Swimmer of the week goes to......

Swimmer of the Week 2

We would like to thank all their Gators for their team spirit at the Columbine Knolls meet.  It is always amazing to look down at the end of the pool and see other swimmers cheering their buddies, friends or family on.  Keep it up!!

Female Swimmer of the Week:  Lexi Ballard

Lexi Ballard was selected this week because:

- for not looking at the other swimmers in her 25 breast (first time ever)

- didn't let getting DQd affect the rest of her meet

- worked hard all week, with a good attitude

- team support at the meet

Male Swimmer of the Week:  Brett Edwards

The coaches choose Brett because:

- showing his passion for butterfly by openly celebrating fly sets in practice

- going strong in his 50 despite not having goggles

- practice attendance

- attitude

C/D meet entry requirements

To clarify an earlier post about the C/D qualification times, any swimmer who does not have a B, League, or State time for an event may swim that event at the C/D meet. A reminder to send an email to gmstgators@aol.com with your swimmer's name and the events they want to swim (up to 3 individual events) by Thursday, June 23rd.

Happy Father's Day

We would like to tell all the Gator dad's Happy Fathers Day. We hope you all enjoyed this HOT day. We appreciate what you do for your swimmers and the team.

Schedule week of June 20th-26th

Here is the schedule for the week of June 20th-June 26th

Monday-Friday:  Regular summer practice
6:30-8:15am:  Upper division practice and dry land (8-8:15am)
8:00-9:00am:  10-13 year olds
9:00-10:00am:  9 year olds
9:00-9:45am:  8&under
 
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday
7:00-8:00pm:  12&under night practice

Tuesday and Thursday
8:00-9:00pm:  Upper division and parent practice

Monday:  Breast stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Tuesday:  Butterfly stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Wednesday:  Starts/Turns clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Friday and Saturday:  Ken Caryl Invitational
Swimmers who are participating are listed in the Individual entries

Friday, June 24th (Warm-ups TBD; Start 1:00pm)

400 swimmers Ages 13-14 and 15-18

Friday, June 24th (Warm-ups TBD; Start at 4:00pm)

Ages 13-14 and 15-18

Events 5-40

Saturday, June 25th (Warm-ups TBD; Start at 7:00am)

Ages 9-10 boys; 11-12 All

Events 41-67

Saturday, June 25th (Warm-ups TBD; Start at 1:00pm)

Ages 9-10 Girls; 8&unders

Events 68-94

Sunday:  C/D meet at Mount Vernon Country Club
Sign-up for this meet will be posted soon
Swimmers must have a C/D time (this is any other time other than S, L or B) or a NT (no time) to participate in the meet.  Eligibility report will be posted soon.  

If your swimmer is not participating in the Ken Caryl Invite or the C/D meet you have the weekend off.  Please let us know if you have any questions.  Also if you would like to purchase Gator apparel please see a board member any morning and we can assist you.

Results from meets

Attention parents and swimmers:
    We are seeking your help in ensuring the meet result information is correct.  As we are all aware the data entry of meet times are subject to human error.  While reviewing the results that are posted from each meet please let me know if there are issues with the information reported.  Sometimes there may be a mistake with not recording your time, sometimes there may be an error inputting the numbers and the time is showing incorrectly, or maybe you don't see the State/League/B/C indicator.  All of these things can be corrected if brought to our attention.

Please continue to be patient with us as we learn the computer system, how things work and implement changes to help our team become better.

Brews & Brats (Guys Night Out - 21+) @ GMSC June 17th

June 17 | Brews and Brats (Guys Night Out) 7-10 pm | Bring your favorite beer and snack/appetizer if you'd like; 21+; Brat dinner will be provided. $10 suggested donation - Funds raised will go to GMSC.

Swim lessons using swim team coaches

Effective immediately, the price of swim lessons using the swim team coaches will cost $35 per half hour when using the GMSC pool. $20 will go to the coach and $15 will go to the pool as a usage fee. This complies with current fees charged by the pool. Thank you for your understanding.

Swim meets next week (June 24th-June 26th)

Next weekend are not the normal swim meets.  There are two separate swim meets next weekend. The first meet next weekend is the Ken Caryl Invitation on June 24th and June 25th.  This meet is for swimmers with specific qualifying times.  The other meet is the C/D meet on Sunday, June 26th. This meet is for swimmers that have a C/D time in any event.

Information on Ken Caryl Invitational meet:
Attached is a link to a report of swimmers that have qualified for this meet.  If your name is on this list we need you to do the following:

• This list will be posted at the pool.  Please put a check mark next to your name, this will let the coaches know you can attend.
• If there are more than 3 events that you have qualified for please circle the 3 events you want to swim
• If your name is on this list and you WILL NOT be attending please email Porter porter.bennett@colorado.edu and let him know.  We are asking for emails so we can refer back to them when we are doing entries.
• If you are participating in this meet we will try to arrange relays based on this information
• There will be a revised list posted on Thursday as swimmers can qualify tomorrow at the Intrasquad.  Swimmers also may make qualifying times at Saturdays meet.  
• Please do this by Saturday, June 18th as entries are due Sunday.  

PLEASE NOTE:  we may need additional swimmers to swim on relays.  We will contact these families on Saturday or Sunday to check availability.

Friday, June 24th (Warm-ups begin at 12:30; Start 1:00pm)

Ages 13-14 and 15-18

Events 1-4 400's 

Friday, June 24th (Warm-ups begin at 3:00; Start at 4:00pm)

Ages 13-14 and 15-18

Events 5-40

Saturday, June 25th (Warm-ups begin at 6:00am; Start at 7:00am)

Ages 9-10 boys; 11-12 All

Events 41-67

Saturday, June 25th (Warm-ups begin at 12:00pm; Start at 1:00pm)

Ages 9-10 Girls; 8&unders

Events 68-94

Information on C/D meet:

This meet will be held on Sunday at Mount Vernon Country Club

If your swimmer has a C or D time and wants to participate in this meet to help improve their time and get practice please email gmstgators@aol.com.  Please include the swimmers name and the events they want to swim (up to 3 individual events).  We will need these entries by Thursday, June 23rd.  This meet follows the regular order of events with no relays.  

This information is a little confusing and we are trying our best to explain these meets as well as make sure everyone that can swim does.  If you have any questions about either of these events please let any coach or board member know.
If your swimmer will not be participating in either of these meets, you have the weekend off.  

Preparing for pictures, pancakes and Water World

I wanted to give all the swimmer families (new and old) an idea of what our Pictures, Pancakes and Water World day will look like.  These fun activities are scheduled for Wednesday, June 29th.  Please note there is no regular morning swim  practice on this day.

Starting at 7:30am we will begin taking individual/buddy swimmer pictures.  There will be an order form in each swimmer folder next week and I will also post a link to this form on the blog.  Please have this form completed when you arrive.  At 8:00am we will begin our BIG team picture.  If you aren't getting individual pictures taken we ask you arrive no later tha 8:00am so you can be included in the team picture.

While the pictures are being taken we will have people preparing Gatorcakes (green pancakes).  There will be a parent sign-up for parents to help cook and also bring some food.  Watch on the blog for this sign-up coming soon!

After the pictures have been taken and Gatorcakes have been eaten it is off to WaterWorld.  Please know this is not a required event.  Also know that there is no adult supervision so you will need to plan accordingly.  Below is a link and instructions on how to purchase discounted WaterWorld tickets.  Our team receives discounted tickets which can be purchased and printed online.

To purchase WaterWorld tickets please visit https://calypsoclub.waterworldcolorado.com/affiliate.asp?ID=50F8949F-61B1-4EE7-8F31-52797430F005.  Once on this page you will be prompted for a Password.  The password to purchase tickets is GMGators1.
You can purchase tickets for your family and friends to go on this day or any day in the 2016 season.
This link will also allow you to purchase discounted for Adventure Golf and Raceway, in case you need something to do during the summer.

Congrats to the swimmers of the week!

As promised, the news you have all been waiting for.....Swimmers of the Week for Week 1:

Female Swimmer of the Week:  Megan Cooper
Megan was selected this week because:
- positivity at the meet
- got a league time in her 200 free
- cried she was so happy about it (rewards of working hard)


Male Swimmer of the Week:  Alex Granquist
The coaches choose Alex because: 
- led the far lane every practice
- did an hour of dry land after practice each day
- stayed positive at the meet
- left the meet to go to a doctors apt and then came back to finish the meet

Keep up the great work Gators!!

Intrasquad meet: Wednesday

Are you ready for another swim meet?  Tomorrow night is our 2nd Intrasquad (warm-ups begin at 5:00pm; meet starts at 5:30pm)

• Swimmers if you have not signed up yet please sign-up for your 2 individual events by tomorrow morning.  If you have not signed-up yet and won't be at practice tomorrow please send an email to gmstgators@aol.com with the events you want to swim.
• Parents we are still in need of help.  Since this is just Gators we need all the volunteers we can get.  If your child is swimming please sign-up to help.
• The Swim Club will be cooking on the grill and serving hamburger and hotdogs as well as have the snack shack available to food purchases.  Please enjoy dinner with your summer family.
• Gator apparel will be available for purchase by cash, check or credit card.  
• Before your leave the Intrasquad please make sure you signed up for Saturdays meet.

Schedule: June 13th-June18th

Great swims to all our swimmers!  Thank you to all the parent volunteers at Saturdays meet.  It was a long hot day and our parents stepped up to make it fun and successful for our kids.

Here is the schedule for the week:  June 13th-June 18th

Monday-Friday:  Regular summer practice
6:30-8:15am:  Upper division practice and dry land (8-8:15am)
8:00-9:00am:  10-13 year olds
9:00-10:00am:  9 year olds
9:00-9:45am:  8&under
   
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday
7:00-8:00pm:  12&under night practice

Tuesday and Thursday
8:00-9:00pm:  Upper division and parent practice

Monday:  Butterfly stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Tuesday:  Freestyle stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Tuesday:  Chipotle fundraiser for Green Mountain Swim Club
4:00-8:00pm at 145 Union Blvd.--don't forget to mention the swim club when you are paying

Wednesday:  Backstroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online and space still available)

Wednesday:  Intrasquad II @ GMSC
Warm-ups begin at 5:00pm; meet starts at 5:30pm
All swimmers must sign-up for their events by end of practice on Tuesday (sign-ups will be available starting Monday)
Parents sign-up on the blog to help volunteer

Saturday:  Swim meet at Columbine Knolls Swim Pool (6191 W. Plymouth Dr. Littleton)
Warm-ups begin at 6:30am; Meet starts at 7:00am
All swimmers must sign-up for their events by end of practice on Thursday
Parents please sign-up on the blog to volunteer

Saturdays meet: First home meet

Our summer swim season is off to a great start.  We are excited to host our fist dual meet this weekend.  A home meet means there are many volunteering opportunities.  If your child is swimming in the meet on Saturday we need you to volunteer your time and sign-up.  Here is the sign-up sheet for parent volunteers.  Please don't be shy, we have all been a "newbie" at one time.  Thank you in advance for helping with your kids swim meet.

We have also post the "rough draft" to the Individual events.  Please double check this for accuracy and let the coaches know if there needs to be any changes.

We will see all your smiling faces at 6:00am on Saturday morning. 

Chipotle Night for GMSC: Tuesday, June 14th

Please come to the Green Mountain Swim Club Chipotle night.
Who:  All swim team families and friends
What:  Dinner at Chipotle fundraiser
When:  Tuesday, June 14th from 4:00-8:00pm
Where:  Chipotle on Union (145 Union Blvd.)
Why:  support the Green Mountain Swim Club (we use this pool daily)
How:  Bring the flyer, show it on your phone, or tell the cashier you are part of the swim club fundraiser

Help support the pool that our swimmers use everyday.

NIGHT PRACTICE CANCELED

UPPER DIVISION NIGHT PRACTICE IS CANCELED. Due to the decrease in temperature and the on and off storms there will be no practice tonight. 

- Porter

Swimmer of the Week

Swimmer of the Week

The Gator coaches and board members are excited to implement a new award for swimmer of the week.  This swimmer recognition will begin next week.  

During the summer swim season the coaches will be recognizing one female and one male swimmer each week.  Swimmers can be chosen from any age group.  Upon being chosen for the swimmer of the week the swimmer will be recognized on the blog and on the bulletin board at the swimming pool as well as receiving a Dairy Queen gift card.

Swimmer of the Week criteria

• Behavior and Attitude:  highest standards for behavior and manners at all swim team functions; positive attitude in regards to all swimming related programs
• Effort:  demonstrate a resilient, consistent, hard-work ethic both in and out of the pool
• Attendance:  attends practice regularly; participates in meets consistently
• Learning:  demonstrates excellent listening skills; responsiveness to instruction; improve skill development
• Organization:  demonstrates independence; self motivator; arrives on time; has all "equipment"
• Performance:  applies skills and techniques acquired/developed during practice in meets; demonstrates proper form; drops time in events
• Team Work:  demonstrates excellent team work helping all team mates; cheers for other swimmers during events; participates in buddy program
• Gator Factor:  All the above and a little something extra!!!!!!!!!!!

Evening practice canceled

Attention evening swimmers: practice has been canceled due to weather. The pool has closed and not sure when they will reopen.

Swimmer files

Beginning this week we will have the swimmer folders out during practice.  The swimmer files are designed to get swim team related information to the swimmer.  The folders are arranged alphabetically by last name.  Examples of items in these folders are:  ribbons from meets, information hand-outs, paperwork and/or items from your swim buddy.  We encourage all swimmers to check their folder at least once a week and remove all the contents.

Schedule June 6th-June 11th

Here is the schedule for June 6th-June 11th
Monday-Friday:  Regular summer practice
6:30-8:15am:  Upper division practice and dry land (8-8:15am)
8:00-9:00am:  10-13 year olds
9:00-10:00am:  9 year olds
9:00-9:45am:  8&under
     
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday
7:00-8:00pm:  12&under night practice

Tuesday and Thursday
8:00-9:00pm:  Upper division and parent practice

Tuesday:  Back stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Wednesday:  Breast stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

Thursday:  Freestyle stroke clinic
9:45-10:15am (must be signed up online)

All swimmers must sign-up for their events by end of practice on Thursday

Saturday:  Swim meet at Green Mountain Swim Club
Warm-ups begin at 6:00am; Meet starts at 7:00am
Parents please sign-up on the blog to volunteer

Stroke clinics

Starting this week we will be offering stroke clinics.  These clinics are designed to help a small group of swimmers work on a specific stroke to help them improve.  To allow as many swimmers to participate in these please sign-up for only 3 sessions (all must be different strokes).  These clinics will be held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9:45-10:15.  The link for the stroke clinic sign-up is listed below and also on the right hand side of the blog. 
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c054caba822a75-stroke2
Please let us know if you have any questions about these.

Swim Buddy Families

We are excited to have our swim buddy families started.  Please remember these swimmers are there to help encourage and support each other.  If you haven't already introduced yourself to your buddy, please do so quickly.  The buddies are listed below and there is also a link on the right hand side of the blog that will have this document.  Let's show everyone what an awesome swim team the Gators are!

Girl Swimmer Families
Addy Berg	Olivia Belcher	Emily Ballard
Rachel Bakkum	Claire Brady	Elsa Debrunner	Opal Perez-Williams
Sophia Coffey	Shea Murphy	Sarah Shumway	CheyAnne Sharon
Norah Belcher	Mady Allen	Emma Neuroth
Alexis Ballard	Taylor Haerbig	Heddie Schick	Sidney Tonkin
Isabel Ballard	Camille Anderson	Izabella Bong
Alex Strong	Autumn Wuest	Teagan Kelly
Mia Slowey	Lilly Wright	Amelia Lewis
Lucy Klein	Therese Daly	Lexie Lamping
Leah Felton	Clara Bellot	Lucille Wright
Fayth Ruybal	Kimya AmiriRad	Emma Forney
Neva Nicholson	Katy Haerbig	Anastasia Davis	Emma Berg
Whitney Price	Brooke Tompkins	Megan Snelling
Lucy Voss	Noel Forney	Sophia Slemons
Lily Sharpe	Breanna Dodds	Ianna Debrunner	Elisa Pickett
Anisa Valdez	Terran Flynn	Anna Granquist	Emily Hammer
Evelyn Campbell	Lindsey Mink	Sydni Sich	Taryn Trussell
Lily Strong	Kayli Langan	Diane Shumway
Jensen Wehri	Sofia Forney	Amanda Ballard	Mikayla Michels
Kiana Good	Kati Livingood	Alexandra Gibbons	Brett Wilsey
Eva Bellot	Mae Knight	Tess Hofstra
Eden Kuiphoff	Megan Cooper	Kaylyn Schull
Maddie Friedrichs	Samantha Skrzekut	Autumn Sharon	Anna Lamport
Ava Anderson	Sonia Enger	Hannah Long
Allie Bakkum	Gabbi Martyna	Eva Anderson
Boy Swimmer Families
Sonny Donati	Brett Edwards	Quinn Trussell	Jacob Swanson
Ben Rommel	Nathan Whittenburg	Alex Granquist	Jason Goodrich
Dominic Anderson	Marc Felton	Dylan Jacob	Jakey Skimel
Benjamin Swanson	Ryan Skrzekut	Tristan Gess	Cale Sollars
Christopher Gunn	Mason Friedrichs	Stephen Greenwood	Zachary Gillings
Nathan Gillings	Luke Davis	Joshua Goodrich	Conor Sharpe
Nick Langan	Connor Brauch	Bradley Hall	Elias Hutchinson
Michael Skimel	Evan Neuroth	Ben Hofstra	Owen Bockenthien
David Neuroth	Isaac Perez-Williams	Daniel Alzamora	Will Livingood
Kai Langan	Ethan Ballard	Carder Berridge	Griffin Sollars
Patrick Davis	Beck Nicholson	Jacob Foust
Aaron Davis	Jackson Voss	Sean Matthews	Spencer Coffey
Dylan Anderson	Jaimen Whittenburg	Richard Tran	Noah Slowey
Jonas Belcher	Evan Morrison	Quinn Meinert	Owen Burg
Everett Tompkins	William Klein	Andrew Penn	John Neuroth

Swimmer entries for Saturdays meet

Hello swimmers,
    We are excited to have our first dual meet on Saturday.  We appreciate all the kids who have signed up to participate in events. On the right hand side of the blog there is a link to the "rough draft" entries.  We are asking the swimmers to verify the entries are correct.  Each swimmer is allowed to swim a maximum of 3 individual events.  Many swimmers only signed up for 2.  If you would like to swim another event or if the event is not correct please let Porter know by 10am tomorrow morning and we will make the changes.

All final submissions will be posted tomorrow along with relays.
Thank you and we look forward to seeing you all early Saturday morning.
(warm-ups begin as 6:30 and the meet starts at 7:00)

New Gator apparel

Have you seen the new Gator apparel?  We are excited to see the swimmers and families walking around in our new items.  If you didn't get a chance to see the apparel we will have these items for sale again on Friday during practice.  We will accept cash, check or credit cards.  Go Gators!

Gator silicone caps……………………………………..$10

Trucker hat……………………………………………...$16

White t-shirt/tank……………………………………....$12

Blue t-shirt……………………………………………...$12

Dark gray dri-fit long sleeve………………...…....….....$23

Light blue adult hoodie………………………………..$38

Gray/Green youth hoodie……………………………...$36

Magnets (small/large).........................................................$2/$4

Here are the tie-dye instructions if you didn't pick them up:
Please wait 24 hours to wash. Leave the item in the bag until you are ready to wash. While the
shirt is still tied, it needs to be rinsed under cold running water. When you see very little dye
running off the item, start to gradually remove the rubber bands while still rinsing. Get as much
dye out as possible this way. Immediately after rinsing wash the item ( by itself ) with cold
water and soap in the washing machine. Once this item has been washed and dried you are
good to wear.

Thank you to all who came out for the parent meeting (or maybe the ice cream).  We enjoyed talking with the parents and swimmers.  Please let us know if you have any questions/concerns.

Parent meeting, tie-dye and ice cream (oh my!)

On Wednesday, June 1st we will be having our annual tie-dye and ice cream party.  During this event we will also be having a mandatory parent meeting.  This event will be open from 5:30-7:30pm with the parent meeting starting at 6:00pm.

Gator families are encouraged to bring any white item they would like to tie-dye.  There will also be white GMST Gator tank tops and t-shirts for purchase that can be tie-dyed too.  We encourage you to bring your item of choice prepared to tie-dye, this means have this rubber banded in the way you want it to look.  If you are unfamiliar on how to prep an item for tie-dye you can do a search on the internet to get some ideas.

Our parent meeting will begin at 6:00pm.  We ask that each family have a parent present.  We will introduce the coaches and board members as well as go over some important information for the season.  We will begin serving ice cream around 6:30pm.  The pool will be open for the kids to swim in as well.

Please let us know if you have any questions and we will see you Wednesday.

Week of May 30th-June 4th

We hope all families had a great start to their summer break.  Happy Memorial weekend.  Here is the schedule for this week.
Monday, May 30th:  No practice

Tuesday-Friday:   Regular summer morning practice

6:30-8:00am 13 & up

8:00-9:00am 10-12 year olds

9:00-10:00am 9 year olds

9:00-9:45am 8 & unders

Tuesday and Thursday:  Regular summer evening practice

7:00-8:00pm 12 & under

Wednesday, June 1st: Mandatory parent meeting, Tie-Dye and Ice Cream

5:30-7:30pm tie-dye

6:00pm Parent meeting

6:30pm ice cream served

Swimmers need to sign-up for Saturdays meet by the end of practice on Thursday

Saturday, June 4th: swim meet at Mount Vernon Country Club

6:30am warm ups begin

7:00am meet starts

We are excited to have our summer swim team in full swing. We look forward to see you all on Wednesday.

PRACTICE IS CANCELLED FOR TODAY!

It's wet and the temperature difference between the air and pool is on the extreme side (30+ degrees), so practice is cancelled for today. Enjoy your holiday weekend and the coaches will see you Tuesday morning.

Thank you volunteers

I want to personally thank all the parents that helped volunteer last night at our first Intrasquad meet.  It is always tough getting back into the summer swim season and then we helped complicate things by changing a few processes.  All our parents are amazing and you helped ensure our meet run smoothly for the kids.  It was great to have our new parents involved and we look forward to all of your continued support in our future meets.  It takes all of us working together to make our swimmers successful.  Please let us know if you have any questions.  Also provide us feedback if you have suggestions on how to make the Gators more efficient.

Last Officials Clinic!

The last officials clinic! We only had 3 officials at the intrasquad meet. Your help is needed at future meets.

**Sunday June 5th-4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center Only returning officials may attend this date.

If you have questions about the officials clinic, please contact Jim Fernald, jimfswim@comcast.net

Intrasquad Volunteers Needed!

Parents, we need your help so don't be shy about volunteering. There are still plenty of open spots to sign up for to support your kids and team at the intrasquad meet tomorrow night. Please use the sign-up link on the right-hand side of the page under Next Event.

Thu/Fri Practice Time Change for Upper Division Only

Parents & swimmers, upper division practice for this Thu & Fri (26-27 May) only will start at 7am instead of 6:30am. Get some extra rest!

Swim Team: May 23rd-May 27th

Hello Gators,
    We are getting into the beginning of our summer swim season.  Please remember if you have not registered for the summer swim team yet please do so (follow the link under summer swim team registration on the right hand side of the blog).  We are happy to see many new and returning faces.  Also, we know sometimes you get busy and forget to check the blog for updates.  If you subscribe to our blog it will send you an email each day the blog has a new post and/or like our Facebook page and we post updates here too. 
  
The coaches and board members would like to give you important information for the week of May 23rd.

• Monday and Tuesday we will continue with after school swim practice (4:30-8:00pm based on age division)
• Wednesday we will host our first Intrasquad meet.  
• This meet will start at 5:30pm with warm-up beginning at 5:00pm.  
• All swimmers need to sign-up for the 2 events they are going to swim by the end of practice on Tuesday.  These sign-up sheets are at the pool.  
• Parents we are going to need your help running this meet so please see the link on the right hand side to help volunteer.  
• Dinner can be served at the pool!  The swim club will have hamburger and hotdog meals available to purchase during the meet.  
• BIG CHANGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We are going to begin morning practice on Thursday May 26th and May 27th.  (There will be no Evening practice on Thursday, May 26th; these will begin the following week as originally scheduled)
  6:30-8:00am        13 & up
  8:00-9:00am        10-12 year olds
  9:00-10:00am      9 year olds
  9:00-9:45am        8 & unders

Also if you have ordered a team suit these will be available during the practices.  Please see Danielle or Jennifer.

Please let the coaches or board members know if you have any questions.

See you at the pool

Big Buddy/Little Buddy program

We are excited to continue our Big/Little buddy program.  The purpose of the Big/Little buddy swim program is to help younger swimmers transition into becoming Gators and to help them navigate swim meets.  The program also fosters team spirit, family and camaraderie by connecting the older swimmers with the younger ones.  Big buddies are generally 13&older while Little buddies are 12&under.  This partnership should focus on team unity, spirit and sportsmanship.  The buddy program is not about elaborate gifts-it is about being a supportive teammate! 
There is no requirement that swimmers participate in the buddy program but we strongly encourage everyone to participate.  The coaching staff will organize the buddy program and pair swimmers together.  Once buddies are assigned (hopefully by June 1st at the tie-dye party) we expect the Big buddies to introduce themselves and get to know their buddy.
Responsibilities of buddies include but are not limited to:

• meeting your buddy and introducing yourself
• greet your buddy at each meet
• Big buddies help Little buddies at meets with event numbers
• Create something for your buddy:  write a note, draw a picture, make a friendship bracelet
• CHEER, CHEER, CHEER, CHEER and CHEER!!!
• Congratulate your buddy after their swim

We would love to see 100% participation in this program.  We are going to consider all swimmer a big/little buddy unless we hear specifically from you that you don't want to participate.  If you are going to opt out of this program please let Coach Inez (imm27@case.edu) know by May 31st. 

Practice is on

The sun has come out and helped the pool heat up.  We are going to have practice tonight.  We hope to see you there.

9&unders:  4:30-5:30pm

10-12 year olds:  5:30-6:30pm

Upper division 13+:  6:30-8:00pm

Summer swim team starts tomorrow

Hello swimmer families,
    I don't think Mother Nature got the memo that it is the end of May and we are starting summer swim team.  It is hard to think about summer when it isn't sunny and raining outside. 
 
We are scheduled to start after school swim practice tomorrow, Wednesday the 18th.  We are still waiting for confirmation from the Swim Club that the pool is ready and we need to decide what the weather will be like.  Please check the blog and/or our Facebook page to see if practice will be held.  A decision will be made for 4:00pm on if we will have practice or not.
 
This weeks schedule (5/18-5/20):
Afternoon swim practice is scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
All practices will be held at Green Mountain Swim Club

    4:30-5:30pm        9 & unders

    5:30-6:30pm        10-12 year olds

    6:30-8:00pm        13&up
 
Next weeks schedule (5/23-5/27):
Afternoon swim practice is scheduled for Monday, Tuesday and Thursday

    4:30-5:30pm        9 & unders

    5:30-6:30pm        10-12 year olds

    6:30-8:00pm        13&up
First Intrasquad meet is scheduled for Wednesday, May 25th
    Warm-ups begin at 5:00pm and the meet will start at 5:30pm
    Swimmers must sign-up for their events by the end of practice on Tuesday.  Swimmers may sign-up for 2 events. 
No practice on Friday, May 27th as the pool will open this evening
 
Regular scheduled summer practices (morning and evening) begin Tuesday, May 31st
 
If you have not signed up please go to the Blog and sign your swimmer up.  Please print and complete all the required forms. 
 
Please plan on bringing your swimmers forms and payment to the first practice.  If you have already mailed these please disregard this.

How to sign-up for meets

We wanted to let all swimmer and parents know how to sign-up for meets this season.  This process will be for all intrasquad meets, home meets and away meets.  The "special" meets such as C/D meet, pentathlon, last chance, etc. will have specific instructions on how to sign-up as these meets get closer.
For all intrasquad, home and away meets each swimmer will need to sign-up at the pool.  Every Monday there will be sheets posted at the pool (on the bulletin board) for swim meet sign-ups.  These sign-ups will be separated by age division and then alphabetized by swimmers last name.  Each swimmer will select a maximum of 3 individual events and mark if they are available for relays.  Parents of younger swimmers please assist your swimmer in signing up for these meets.  All events must be selected by the end of practice on Thursday for dual meets and by Wednesday for intrasquad meets.   
We are going to give this a try for our first Intrasquad meet on Wedneday, May 25th.  The sign-ups will be at the pool by this Friday. 

GMST Gator merchandise on SwimOutlet.com

We are excited to announce that the Gators now have merchandise available for you to purchase on SwimOutlet.com.  The Green Mountain Swim Team has created a Gator store in partnership with SwimOutlet.  When you visit the Gator store you will see swimmer apparel and merchandise available with our logo.  You can purchase your items right from this link.  We hope you have fun shopping.

Also coming this summer are new Gator shirts and sweatshirts which will be available to purchase during practices and Intrasquad meets.

Code of Conduct

Attention all swimmers and parents:
Green Mountain Swim Team and Foothills Swim Association have a Code of Conduct for the 2016 summer swim season.  We will need ALL swimmers and parents to review this document, sign after agreeing and return to Jennifer Friedrichs.  If you have already registered your swimmer and mailed in your forms you can turn the signed code of conduct in at the first practice.  If you have not yet mailed in your forms please print, sign and submit this paperwork together.
As always, please let any of the board members know if you have additional questions or concerns.

Officials Clinics

Only a few officials clinics remain!

Sunday May 15th- 4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center

**Wednesday May 25th- Applewood Knolls Pool- 6pm for the rules meeting and 7pm for in water demonstration. All new officials must attend this in water demonstration!

**Sunday June 5th-4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center Only returning officials may attend this date.

If you have questions about the officials clinics, please contact Jim Fernald, jimfswim@comcast.net

Happy Mother's Day

We would like to wish all the Gator Moms (Grandma and Aunts too) a Happy Mother's Day. Thank you for supporting your swimmers. Have a wonderful day!

Preparing for the season

We are busy preparing for the summer swim season.  We just wanted to let you know that we have updated the Parent Handbook (from many years ago) as well as created a FAQ's to help parents and swimmers know what's happening with the Gators.
You can find these documents on the right hand side of the blog under the Important information and links section.  If you have questions about these documents or additional information please send an email to gmstgators@aol.com
We are excited to see all of the new and old Gators in a few weeks!

Missing the swimming suit fitting?

If you missed the Green Mountain Gator swimming suit fitting you still have time to order.  You will need to call the swimming suit vendor directly.  You will find their contact information below.  Please make sure you know what size suit you might need.  Please contact them as soon as possible so your swimmer has their suit in time and to avoid additional shipping costs.
Colorado Swim Shop
Christine or Derek
303.545.2090
2525 Arapahoe Ave., Unit C4
Boulder, CO 80302

Swimming Suit fitting

Please remember we will be having our swimming suit fitting next Sunday, May 1st

• Colorado Swim Shop will be coming to help fit swimmer for our team suite
• This will be at Green Mountain Rec Center
• They will be here from 4:30-6:30pm
• It is best to arrive early and try on the suits before you swimmer is wet
• This is the 2nd year of our suits so if yours still fits from last year there is no need to purchase another one

Please send any questions to gmstgators@aol.com

New & Returning Officials

Officials Clinics are coming up fast!

Sunday April 24th- 4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center

Sunday May 15th- 4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center

**Wednesday May 25th- Applewood Knolls Pool- 6pm for the rules meeting and 7pm for in water demonstration. All new officials must attend this in water demonstration!

**Sunday June 5th-4:30pm Green Mountain Recreation Center Only returning officials may attend this date.

If you have questions about the officials clinics, please contact Jim Fernald, jimfswim@comcast.net

Summer is around the corner

I can't believe we will be starting summer swim team in 5 weeks.  The swim team is busy getting ready for summer and so is the swim club.  The registration for summer swim team is posted.  You will notice that we have a morning registration and an evening registration.  The morning swim practice is offered just as it has been in the past.  When you sign-up for morning swim practice your child will attend their age division practice daily.  The evening swim practice is being offered to swimmers 12 and under who have not been able to participate in the past due to parents work schedule.  For the first time we will offer an evening swim practice (if the demand is there with a minimum of 8 swimmers) for a maximum of 16 swimmers.  This practice will only be Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 7:00-8:00pm.  The evening practices will be offered to the families that register first due to the limited space and they will be contacted to let them know the status of this.  Please note your swimmer may only participate in the swim practice in which they registered for.
I hope you have noticed the many changes on the blog.  All information posted on the blog will also be posted on our Facebook page.  Please like the Green Mountain Swim Team on Facebook so you can receive updates here. You can also subscribe to the Gator blog by entering your email and this will send you an email daily if the blog has been updated.  I have also created a google calendar with important swim team dates and am working on allowing you to copy this calendar into your own (so this is coming soon).  Hope these tools are helpful and will help you stay current on things that are happening.
The pool is busy getting ready for us to start swimming.  If you drive by you will notice they have repaired the parking lot.  They will also begin the process of filling up the pool to get the water ready for us.
Summer will be here before we know it!  Please register your swimmers and we will plan to see you on May 18th for after school swim practice.  Please continue to check the blog frequently as we prepare for summer swim team.

Year-round swimmers May 15th deadline

Here is a reminder regarding year-round swimmers deadline as we will begin our summer swim team registration soon. Swimmer may NOT practice or compete with another summer club swim team, year-round team, etc. on or after May 16. This means if a swimmer is currently swimming with a year-round team they will have to quit swimming with this organization by May 15th if they will be swimming as a Gator during the summer.

Taken from FSA Bylaws:
On or after May 16 of the swimming season, a swimmer may practice only with their summer club swim team and compete only in their summer club swim team’s meets in order to be eligible. To clarify, a swimmer may NOT practice or compete with another summer club swim team, year-round team, etc. on or after May 16. To further clarify, a swimmer may not for example swim unattached in a USA swim meet on or after May 16. A swimmer may swim in a charity type event with permission of the state board. Notwithstanding the above, a swimmer may practice or compete on or after May 16 interscholastically or intercollegiately without losing their eligibility to swim in the FSA.

Happy Easter Gators

Just a reminder that there is no swim clinic this Sunday due to the Easter holiday.  Hope you enjoy a great family day.

See you again for clinics on Sunday, April 3rd

No swim clinic on Sunday

Just a reminder that there will be no swim clinic this Sunday due to Spring Break.  We hope the weather will be nice enough for you to enjoy this week.
See you back at the pool on Sunday, April 3rd.

FSA League Webmaster

If anybody is willing and able to volunteer to take over the role of webmaster for the FSA League website, please contact me. You would be responsible for posting meet results every week during the season, posting qualification times, etc. Offseason responsibilities would be little to none. You can find the link to the FSA website under Important Links on the right-hand side of the blog. Thank you!

It was successful!

So I have tried it and it works!!  I have successfully added the feature in which will allow you to subscribe to the Gator Blog with your email address.  This feature allows you to receive an email once a day notifying you if the blog was updated.  We still encourage you to check the blog as you will only be notified if a new message has been posted.  These notifications aren't enabled when information is posted on the right hand side of the blog (information for meets, dates, etc.)
Please subscribe and enter your email address on the right hand-side of the blog.
Please let me know if you have any questions.