Virginia Oaks Sea Devils

There are 8 scheduled meets during the summer swim season -- time trials, six dual meets, and Divisionals. Time trials are held at our pool at the beginning of the season to get a baseline time for each swimmer. For the dual meets, three meets will be at home (Virginia Oaks pool), three will be away pools, and the Divisionals meet location will vary from year to year. In total, that makes four meets at home, and three away, with Divisionals rotating each season. Meets start at 7am SHARP! Your swimmer should arrive at 6am to check in with the Clerk of Course and the head coach and be ready for warm-ups. Keep reading for more helpful information about how swim meets operate.

Age Group

The age of each child on June 1st of each swim season determines the age and age group in which they will swim throughout the season, regardless of a summer birthday.

Time Trials

Everyone is encouraged to attend time trials. Unlike meets, where swimmers can only be entered for a maximum of three individual events, at time trials a swimmer may enter four individual events (freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly.) These times will be used by coaches for entering swimmers in individual and relay events at meets. These times will also serve as a reference for time improvement awards.

Since time trials are run very much like a real meet, it’s a great chance to warm up for the season. Place ribbons are not awarded at time trials, but swimmers will learn about reporting to the Clerk of Course and some basic meet rules. Parents can try being a timer or recorder. Everyone can practice getting up real early and making it to the pool without forgetting something!

Heat Sheets

Heat sheets will be posted on the website the Friday evening prior to the meet. They will include the individual events, the swimmers entered in each event, and their fastest time. Swimmers will be listed fastest to slowest using their best time for each event. Swimmers who have never competed in an event before will be listed after swimmers with times. The notation NT for “no time” will be typed next to their names.

Event Schedule

The event schedule will be the same each week and (usually) is as follows:

• FREESTYLE RELAYS 15 -18 ONLY
• MEDLEY RELAYS 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• FREESTYLE 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• I.M. (INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY) 10 & UNDER, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• BACKSTROKE 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• BREASTROKE 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• BUTTERFLY 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-18
• FREESTYLE RELAYS 8 & UNDER, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14

What to Bring

Getting ready for a swim meet can feel like you’re packing for a week of camping. We have some shade at the Virginia Oaks pool, but space is limited. High on the recommended “bring” list is sweats to pull on after warm-ups. Write your name on absolutely everything you bring. The checklist below might help you pack:

Team Suits

Team swimsuits are available for purchase at Cassels and can be ordered online. Team suits are not required, but are highly recommended.

Each swimmer will receive 1 swim cap, should this be lost or misplaced, new ones will be available for purchase. We will also have silicone caps for purchase.

What to Expect

If you’ve never attended a swim meet before, here are a few things you can expect:

• Parents, officials, towels, and kids everywhere!
• Chilly mornings
• Extremely limited viewing space (except for deck volunteers)
• Boredom between your kid’s events if you don’t volunteer for a shift (or two!) timing, recording, working concessions, etc.
• New friends and a great time if you get involved with the team!

Plan to arrive 15 minutes before warm-ups start. This way you can stake your tent, find your goggles, and report to the coaches when the announcer calls for warm-ups.

Warm-ups

Each team gets a 20-minute warm-up. The home team always warms up first. For home meets, that means you’ll need to arrive at the pool around 6am. Warm-ups resemble organized chaos. The entire team warms up all at once, so it’s very crowded on the pool deck! The Team gathers around the Coaches after warm-ups to cheer and get psyched up for the meet, so send a towel or sweats with your swimmer to warm-ups. If it hasn’t been done at Friday’s practice, the coaches will use a waterproof pen to mark each kid’s arm with the events they’ll be swimming.

Meets usually start around 7am and last for about 3 hours. After both teams have warmed up, we sing the national anthem and then the meet should begin. Relays are first. If you’re swimming in a relay, report to the Coach immediately after warm-ups.

Reporting to Clerk of Course

When the announcer calls your event number over the loudspeaker, you should immediately report to the “Clerk of Course.” This is the person who gets the swimmers in order for their event. The staging area for Clerk of Course is at the left side of the pool house. 

PARENTS: It’s important to allow your child to remain at the Clerk of Course staging area alone. The kids have excellent supervision and direction from parent volunteers who help at Clerk of Course.

Spectating

Space is really limited on the pool deck. Timers will be at one end of the pool and Stroke & Turn Judges will be walking along the sides. In addition, the Coaches, Referee, Starter and Announcer will be on the side of the pool. Please try not to interfere with any of the officials, and keep back from the sides of the pool. League rules prohibit parents or other spectators from “coaching” the kids. Please make sure that you give them only encouragement and not any swimming tips.

What's My Time?

Swimmers learn to ask the recorder for their (unofficial) time as soon as they get out of the pool at the end of a race. Once the times for a heat are collected, the official results are posted by the Scoring Officials.

Disqualification (DQ)

Our league complies with USA Swimming rules - the same rules used at all National meets like the Olympic Time Trials. To ensure fair competition for all swimmers, these rules are equally applied to all swimmers, regardless of age or experience. During competition, if a swimmer fails to comply with the stroke and turn rules, a Stroke & Turn Judge (dressed in white shirts and blue shorts) will raise their hand, write up a disqualification (DQ) slip, and present it to the referee for approval. A swimmer is not disqualified until the referee accepts the report. Almost all swimmers in all age groups have been DQ’d at some time. This should be viewed as a learning experience and not a failure. Swimmers should discuss the DQ with their Coach after the race, and together they will formulate a plan to correct the mistake.

Post-Meet Cleanup

After each home meet, our team is responsible for “putting the pool back together again.” This means removing lane lines and backstroke flags; returning tables, chairs, and lounges to their original spots; disassembling temporary pavilions, as well as picking up and removing all trash and lost & found items. That’s a lot of work for a committee of two, but many hands make light work. If everybody helps to clean and move just a few chairs, the job will get done in minutes.

When we visit another pool for a swim meet, please be sure to leave the area the way you found it.

Pick up all the trash in your area, whether you made it or not. Thank you in advance for helping with cleanup.

Divisionals Meet

To qualify for the Divisionals meet, a swimmer must participate in at least two dual meets (not time trials) during the current swim season. At Divisionals, each swimmer is restricted to entering those events in which a legal time was recorded at a meet during the season. For example, if a swimmer never competed in the breaststroke event at a meet, that swimmer is not eligible to swim breaststroke at Divisionals. If a swimmer entered the breaststroke event weekly but always DQ’d (disqualified) because of illegal technique, that swimmer is not eligible to swim breaststroke at Divisionals. The Coaches will make all entries for this meet.

Larger championship ribbons are awarded for 24 places in each event. League Time Improvement Ribbons will be awarded for any time improvement over 1 second. Special league-wide ribbons will also be awarded for the 12 fastest times recorded (for each event from every championship meet) in the league during Divisionals.

Meet Scoring

Prince William Swim League (PWSL) dual meets are scored as follows: 

Individual Events: Swimmers can earn individual points in Freestyle, IM, Backstroke, Breaststroke, and Butterfly events.

1. Points are awarded for up to 12 places per event as shown.
2. The fastest 6 finishes for each team will score points by completion of legal swims.
3. The same team cannot score points for more than 6 places.

Relay Events: Points are awarded as follows: 47 points for first place and 32 points for second place. First place in relay events is won by the fastest legal swim; the opponent takes second place by completion of a legal swim. The same team cannot score points for both first and second places if they have multiple relay teams competing in the same event.

Meet Awards/Ribbons

At the swim meet, heat ribbons are awarded to the fastest swimmer immediately after each heat. Other swim meet awards will be passed out on the following Monday/Tuesday after each age group’s swim practice. If you know you’ll be absent, ask a friend to pick up your ribbons. Otherwise, they will be held until the end of season Awards Ceremony. Some of the weekly awards are:

Individual Events: Ribbons are awarded to the top 12 legal finishes, regardless of team, based on time. Ribbons are also awarded for the top 12 8&Unders in Freestyle and Backstroke events based on time.

Relay Events: Ribbons are awarded to each relay swimmer in the first, second, and third legal swims based on time. The same team can receive ribbons for first, second, and third place finishes.

Time Improvement - Awarded when a swimmer’s time for a particular event is faster than previously recorded.

Things to Remember

Our coaches are responsible for coaching swimming. They can’t chase swimmers who wander off, or force older swimmers to participate in practice. If you are concerned about whether your child will remain with the coach or follow instructions, then an adult should accompany that child to practice. During meets, an adult must accompany swimmers who are not yet babysitting age.

Everyone is welcome to watch swim practice, but please resist the temptation to coach and encourage your child while he/she is practicing. This creates a distraction for everyone. No one, with the exception of coaches and swimmers, is allowed at either end of the pool during practices. For young children, it is recommended that parents do not sit close to the pool.

It’s not necessary to notify coaches if you will miss practice. Especially during the first few weeks of evening practice, we understand that other sports and end of the year activities will overlap. If, however, you’ll miss several practices in a row due to other commitments, please mention this to the Coaches. If you choose to drop off the team, please notify a Coach.

Swimmer Conduct

Yes!

Terminology

DUAL COMPETITION - (DUAL MEET) competition between two clubs.

EVENT - any race or series of races in a given stroke and distance for a specific age group and sex. For example: Girls 8 & Under 25 meter freestyle or Boy 9-10 50-meter breaststroke.

FORWARD START - a forward entry facing the course.

FOUL - an instance of obstruction, interference, collision, or equipment malfunction, which prevents the successful completion of a race.

HEATS - the division of an EVENT in which there are too many swimmers to compete at one time. An event with 30 swimmers in a 6-lane pool would require 5 heats.

INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY (IM) – 4 laps in the following order: Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Freestyle.

LANE - a specific area in which the swimmer is assigned to swim (lane 1, lane 2, etc.)

LANE LINE - continuous floating markers attached to a line stretched from the starting end to the turning end for the purpose of separating each lane.

LAP – One length of the pool. One lap = 25 meters.

LEG (RELAY) - The segment of the relay event swum by one swimmer.

MANUAL START - the start of a timing device by an individual in response to the same starting signal given to the swimmers.

MARK - The swimmer’s starting position. In our league, we require at least one foot at the front of the coping when a forward start is required.

MEET - The complete series of events. In our league, a meet is conducted in a single day.

ON LINE - The swimmer’s position immediately prior to taking their MARK. In our league, the swimmer must have both feet placed so their toes are at the back of the coping.

REFEREE - The official in charge of the meet. The referee is the final authority in all matters concerning the conduct of the meet.

RELAY – A race consisting of 4 legs, each swum by one swimmer. Ages 13 and older swim 2 laps each. There are 2 types of relays:

• Medley – Each swimmer swims a different stroke in the following order: Backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and freestyle.
• Freestyle – Each swimmer swims a freestyle leg.

SCRATCH - Withdraw from an event.

SEED - Distribute the swimmers among the heats and lanes according to their times.

SEEDING (SEEDED ON DECK) - Swimmers are called to report to the clerk of course for their event. After scratches are determined, they are seeded in the proper heats.

SPLIT TIME - Time from a start to some part of the distance within a longer event.

STROKE AND TURN JUDGE - Trained, certified swim officials, assigned by and working for the referee to judge swimmers’ conformance with the rules for the event being swum. Non-conformance, frequently referred to as disqualification or DQ, is reported to the swimmer and to the referee. The swimmer is not disqualified until the stroke and turn judge’s report is accepted by the referee.