Question for swim parents

[shanezomom]

Our local swim club, a chapter of the USA swim organization, is starting up this week and our 11 yr ds qualified to be in the bronze group. Practice is 3 nights/week and the cost will be over $1,000 for the year. Dh and I are reviewing the level of commitment they want from the kids. Our son has lots of other activities going on but I'm excited for ds to be on in the swim club. Any comments on your experiences as a swim parent?

[wintermom]

My parents were swim parents, though I'm not yet. I would ask about weekend and other fundraising expectations of parents on their own, and parents with their swimmers. We had many, many weekends committed to swim meets throughout the year, as well as a few out-of-town swim meets.

 

Ask about all the extra expenses you can expect throughout the year, as the initial $1000 may be just part of the full cost. There may be travelling, swimming gear, other related clothing needs, etc. you may not be aware of needing to pay for.

 

Also ask about additional parent volunteer expectations, such as timing, officiating, training sessions, etc. to help support swim meets.

Edited September 8, 2012 by wintermom

[J-rap]

We were swim parents, but our kids were able to swim through the local public school, plus the swim club in the summer. So, our costs were very different, although the commitment was high. Our kids and especially our son absolutely loved it. It pretty much was the center of his middle school/high school experience. We only traveled when it worked out, otherwise the school and the club made all of the arrangements. Our son qualified to swim in the state meets which was a further sacrifice, but again, the school organized it all. Our son enjoyed it so much that the sacrifices he made were worth it to him. We didn't feel that our family personally had to sacrifice much though. Not sure if that helps you out at all.

[Kim in Appalachia]

My kids swim. There are a lot of hidden costs, so just be prepared. There are US Swim fees, meet fees, hotel and eating out fees (for away meets), and lots of little things that can add up.

 

We love swimming, but our first year I was overwhelmed with all of the extra little costs.

 

There are a few things you may want to have on hand for after swimming, like alcohol for the ears, lotion for dry skin, and a knit hat. You will want a highlighter in your purse and lots of snacks. Swimming makes children hungry.

 

Always have an extra pair of goggles on hand. They are much cheaper online at the swimoutlet.com than at the meets.

 

I can't think of anything else right now. We start back to swimming this week. :001_smile:

[Photo Ninja]

Long time swim mom here. It's a great sport, one that your dc can enjoy for a lifetime. Literally. It allows opportunity for increasing skills, setting and achieving goals, learning the reality of what one-one hundredth of a second can mean, improving and achieving as an individual and as part of a team where one swimmer supports and encourages the others. It allows for leadership skills to develop, and it is excellent exercise as well. I am all for participating on swim teams.

 

But I want to warn you, it is a big commitment, usually larger than what people are told initially. It usually ends up being a family commitment, which works well if you have more than one dc swimming. There are practices daily M-F or M-S, and those practices get longer as your dc get older. It was common for my dc to spend 3-4 hours in the pool each day, sometimes with practices in the am and afternoon. Meets are year around, and are 2-3 days each. They are long days, often arriving by 7:00 am and not leaving until 3-4:00. The more committed your dc are to competing, the more meets they want to attend. Meets are often out of town, and we traveled to other states as well. This requires hotels, food, gas, sometimes time off work, depending on your job, and a lot of traveling. Of course, you could only go to local meets and avoid the traveling and travel expenses. You do have some choice in it.

 

There are usually parent commitments, which vary by team. You may be required to put in a certain number of hours volunteering time for the team, which may mean organizing events, working snack bars, check in tables, etc., or you may choose to volunteer and become a USA official (stroke and turn judge, starter, etc.) and meet the requirements that way. You will be required to time at meets because they can't happen without timers. It's not hard, but you need to be aware that you will time, and often because other parents won't to their share of timing, willing families end up with both wife and husband timing. It's actually a fun job with a great view of the action. While practices may be a drop off activity, being a swim team family is not really a drop off activity.

 

Expenses: The yearly fee is just the tangible starting point. There are multiple swim suits (the water destroys them, so keep a couple suits only for meets and double or triple up on the other worn suits), goggles (always have a few pair within reach), caps, sweats, flip flops, lots of towels, fleece, sunscreen. You may have team sweats to buy, and team t-shirts. Your swimmers will need a parka (they really are warm!). Programs at meets cost money, and you will want one to keep track of what is going on. Meets cost money. Usually you pay an entry fee plus a fee for each event you enter. If you are going to be at the meet all day, swimmers usually enter the maximum number of events allowed, but that is up to you, your swimmer's skill level, goals and motivation. You will either bring snacks, sometimes breakfast, and lunch, or you will be buying at the snack bars. Depending on where the meets are, you will buy and haul around lawn chairs, ice chests, and an awning for shade or for protection from the rain. Compare it to camping out for a couple days, but going home at night.

 

But it is all worth it, and I have no regrets about the financial investment or time investment. My dc are better off because of it. The lessons they have learned are valuable, and they have learned how to set reasonable goals, how to work toward goals, and that they can be achieved with commitment and hard work. They learned that when they worked, they achieved, and if they slacked off, their skills decreased. They learned to trust their coaches, even when my dc did not agree with them or when my dc wanted to do something differently.

 

We never intended to get involved with a swim team. We just wanted our dc to be proficient swimmers and be safe in the water. It just ended up happening. Two of my dc swam competitively from age 4 or 5 (depending on the child) through high school. One ended up getting a job lifeguarding and teaching swim lessons, a great job year around while in college. Another lifeguarded and assisted coached summer rec, USA swim teams and master's swim programs for several years. My dc learned water safety and lifeguard skills, and one ds has saved people from drowning because he knew what to do. My dc learned to be competitive, but also remain friends with their competitors. They learned and demonstrated compassion, encouragement, and truly support the other swimmers on their teams. They became like family.

 

It is worth all the time and money. I just want you to have a realistic idea of what you are joining. There are some levels of increased commitment that will come from your family choices, not from the coach, but I have never seen a team that did not have parent volunteer requirements.

 

So go for it and have a wonderful time!

[crazyforlatin]

Thanks Photo Ninja, that's was really informative. DD hasn't joined a swim team because I'm not committed to such a schedule yet.

[Guest momofthreeswimmers]

Hello swim parents

What do you do when your child gets out of water in winter and he is cold My kids have parkas but what to do for their feet is there a special boot? for boys? if yes what brand? or just nay boot would do my concern is when the feet are wet slips easily in the boot! thanks.

[TengoFive]

There's really different levels of commitment for swimming. For probably the first year, the practice and meet schedule is minimal. We did our own team's meets and that was about it for the first year. The suits were a problem, but once I discovered polyester suits that budget went way down. We were going through suits every 2 months or so, but poly has lasted over a year in most suits for us. The practices that first year are usually only about 1-1.5 hours.

 

We have a lot of kids on our team who have been swimming for years and only swim in the one meet a year that we host, if that. You can really choose how involved you want to be in the sport. Many parents just look at it as fitness. I feel bad having my kids practice as much as they do and never have the reward of competing. We do only swim in meets on Fridays and Saturdays, no Sundays. The coaches have been fine with that. We love swimming. My kids swim 4 nights a week in the winter and 5 days a week in the summer. We are actually hoping our new coach will start Saturday practices. My kids are wanting to get to that next level.

 

Swimming has given my kids a lot of character training. They've learned the value of hard work, setting and achieving goals, teamwork, and sportsmanship. For us its never been about where they place in a meet, its about improving their own times. Most of the time they're able to, and the other times we get to talk about it.

 

We spend a lot of money on swimming, but its their only activity other than 4H. It's also a family activity, so it brings everyone together. My oldest can't wait for my 5 year old's first meet, so she can show him how to do everything and help him out. It's been great for that as well.

[Kyr]

wow :ohmy: My 2 are on a community swim team and we don't have anywhere near that level of cost/commitment. They practice 90 min 3x per week and I pay $40.50/kid/11 practices. We don't have to pay for meets and team suits etc are optional. All our meets are local, maybe every 2 months or so. It works out really well for us, I don't know that we would be able to handle a bigger commitment right now. I was wondering about how it might step up when they get to highschool in a couple years.