Swim meets can be an exciting experience! However, it can also be somewhat confusing and overwhelming for new swimmers. Here is some information to help you and your swimmer successfully navigate the meet season.

Watch our "How To Register For A Swim Meet Video" HERE

*Please note: Only the coach can assign swimmers to relay teams, this is not available to members. However, it is helpful to indicate in the “Notes” section if your swimmer is available to swim on a relay at a particular meet.

Read The Meet Announcements – Please take the time to read the meet announcement before registering a swimmer for a meet. The meet announcement is a document that corresponds with each meet and can be found by clicking the Meet tab in your dashboard after you log in to your account. The announcement provides essential information about the meet including where the pool is located, when warm-up begins, how many events each swimmer can enter, qualifying times, whether bonus events or time trials are offered, in addition to other details or rules for the meet.

Meet Mobile App – Consider downloading the “Meet Mobile” application on your smartphone. This will allow you to review heat sheets and see the results of all events for your swimmer (and friends), right from your phone. There is a nominal subscription fee for Meet Mobile.

Surviving Your First Swim Meet

1. Arrive at least 15 minutes before warm-ups. (Warm-up schedules will be sent out via email by the coaches typically the Wednesday before a meet).
2. Find a location to set up your area for the duration of the swim meet.
3. Send your swimmer to the coach for warm-ups a little before the warm-up start time with everything they need.
4. Go buy a program, usually found at the host team’s swim shop or concessions.
5. Have a seat and highlight all your swimmer’s events in the program.
6. When your younger (10&under swimmer) returns from warm-ups, it’s time to dry them off and write the day’s events on their arm or leg with a Sharpie. If your swimmer has been to a few meets encourage them to learn to do this on their own.
7. Write Event #, Heat #, Lane #, and the race (for example 1-2-4 50 free). This system works great for the swimmer to keep track of their events and for race officials to help them if they get confused at the blocks.
8. We teach our younger swimmers to think when (event and heath), where (lane), and what (stroke) in terms of their event.
9. Once the meet starts, keep track of what event is in the pool by listening to the announcer and checking the event board.
10. 10&under swimmer should check in with their coach 15 minutes before their race for a brief pep talk.
11. Older swimmers have what coaches call a 23-minute rule. If a swimmer does not know this rule then they are not considered an older swimmer.
12. BE CAREFUL WITH THE 25-yard and 50-yard RACES—THEY GO REAL FAST!
13. 8 and under swimmers and new 10 and under swimmers will have a coach near the blocks to help them.
14. All swimmers must hear their last piece of advice from the coach and their first piece of feedback from the coach. We call this our 3-minute check-in and check-out rule.
15. Enjoy the race and cheer your swimmer on, but no coaching – that is for the coaches to do!
16. Remind your swimmer to check in with their coach again directly after their event for feedback if they forget to.
17. If your swimmer is having a hard time, get them to talk to the coach. If this is ineffective, hear what they have to say and then say, “What are you going to do about it?” Then if they give an answer say, “Well now you’ve got a plan.” If they don’t give an answer then say, “Well maybe your coach can help you out with that.” The best thing you can do is listen and nod in these post-race situations.
18. About mid-meet have your swimmer check with their coach to see if he/she is in a relay. Relays are generally run at the end of the day and assigned by the coaches. NEVER leave a meet without checking on relays!
19. Be prepared mentally for a long, noisy weekend. Bring some good books to read or something enjoyable to do.

Short Course & Long Course Meets: The swim year is divided into short course and long course seasons. During the short course season (September – March), swimmers will race in a 25-yard pool. League swimmers have two seasons within the standard short-course season. We will typically have almost all of our meets identified at the beginning of the season to help with any confusion.

The long course season begins in April and continues through the end of July. During this season, swimmers will race in a 50-meter (Olympic-size) pool. Because there are fewer 50-meter aquatic facilities, it is very competitive for swim clubs to be accepted into these meets (luckily we have our own!). During the long course season YSF Swim Team will sometimes only have a few days’ notice to submit entries for a long course meet, so it’s important to indicate your commitment for long course meets on the YSF Swim Team website so coaches will know if your swimmer plans to attend and would like to have entries submitted for a long course meet.

Types of Meets: Below we've listed multiple types of meets to help you decipher which meet best fits your swimmer's needs. Be sure to ask your coach any questions you may have so you do not miss out on the action!

• Intersquad Meets: A swim meet amongst our team

• Local League Meets A meet with other recreational teams in the South Florida area. This might be a dual meet (Us versus another team) or an invite (where three or more teams attend).

• Local Club Meets: Similar to Local League meets but with official sanctioned times through the USA Swims database

• Qualifying Meets: Some meets have qualifying times for swimmers to enter. Swimmer times get recorded during swim meets and used as a reference point for future meets. Eventually, it becomes prudent to require time standards to hold a more competitive meet that can still be run with a reasonable timeline. Each event will list if it is a qualifying meet and you will not be able to register for the qualifying meet unless your child has achieved the time standard. You can verify this by reading the event information and following up with questions to your group coach.

• Championship Meets: Each swimmer should plan to attend at least one championship meet at the end of every season. These meets are especially important for YSF, as the team can accumulate points in relation to other swim teams attending the meet (and perhaps even win a trophy!) The more swimmers who attend these championship meets, the more points for YSF, so please take the championship schedule into account when booking vacations. In addition, coaches request that swimmers attend these meets to swim on relay teams since relays are worth double the points of individual events and boost YSF’s team standings in the overall meet. There is a championship meet for every swimmer at every level, we’ve listed the ones that YSF Swim Team focuses on:
• Champs – An LSC Championship meet for our Club Team (qualifying time standard) and a League Championship for our League Team (2x season meet attendance requirement).
• ISCA Showcases – Our highest-level Age Group Championship Meet
• Sectionals – This is a very competitive swim meet offered twice each year in both a short course (February) and long course (May) format. For many swimmers, this is their first open meet, meaning there is a single qualifying time (rather than a time specified for a particular age group) to enter the meet. It’s especially challenging for younger swimmers to make these times, as many Sectional swimmers can be in the 15&O category.
• National Swim Meets – Highly competitive swimmers can aspire to compete at championship meets which are semi-national and national meets as they continue to develop. These meets include Futures, Junior Nationals, and Olympic Trials.

We ask that all swimmer sand families respect the meet schedule set by the staff and make every effort to attend these meets. Please let the coach know in advance if there is a conflict. The team attends an average of one to two meets per month, with fewer meets held during the December-January period. This presents limited opportunities to “practice” racing (pace, walls, technique, etc.), as well as to develop the skills necessary to be proficient at meet management (warmup-up, warm-down, race prep, team support, etc.).

Many meets are impacted and limited in entries. It is common that meets “close” without notice before the stated entry deadline – sometimes soon after they open. Families will be notified by email when a meet opens, and it is their responsibility to enter their swimmers before it closes. Families should assume that neither they nor the coaches have any recourse once a meet closes – even a YSF Swim Team-hosted meet.

While on occasion a swimmer may want to enter a meet other than those listed on the schedule, it is not conducive to the team and to the meet plan to have swimmers competing in meets that we do not attend as a team. This is discouraged by USA Swimming and YMCA Swimming as well.

Team Area

Team areas are typically established on a first-come basis at meets. For some meets, we ask for assistance from team families in transporting pop-up shelters for our swimmers. All swimmers should remain with the team during the meet. At the conclusion of the meets. YSF Swim Team swimmers should either clean up the team area at away meets or assist with “take-down” for team-hosted meets.

Attire at Meets

All swimmers should be in team attire at swim meets and not wearing logos from other teams. Swimmers are expected to wear the designated team shirt at all meets. It is also highly encouraged to be in a team suits, team warm-up jacket and pants, and team backpack. Team parkas and other warm attire should be added for rain and cold as needed.

Age-Group “Tech” Suits

• Tech suits for all senior group swimmers, as well as 12 and 14-year-olds, will be needed for peak and championship meets. The coaches will communicate when they are to be worn. It will be based on each individual swimmer’s peak meet schedule. We ask that they not be worn without coach approval.
• As of September 2020, swimmers 12 & under will no longer be allowed to wear tech suits with the exception of those (12&U) swimmers competing in meets at the Sectional or higher level.

Meet Expectation: Swimmers should review the “Meet Cheat Sheet for Swimmers” to know the answers to their questions beforehand. Coaches go over this sheet before meets and have copies on hand at meets. Parents should review the Meet 101

• Meet Warm-Up – 500-2,500 yards (depending on group) consisting of 1) stretch out 2) build up, 3) pace, 4) dives, 5) walls. Swimmers should check in a with a coach prior to exiting the warm-up pool.
• Event Warm-Down – Silver 200-400, Age Groups 500-100, Seniors 1,000 to 2,000 yards per race with a focus on lactate clearance, technique, and preparation for the next event.
• Event/Finals/Relays – swimmers should enter and swim a full schedule and not be limited to personal preference, best stroke, or parent recommendations. Swimmers should also pursue/explore off-strokes and distance events. Swimmers may be asked to compete in relays, which are typically held in finals. It is assumed that swimmers will be fully committed to the team in this regard. Also, any decisions to compete in a final, or not, will be made by the coach, and not by the swimmer or parent.
• Mindset – swimmers should maintain a positive mindset about meets and racing. They should keep the focus on race and stroke quality and less on time.