***Team - Please review the Summerfield Pool Rules & Practices below, followed by the Swim Meet Survival Guide and the Scoring & Awards (must-reads for new and experienced swimmers alike).

Summerfield Pool Rules & Practices

We Tigersharks take pride in our team, our facility and ourselves.

We need EVERYONE’S cooperation in following the Summerfield Pool rules and practices so that we all stay safe and have fun.

• No running, horseplay, fighting, or any other dangerous physical activity.
• No smoking in the gated pool area.
• No alcohol.
• No glass containers.
• No food, drinks, or gum in the swimming pool.
• No foul or vulgar language or unsportsmanlike conduct.
• No roller/in-line skates, scooters, skateboards, or bicycles in the gated pool area.
• No animals in the gated pool area (except service animals).
• Children 17 and younger must be accompanied at all times by a responsible adult of 18 years or older.

In addition, you are asked to:

• Please properly dispose of your own trash around the pool area and in the bathrooms before leaving.
• Please move pool furniture off of the grass and back where you found it before leaving.
• Please treat everyone using the facility with patience, courtesy, and respect.

Swim Meet Survival Guide

A Must-Read for all swimmers and parents!

Welcome to the Summerfield Tigersharks Swim Team. We are thrilled to have you and your swimmer(s) on the team. If you are new to recreational league swimming, you may have a few questions about what to expect at a swim meet, so we have created this “survival guide” in order to help you understand the process.

1) What is a swim meet? The Tigersharks are part of the Lone Star Summer Swim League. The regular season swim meet is the competitive event in which our team competes in swimming races against one other team in our division within the league. There are four (4) regular season meets: two (2) held at the Summerfield pool and two (2) at our competitor’s team pool (See schedule). In addition, there is a divisional championship meet at the end of the season in which designated members of our team will compete against all other teams in our division.

2) What events are held during the meet? The swimming lanes in the pools are either 25 yards (yd) long or 25 meters (m) long. One lap is 50 yd/m, or 2 lengths of the pool. An event 100 yd/m in length involves swimming 4 lengths of the pool.

Events for swimmers ages 5-6 include freestyle and backstroke and are one length of the pool (25 yd/m). Events for older age brackets include individual freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, or butterfly.  Ages 7-8, 9-10, and 11-12 swim these individual stroke events 25 yd/m.  Ages 12 and up swim these 50 yd/m.  Ages 9 and up may swim an individual medley (IM) event that includes one pool length of each of the four strokes.  There are two relays which 4 swimmers swim a leg of a race: freestyle and medley.  

Swimmers may swim in only 3 individual and 2 relay events during the meet. Events are grouped by age and gender, meaning a 7-8 year old boy will swim against 7-8 year old boys.  Swimmers may swim “up” by swimming in events designated for an older age bracket but may not swim “down” in events designated for a younger age bracket.  Where appropriate, your swimmer may be asked to swim in a relay in an older age bracket so that Summerfield can enter a relay team when we are short on swimmers.

3) What time do we need to arrive for the meet? You will need to have your swimmer at the meet location approximately 90 minutes before the start of a home meet and 60 minutes before the start of an away meet, or as directed by your coach. This will allow your swimmer adequate time to receive his/her event assignments and to participate in an organized warm-up with the team. At the home meets, the home team holds its warm-up first, requiring an earlier arrival time for the swimmers.

4) How long does the meet last? Each meet can last between 3-4 hours, depending on the number of swimmers competing for each team. The meet is divided into different events by age group and swim stroke, and there may be several heats, or races, within each event to accommodate all of the swimmers competing. We encourage you to stay until the end of the meet to cheer on the rest of the team; however, you are free to leave the meet once your swimmer has completed all of his/her events and you have completed any volunteer obligation you may have for that meet. Please check with your coach before concluding that your swimmer has completed all of his/her events, even if all events for his/her age bracket have been run. The coaches will sometimes need to assign swimmers to later races during the meet in order to fill vacancies, especially vacancies in relays.

5) What do I need to bring to the meet? For each meet, your swimmer(s) should have any of the following that he/she may need to use: a team swimsuit; goggles (2 pair, in case of emergency); swim cap (also good to have 2); sunscreen; money for snacks (or your own snacks); and 2 towels (one to sit on and one to dry or wrap). For your family, you will want to bring snacks, chairs or blankets for seating, and a canopy for shade.

6) How do I know in which events my swimmer(s) will participate? During the last practice before the meet, your coach will try to communicate with your swimmer(s) regarding the events in which they will swim. You can also see which events your child will swim on the team website: go to "Swim Team Calendar" under "Meets and Events", click on "Meet Entry" for the meet in question and "Your Family Swim Meet Status" will appear with non-relay events listed.  In addition, “Heat Sheets,” listing each event (race), the swimmers from each team who will be swimming in the event, and the lane in which each will swim, will be e-mailed out the night before the meet. When your swimmer arrives at the meet, he/she should check in to receive his/her event assignments. At the meet, volunteers will write the event numbers on swimmers' arm or leg with a permanent marker in order to help keep track of their event and lane assignments. Note: if marked in advance, assignment is subject to change and marking may need to be changed.

7) Are concessions sold at the swim meets? Concessions are provided by the host team. This is a convenient way to feed your family during the meet. Proceeds go to support the host team and we encourage you to take advantage of this service.

8) How do I know when it is time for my swimmer’s event? During the meet, there will be someone announcing the next event and heat number. There will also be a visible banner which indicates the current or pending event so that you can keep track of where the meet stands. The coaches and team volunteers will line up the swimmers for several heats in advance in a designated area called the “ready bench.” You should encourage your swimmer to stay with his/her team and be in position for his/her event. Please help us by keeping track of which events your swimmer is to participate and getting them to the ready bench early.

9) How is the swimmer’s performance measured? Swimmers from each team compete in each event. For each swimmer in each race, there are three volunteer timers (three timers per lane). Times are recorded in triplicate for each swimmer for each heat. For swimmers ages 10 and under, ribbons are handed out to the first through sixth place finishers at the end of each heat. Times for all heats in the event are compared by the volunteer judges, rankings given to all competitors, and points allotted based on those rankings. The point totals for each team at the end of the meet determine which team won the meet. Times and points are often posted on a score report during the meet, if you would like to track the team’s progress. Keep in mind that the 6 places scored for points (1st through 6th) are shared between the two teams. For example, if our team has the 4 fastest swimmers and your swimmer was number 4, he/she will not get any points awarded. In that case, Summerfield gets 3 places and the competing team gets 3 places. If there is a blank or an “X” next to your swimmer’s name on the score report that indicates that points were not awarded for that swimmer. A “DQ” next to your swimmer’s name indicates that your swimmer was disqualified by a judge for improperly swimming the stroke. The coaches will emphasize proper technique during practice. Remember, our ultimate goal is to see improvement in our swimmers’ performance and in their personal times. Specific information regarding Lone Star Summer Swim League rules can be found at the league website, https://lsssl.swimtopia.com/. More information can also be found in USA Swimming's 2019 Mini Rulebook.

10) What is my role on the team? The role of each of our parents is to support BOTH the swimmers AND the team.

• The best way to support your swimmer(s) is to make sure that he/she is at each practice on time and ready to work. Stay in contact with your swimmer’s coach. If you must miss practice during the week, please remember to contact your coach or swim team representative regarding whether or not your swimmer will be at the meet. You can help the coaches and your swimmer by encouraging your swimmer to listen to and follow the coaches’ instructions and to try every stroke he/she is asked to swim. You also should make sure that your swimmer(s) is at the meet early for warm-ups and ready and in place for his/her event.
• To support the team, each family has an obligation to volunteer its time at meets and other team functions to reach a total of 21 volunteer points. Please understand that our team is obligated to supply a certain amount of volunteer time at every meet. Therefore, each family must meet its obligation to volunteer to reach the specified number of volunteer points. Each volunteer role/job is valued at a set point value. Your family can divide the jobs/meets in whatever way works best for you. Once you have signed up to work a meet, please arrive early and be prepared to work until the job is complete. If you have an unforeseen conflict on the day of the meet, please let your coach AND the parent volunteer coordinator know immediately and identify a substitute assignment as soon as possible. Please also take time before you leave each meet to make sure that you have disposed of all trash in your area and gathered all of your belongings. This makes clean-up much easier on your fellow volunteers at the end of a long meet. Your participation is vital to the team’s success.

Scoring & Awards

For each event, six places are scored using the three fastest times from each team.

• Points consisting of 7, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 will be awarded to the three fastest swimmers on each team depending on how they finished relative to each other (i.e. fastest – 7 pts, 2nd fastest – 5 pts, etc). No team will score more than three places. Ties will be awarded half-points (1st place tie - each gets 3.5 points).  Point ribbons will be awarded at practice following the meet for all swimmers that earned points in an individual or a relay event.
• Heat ribbons are color-coded: Blue, Red, White, Yellow, Green, and Purple for places 1st - 6th, respectively, and awarded to the swimmers in the order they finish in each heat, regardless of team.

Relay Scoring: Four places are scored using the two fastest times from each team.

• Points consisting of 7, 5, 3, 1 will be awarded to the four fastest relay teams depending on how they finished relative to each other (i.e. fastest – 7 pts, 2nd fastest – 5 pts, etc). No team will score more than two places.
• Heat ribbons will follow the same format as stated above and will be awarded through 5th place.

Awarding of Ties: When two or more swimmers tie for any place, duplicate awards shall be given to each of the swimmers. In such cases, no awards will be given for the following place. For example, if two swimmers tie for 1st place, then both will receive blue 1st place ribbons and no second place ribbon will be given.

Meet results are emailed as soon as they are available. A blank or an “X” next to a swimmers name merely indicates that they did not score any points.

We hope you find this information helpful as we start the season. Please let the coaches and coordinators know if you have any questions as the season progresses. Again, welcome to the team!