this year by age groups:

Monday, June 9th, 6-U, 7/8
Tuesday, June 10th, 9/10, 11/12, 13/14, 15-U

Here is what you need to do:

• Arrive at the pool by 3:30.  This is important for a 4pm start.
  
• Check in with our Meet Director, Lori McPherson, and receive your lane# and heat#.  All swimmers will swim in the same lane and heat for each stroke.  For example, if you receive Lane2, Heat 3, your swimmer will swim in the 3rd Heat in Lane 2 for Freestyle, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly, I/M (9-U only).  We will go through the entire stroke at the meet (i.e. all age groups will complete freestyle before we begin Backstroke), as we will at our dual meets this year.
• Mark your swimmer's lane/heat on their hand and name on their back with a Sharpie.  This is also done at each dual meet.
  
• If you are a timer this year as a parent job, you may be asked to keep time, or observe timers to get an idea of the job.  If you are so fortunate, you will attend a timer meeting 5 minutes before our start.
• Absolutely, and without fail, maintain a positive attitude toward all swimmers at the meet.  Encourage them simply to do their best.  The times are only used as seeds for our software for the first meet, and aren't important.  For many swimmers, this will be their first experience in a "meet" setting, and it's natural to be a little anxious.  Reassure the little ones -- this will be fun!

Time Trials Q/A

Q: So, is this a meet?
A: Not really.  It's a chance to give the kids a chance to practice in a meet setting, and for us to get times to seed our first meet at Crow Canyon.
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Q: How long will it last?
A: We're keeping it organized to run as quickly as possible.  Still, these things take some time.  Plan for 3 hours at the pool.
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Q: Do the times "count?"
A: No, but it's a nice baseline this early in the season to encourage kids to improve every week!
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Q: I've heard this thing is totally crazy, kind of like that scene from Planet of the Apes where hoards of people are getting chased through the cornfield.  Minus apes riding horses, of course.  Is this true?
A: We've put substantial thought into this, and we think we have a format that should minimize the confusion and keep it moving.  That said, the pool will be more crowded than normal.  Please pay attention, so your kids are ready to swim when their heat is called.  Please stay out of the way of the lanes when other age groups are swimming.
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Q: Can I take pictures?
A: Please do.  But Tom Lee remains our official photographer.  We have him under contract for 3 more years.
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Q: But I'm cheaper than Tom!
A: That's not funny.  Tom pays us.
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Q: Terri and Celia keep giving me kettle corn.  But they call it Soylent Green.  What's with that?
A: Mmmmm...popcorn.  We're giving a little freebie to get you hooked.  It will be on sale at selected meets -- proceeds go to the team.  And it's a top secret recipe.