CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR SWIMMERS OF THE WEEK: Our swimmers of the week are: Elliott Jones and David Van Hook. Elliott Jones did a great job demonstrating all the drills that were incorporated this week and was a strong leader in lane 5 when he was present! David had great attendance this past week and was always ready to get in the water.

Swimmers of the week receive a gift card in recognition for their hard work. Congratulations Elliott and David!

COACH'S CORNER:

• Coach Audrey: Hello families! We were able to practice freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke drills this last week. We will continue to work on the butterfly, starts, and flip turns/open turns on Monday, June 3rd. Tuesday is our first timed trial of the season. After the trials, we will continue to work on technique and endurance. Feel free to reach out to me through email, [email protected]. Thank you!
• Coach Sophia: Hello parents! This past week we were able to get a lot of learning in and were able to cover the basics of all three strokes. However, we weren’t able to do much practice with these strokes so any swimming they could do outside of practice would really help to prepare for time trials this Tuesday. One thing I noticed this past week is that we had a lot of kids showing up for the first practice and barely any showing up to the second practice. I would like to ask that, if possible, some kids could start showing up to the later practice so that the practices are more even. We will begin next week preparing for time trials and after Tuesday we will start to perfect each individual stroke. Also, next week we will start our swamp pup lessons. Make sure you are showing up to the practices that you are signed up for so that there aren’t too many kids at one practice. Coach Clay will be taking the lead for these practices and I will show up after the 6 and under practice ends. Please feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns about time trials or swamp pups at [email protected].
• As we continue to practice throughout the season, we want to meet swimmers where they are in their development. If your swimmer needs to be challenged more, or less, please encourage your swimmer to talk to Coach Audrey or Coach Sophia about this. If you’d prefer to talk to a board member, please email the board at[email protected]. We want each swimmer to have fun and swim to their full potential.

SWAMP PUPS: The first Swamp Pup lesson will be on Monday, 6/3, and we will have lessons that Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. You should have received a notification about what two days per week your swimmer has practice. Reach out to the board if you have not received that information at [email protected]

TIME TRIALS: Time Trials are this Tuesday June 4!

• The pool closes to residents at 5p
• Arrive at 4:45pm to get settled and numbered (real meet arrival will also be 4:45p). Numbers (found as an excel under the Time Trials event on our website) are written on the swimmer's arms in black Sharpie (see attached image for example). There will also be a table at the meet with the swimmer numbers and sharpies. This number will be your swimmer's number for the entire season. Experienced parents suggest putting sunscreen on first, letting it dry and then marking the swimmer's arm with the Sharpie. Sunscreen is a great way to get marker off when you need to do that.
• Time Trials are run like a real meet. Swimmers should wear their team suit if they have them (or a black or red suit to match the team), swim cap (which will be available at the meet), and goggles.
• Meets can run until 9pm sometimes (with 6 and unders finishing earlier as they only swim up to the breaststroke event -4th event below), though we expect to finish earlier June 4 since it is only our team swimming for Time Trials. This is a wonderful opportunity for your swimmer to see what a meet would be like and decide if they want to participate in the competitions this season if they are unsure. 
• We run the events in order of:

1. Medley (Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly, Freestyle) relay (7-8 age group through 15-18),
2. Individual freestyle (6U through 15-18),
3. Individual backstroke (6U through 15-18),
4. Individual breaststroke (6U through 15-18),
5. Individual butterfly (7-8 through 15-18), and
6. Freestyle relay (7-8 through 15-18).

• Papers called “heat sheets” will be on display on a board at the meet (coaches and several volunteers will also have these to do their jobs, like kid pushers, clerk of course, etc), showing the lane and heat that each swimmer will be in. Please check the heat sheets for your swimmers both individual and relay events and note swimmers might swim in a relay of an older age group when there are not enough swimmers in that age group to make a team of 4.
• If your swimmer’s status has changed (especially if they planned to swim and no longer can), please let us know ASAP. Coach Audrey ([email protected]) and Coach Sophia ([email protected]) need to adjust the heat sheets and having as much time as possible to do that is very helpful. You can copy the board ([email protected]) so that we can try to get heat sheets updated before they are printed. Please communicate with a coach if you need to leave, or your swimmer can no longer participate in event(s) planned.
• Swamp Shack - will be serving food (pizza and smoothies only for Time Trials, meets will have pizza, Chick-fil-a and Smoothie King) and snacks. This year you can pay with cash, Venmo, or purchase a $10 Swamp Shack Card on our website (https://oxxfordhunt.swimtopia.com/shop/128660).
• Parking - Home Meets we ask Swampfoxx families to walk/ride bikes to allow parking for the other team. For time trials, parking might have similar availability to practices. If you drive please obey the No Parking signs that will allow Fallsworth Drive to stay open (only park on one side of the road) and for cars to have proper access to the road.

MEET VOLUNTEERS: We ask that if you have a swimmer competing, at least one parent plans to volunteer at each swim meet. We want all families to do their part to help. Swamp Pup parents who have no one swimming at the meets do not need to volunteer at meets. There is a wide variety of jobs to fit the needs of most families. If you are interested in learning about a particular job, you can shadow a more experienced volunteer for part of their shift. Time Trials is a great opportunity to try a new job. We'll have 'teacher' and 'in training' positions - so if you're new to the team, grab an 'in training' position to learn the ropes. Jobs for the first meet on June 11 are now open as well: https://oxxfordhunt.swimtopia.com/swim_meets. If the position you want to learn is already filled, just let Katie Richards ([email protected]) know and we can probably have you join the others who are learning. During meets, please check in for your job with Katie before the meet begins, even if you are working a 2nd shift job. We need to ensure there is coverage for all positions at the start of the meet.

As a reminder TSA, Tarheel Swimming Association (our swim league), is offering training on Stroke & Turn, Starters, and Meet Administrators on June 8 (beginning at 8am) at Cary Park. Email Katie Richards ([email protected]) if you want more details!

MARK SWIMMER AVAILABILITY: It is important for all swimmers to declare their attendance (select meet entry for each meet online) for time trials and meets. This should always be done at least one week prior to a meet so the coaches can properly plan the heat sheets and minimize changes. The first meet is a week from Tuesday, so please mark your swimmer for the meet by this Tuesday. Attendance will close on Fridays before a Tuesday meet (Friday 6/7 for the meet Tuesday 6/11).

TEAM SHIRTS & SWIM CAPS: Each swimmer receives a shirt included in their registration, and a Swampfoxx swim cap (either latex or silicone). Caps will be distributed at Time Trials, and our 2024 team shirts will be distributed at practices when they arrive hopefully in time for our first official meet next week. Extra 2024 shirts will also be available for sale at that time for parents and other supporters.

USED TEAM SWIMSUITS: Looking for a new-to-you suit or have a suit your swimmer has grown out of? Our team has a Swap Box to help exchange suits - the box lives in the SwampShack, please ask a lifeguard (or a board member) to get it out at any time

VOLUNTEER COMMITTEE NEWS: Thank you to our Memorial Day Committee for making our first holiday pool party of the season a success!

TEAM SOCIAL EVENTS: Stay tuned for social events being planned for the season. Plans are being finalized, but we'll likely have some social evenings and mornings throughout the season (mostly involving food/snacks!).

MORNING PRACTICES: (9-10a daily) begin Monday June 17, marking the beginning of traditional calendar schools summer break! Congratulations to year-round school Track 1 swimmers on finishing your school year this week.

OTHER TEAM MERCH FOR SALE: Custom Swampfoxx Swag is available through our Team Store on SwimOutlet. We are working to get our new logo uploaded to new items in our store, but you can currently purchase items with the logo from last year.

Please let us know what questions you may have or use other parents as a resource, either in person at the practice or via our FB parents forum!

Your Oxxford Hunt Swim Team Board