Gator Fall Swim Clinic

(UPDATED 8-13-21)We have secured the Green Mountain Rec Center for our Fall Swim Clinic. The Rec Center is still closed on Sundays due to budget cuts, so clinic will be on Saturdays for a 10-week session.

Day:       SATURDAYS
Dates:     9/11/21 - 11/13/21
Cost:      $100 (We do not pro-rate the session)
Payment:  cash or check due on first clinic date
Register:   click here to register

All Swimmers   3:00 - 4:00 pm (updated)

Head Coach:  Ethan Schick
Assistant Coach:  Ayden Fearn
In-Water Coaches:  Lily Bell, Leah Felton, Neva Nicholson

Quick Action Needed

 Hello Gator Families- please take a minute to stop by the pool and gather all your items that are in the swimmer file box.  I can tell that many files have not been checked this entire season.  Grab your stuff before school starts or you head out of town for college.

The box is at the front check-in counter of the pool and the snack shack kids can't wait to help you wade through it.

State Ribbons/Medals are in! Well, sort of. They made it clear that we "got what we got" and then they ran out of ribbons. I have no idea what might be missing. It does appear that all 1st, 2nd and3rd place medals were awarded. If your swimmer is missing a ribbon, all I can say is sorry and you owe your swimmer some DQ to cheer them up.

AAC vs Stingrays vs GMST ribbons were delivered! Those are in your swimmer file as well.

Extra Gator medallion/key chains are available in the swimmer box if you would like one. Parents are welcome to take one too. Available while supplies last.

Other items:  ribbons from past events, swimmer race sheets, stickers, last year's items that were never picked up and probably more. 

Thanks again for making the 2021 season so joyful and rewarding. If you will be 18 or younger on May 15, 2022 we hope to see you back in gator waters next season!!

Current State Information

Current Info (as of 3:00pm 7/22)

 Friday 7/23: Events start @ 3:15 pm

 Saturday 7/24: Age Group 11-12 starts @ 7:30 am / Age Group 9-10 starts @ 10:50 am 

 Sunday 7/25: Age Group 13+ starts @ 8:30 am 

Warm up times are on listed on NEXT EVENT

RAIN OR SHINE: BANQUET TONIGHT

Helllo Gator Families. We will hold the Team Banquet Rain or Shine. If it looks like rain, please bring a pop-up tent. We will build a proper tent-village at the pool to host our celebration. Pool closes @ 5pm -- Potluck dinner starts around 5pm -- Awards start around 5:30pm Bring: last name begins with A-L: side dish // last name begins with M-Z: dessert See you tonight.

TEAM BANQUET- GATOR STYLE- WEDNESDAY NIGHT

 We would like to invite all swimmers and their families to the year-end banquet. We will get together to recognize our swimmers and coaches for an outstanding season, share our thank yous and hand out some awards.  The Green Mountain Swim Club will be closed for our event. That's how special this is :). The team will provide pizza and water/lemonade.  We are asking families to bring a side dish and/or dessert based on your Last Name to share in our potluck style dinner. 

Time:  5:00 pm - 8:00 pm (or early or later. Hard to say exactly)

Date:  Wednesday, July 21

Place:  GMSC

Bring:  last name begins with A-L: side dish //  last name begins with M-Z: dessert

Also, you may want to bring a camp chair to sit in, a camera to take pics, and cocktails for the board members :)

We look forward to seeing all of our Gator families on Wednesday!

Danielle, Susanne, Erica and Ryan

League Updates (as of 7/12/21)

Some of these details are the same, but I wanted to put everything in one update so we are all on the same page.

LEAGUE 400s- THURSDAY 7/15
@ Splash in Golden
warm ups @: 5:30pm
start time @: 6:00 pm
** We need 2 timers from our team for the meet. I don't have a sign up. Just let me know at the meet if you can time. **

LEAGUE DAY - SUNDAY 7/18
@ Columbine West Pool in Littleton
warm up starts/turns only. We are waiting for our slot but it will be between 6-6:45 am - please watch the "up Next" section of the blog for this update., along with the address of the pool.
start time @: 7:00 am
end time @:  Maybe 3 or 4pm. It will be a long day
Order of Events:  the order of events will be the standard format with 1 exception. The meet will start with the medley relays (since the 400s were swam on Thursday) and end with the Free relays. All age groups will run throughout the day. Yep, it will be a LONG day!
Relays:  As of now, they are allowing an A Relay and a B Relay from each team for each event.  If they seed them meet and find out that it is going too long, then the B Relays will be dropped. We won't know until later in the week.
Parking: (see attached map) - Please use the Elementary school just south of the pool.  If you do park in the neighborhood please be considerate of driveways, parking too close to stop signs, corners, and fire hydrants and pay close to NO PARKING SIGNS.  There are a couple right across the street from the pool.  There will be extra sheriff patrols throughout the day to make sure we are behaving!
Spectators: You will NOT be allowed to camp out/set up inside on the pool deck. Please set up near our team tent. Each team has been pre-assigned an area (see map). You don't need to talk to us (for those introverted families) but you will need to be near us.
Concessions: There will be concessions, however please pack accordingly for your family and swimmer. Stingrays concessions are planning on providing a $5 lunch combo including hamburgers, brats, chips, and a drink.   

Notes: All entries are due on Wednesday by Noon. Your swimmer must tell Coach Emma by Wednesday morning what they are swimming. They will not be automatically entered. We know it will be a long day. If your family/swimmer commits to be there, we fully except you to stay until the end if your swimmer is in the free relay. We also need help with timing for the meet. Our team was assigned timing + timing coordination. We got SUPER lucky with our assignments. I will have a sign up as soon as the timing shifts/numbers are confirmed.

Team Movie Night - Wednesday 7/14

 Our team movie night is to celebrate another fun swim season with our awesome gator families and to give the kids a special treat to be at the pool after hours. Swim Team Board members will be present at the event, along with the coaches.   

When:  Wednesday 7/14 from 8-10pm
Movie:  Luca (this is a new Disney movie and appropriate for all ages)
What to bring:  blankets, sleeping bags, pillows, and pajamas are all encouraged.
Provided: popcorn and candy

FAQ:
Who is Invited?- All swimmers are invited, along with their siblings and/or parents. No friends please.
Do I need to stay with my kid? - Only if you feel like it. You are welcome to drop your swimmer off at the pool and pick them back up at 10pm.
Can I swim during Team Movie Night?  - No. 
Can I play volleyball or play on the playground during the movie? - No 

If you need to contact someone during the movie, please call or text Danielle at 303-884-8084

League Updates!!

 There has been a LOT of movement behind the scenes, so here is the plan...

Practice week of 7/12: this week is normally reserved for League swimmers only. However, we have one more meet on Saturday (see below). If you plan to attend the Tri-meet or League, then you can attend practice. If not, then your swimmer is done practicing for the season.

"Tri-Meet/Last Chance/Let's Get it Done Meet!":  Saturday, July 17th
We will host a tri-meet @ GMSC with AAC and Stingrays. All swimmers welcome. Note, there will be no 400's at this meet and the relays teams that are League relay teams will have their times counted for the League meet. Warm up time will be @ 6am for the Gators. more details to follow this weekend.

League!!!!
Note: your swimmer must have a League time to qualify for this event AND they must sign up with coach Emma.  Teams pay for each entry for League, so your swimmer will not be automatically signed up. Each swimmer can only swim a maximum of 3 events and they can only choose races that they have League or State times in.
 
Thursday, July 15 @ 5:30pm @ Splash
event: 400's only

Sunday, July 18 @ Columbine West
events: all events except 400s and only 1 relay team/event/team allowed
session breakdown:  we don't know yet. It may be an ALL day meet or it might be broken up into lower division in the morning and upper division in the afternoon. Details are still being worked out. Our seasons normally aren't so unorganized but you know, 2020 happened. Thank you for sticking with it.

State - All Star Champions Meet!
Saturday, July 24 @ Splash
State swimmers only. Details to follow soon. (Again, it is still being worked out, but we know that it is happening)

Team + Individual Photos

 Photos will be available to order online through July 21st!
https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-7qqS7j

Click on link above, or find link on right side of blog. Order soon and order our a lot :) Our accomplished photographer, Alex Hearn, is a local Green Mountain resident and had many setbacks during the pandemic. Let's show her some love and appreciation for her work.

This Week (7/5) in Gator News:

 We have a lot of updates to take us through the end of the season... please read.

Monday 7/5: no practice due to holiday

Wednesday 7/7: Final Intrasquad - warm up @5:00pm / start @ 5:30pm  sign up here to volunteer

Saturday 7/10:  We will swim against AAC.  Their pool is not allowing meets due to COVID, so AAC is coming to our pool and will host the meet.  This means a lot less work for us, but we will still need volunteers (just not as many as a normal home meet). This is our last official meet of the season before we move into League and State (see below)  sign up here to volunteer

Sunday 7/11:  5 Parks will be hosting a "Last Chance Meet".  Your swimmer would ONLY swim in this meet if they have a "B" time or better, are trying to make a League or State time and approved by Coach Emma.  This is not a standard meet where all swimmers would go. We will only have limited swimmers and maybe not have any at all.  Also, if your swimmer does goes, please know that you will need to time and help out. Coach Emma can talk your swimmers through this. sign up with Coach Emma

Ribbons:  Many of the teams are not doing ribbons and all 2nd Place ribbons are on back order.  This year is sort of a "you get what you get" kind of year. Sorry to all the disappointed swimmers who really want those.

Wednesday 7/14:  Team Movie Night - If weather permits we will host a team movie night after the pool closes from 8-10pm. Kids can wear their pajamas, bring blankets and pillows and be together as we eat popcorn and watch a soon-to-be-determined-kid-appropriate movie.  It's a fun team function that feels special to be at the pool so late. No swimsuits please. This is not a swimming function. 

League 7/16-7/18:  We will know what's happening with League by Friday 7/9. We have two options right now that our Foothills Swim Association is finalizing. For sure:  League 400s will be hosted by Golden at Splash on either Thursday 7/15 or Friday 7/16 at 5:00pm in addition... Option 1: League will be hosted by Stingrays at the Columbine West pool (this is different than the Columbine Knolls pool) either all day on Saturday 7/17 or split into two days for upper and lower division. Only League qualifiers would be invited. Option 2: 3 teams host a tri-meet on Saturday 7/17 (all swimmers invited) and then all times are combined to determine league winners.  Option 2 is the back up plan if Option 1 falls through.

State:  State is an absolute cluster this year with Central Park (formerly Stapleton) at the helm.  It is so messy that they haven't actually planned it yet or hired any officials. They have said that they will offer their pool, but will not have parking, heating, concessions, seating or anything else that would be needed to actually have the meet. Also, no large events are allowed in Central Park right now. So in essence, it's a no go.  Here is what FSA has planned instead.  We will host an ALL STAR CHAMPIONS weekend with all of our State swimmers. All FSA teams will get together on Saturday 7/24 with all qualified State swimmers to swim it out for ultimate glory!

Team Banquet:  Just a reminder that we will have our team banquet on Wednesday, July 21st at 5:00pm at the pool.  GMSC will close the pool for us as we gather to celebrate our 2021 season.  We will have a more detailed list of what food to bring (one dish to share per family), awards for all the kids and generally laugh at the absurdity this year brought.  We sincerely hope your family can join us. 

This Week in Swim Team News (6/28)

 We have team pictures and some time off this week. See below for details...

Team Pictures and Pancake Breakfast:
Pictures: We will start taking pictures at 7:30 am witH the team picture to follow around 8:00 am.  Our photographer, Alex Hearn, will provide us with a digital link after the photos are taken to order whatever you want.  Please have your swimmers take individual (or buddy photos) only if you intend to purchase them. Have your swimmers wear their team suits and be at the pool by 7:30.

Pancakes:  We will be cooking up gator cakes (green pancakes) in both traditional wheat-based and gluten free versions.  Swimmers will be served pancakes after the team picture and age group photos.

What happened to Water World?  The decision was made to not have our traditional Water World day along with team pictures this year.  We plan to have it back on the calendar in 2022. 

PRACTICES:
6/30 Wednesday: No MORNING practices due to Team Photo & Pancake Breakfast
7/1 Thursday: No NIGHT Practice due to holiday
7/2 Friday: No MORNING practices due to holiday
7/5 Monday: No MORNING practices due to holiday

Saturday Meet vs. Golden

Welcome to swimming in Colorado! We intend to go for it rain or shine on Saturday. We may have delays due to lightening/thunder but we dont want to cancel in advance. Bring a tent for the family and extra towels to stay warm.

Practice Updates for the Next 2 weeks

 6/24 Thursday: No Night Practice due to Swim Club Movie Night
6/30 Wednesday: No MORNING practices due to Team Photo & Pancake Breakfast
7/1 Thursday: No Night Practice due to holiday
7/2 Friday: No MORNING practices due to holiday
7/5 Monday: No MORNING practices due to holiday

Week of 6/21

Wednesday 6/23:  Intrasquad #2
warm up @ 5pm
start @ 5:30
please sign up to volunteer

Saturday 6/26: Home Meet vs. Golden
warm up @ 6am
start @ 7am
please sign up to volunteer ASAP. This is a home meet! We need LOTS of help. We have many families who have not volunteered yet. We need your help. Your child is only able to swim in the meets due to the number of people stepping up to make it happen.

Next week: Team Pictures and Pancake Breakfast
Wednesday 6/30
7:30 am - 9:30 am
please sign up to volunteer
We will not have practice this day. Bring your swimmer in their Gator Suit (or whatever they normally wear to a meet) and smile big. Our awesome photographer Alex Hearn will be taking the VERY BIG team photo, along with individual or group swimmer shots if you would like them. I will have a price list soon.

Away Meet - What to Know

 For our new Gator families....

On the blog under "Up Next" you will always find the location, warm up times and start times of our next event. 

We will set up a Team tent area at every away meet and you are welcome to bring a family tent (at most meets) as well. We will have the Individual Race Events posted for the swimmers at our Team tent and your swimmer should start here to check in with the coaches. We will also have the Parent Volunteer list at the tent. If you see open spots the day of the meet, please take one. (We prefer to fill the sign ups before the day of the meet so we are not spending our time finding volunteers). For away meets we only need timers and officials, but just like our home meets, the meets can't run without volunteers. 

Sign up here to volunteer or find the sign up on the blog.

Week of 6/14

 New this week:
- Wednesday, June 16: Tie-Dye & Ice Cream Party from 5-6:30pm
- Upper Division Night Practice has been moved a half hour to 7:30-8:30pm (Tue/Thur)
- Saturday, June 19th: Dual Meet against Wheatridge

Details:

Tie-Dye & Ice Cream Party:
Join us on Wednesday 6/16 @ 5:00pm for some creative team spirited fun.  We will be selling our white Gator t-shirts and tank tops for $5 and the whole family is welcome to join in to tie-dye their gear. We re low on certain sizes, so be aware that we might sell out of your size. We will have expert creative consultants onsite to help out. Ice cream will be served around 6:00pm.  You are also welcome to bring your own shirt, shorts or tank to dye. You'll want to make sure that your item is cotton or it won't dy. You do not have to buy our gear in order to participate. 
Note: this is NOT a pool party. We will only be using the grounds of the swim club for our creative fun, but please do not plan to swim. (The pool will not be staffed up to handle that).

Saturday's Meet: We are scheduled to swim against Wheatridge at the Anderson Pool. Warm up will be at 6:30 am with a start time of 7:00 am. Swimmers can sign up for races at the pool and parents can sign up to volunteer by using the link under "Parent Volunteers". We only need timers and officials for away meets. We hope to see you at the Anderson Pool.

Swimmer Folders:  Each family has a swimmer folder that will have ribbons from the meets or any other small items that we want to pass on to the families. Many Gator families still have items from 2019 to pick up. Please check your folders this week. The coaches will put the swimmer folder box out at practice.

Photos: If you are interested, you can like us on Facebook and see photos from our meets, as well as see some team updates. 

Team Awards:  We wanted to remind our families and swimmers about two special awards that can be earned with the Gators.  The Iron Gator and the Golden Gator award.  In order to be an Iron Gator, you must swim in every event in your age division and receive a time (not DQ).  If you want to be a Golden Gator, you'll need to earn a State time in every event in your age division. For some swimmers, this is a great way to challenge yourself throughout the swim season. 

Upcoming Events of Note...

- Wednesday 6/30: Team Pictures & Pancake Breakfast from 7:30-9:30 am
- Saturday 7/3:  BYE weekend - No Meet
- Sunday 7/11: Last Chance Meet (for those swimmers with "B" times that are trying to make League, they get one last shot to swim fast.
- Friday 7/16-Sunday 7/18:  League Championships  -- we are still trying to find a pool to host League. Currently the Gators are scheduled to host the Upper Division 400s on Friday 7/16. Golden is trying to get the city to agree to 1 day of League and Wheatridge is trying to get the other day. Nothing has been confirmed. Please know that our entire FSA League is working hard behind the scenes to make this happen.  The current plan is to have the 400s on Friday / Lower Division only (12 and under) on Saturday / Upper Division only (13 and older) on Sunday.
- State Meet: This is still TBD. The current rumor is the Ken Caryl is trying to get approval to host State, but nothing has been confirmed.

Night Practice - Update

 For the remainder of June night practice will move from 7pm to 7:30-8:30 pm.
For the month of July, night practice will be at 8:00-9:00pm.
Tuesdays / Thursdays only

NOTE: this practice is for upper division only.  If your upper division child would like to attend night practice they MUST communicate with Coach Emma. If she does not have enough people, then we will skip night practice that evening. 

Join our Lifeguarding Team today @ GMSC

 Green Mountain Swim Club is looking for Lifeguards! If you are 15 years or older and have a current lifeguard certification, you can start immediately! If you are 15 years or older and able to get a certification ASAP, you can start as soon as you are certified. Please contact staffing.gmsc@gmail.com.  Head down to the pool and start the best summer job you'll ever have.

Week of June 7th

Practice: the usual laps. Swim fast gators.

Dual Meet:  Saturday 6-12 @ GMSC vs. 5 Parks. - warm up for GMST @ 6:00 am. Yep 6am!
5Parks is a big team. Please prepare to be in a crowd. If you are unvaccinated, the CDC recommends wearing a mask outside in this type of situation.  You can certainly plant yourself on the hill and watch from a distance or grab a free mask from the concession area. 

A few swim meet reminders:
- Relays: If your swimmer signs up for the meet and checks the boxes to do a relay, they are expected to stay for their relays. If they can't make the relay, it is the swimmers responsibility to let their Coach know ASAP so that the Coach can try to find a replacement. This puts everyone in a tricky spot, so please tell your swimmers to only sign up for a relay if they know they will be there. Also, not all swimmers will get a relay. You need four kids and sometimes the number of swimmers in an age group just don't work out for everyone to get a relay. The coaches will do their best.
- The parent volunteer link is posted for our Saturday meet.
- Virtual Meet Results: We have posted the GMST only virtual results. As soon as we receive the combined results from Golden and AAC we will post those as well. 

Tie-Dye & Ice Cream Party:
We had to delay our tie-dye party and we now have a date!  Join us on Wednesday 6/16 @ 5:00pm for some creative team spirited fun.  We will be selling our white Gator t-shirts and tank tops for $5 and the whole family is welcome to join in to tie-dye their gear. We will have expert creative consultants onsite to help out. Ice cream will be served around 6:00pm.  You are also welcome to bring your own shirt or tank to dye. You do not have to buy our gear in order to participate. 
Note: this is NOT a pool party. We will only be using the grounds of the swim club for our creative fun, but please do not plan to swim. (The pool will not be staffed up to handle that).

MEET CHANGE FOR SATURDAY 6-5-21!! PLEASE READ

 Details for Saturday:  The meet will be held at our pool and will be a "virtual" meet. This means that we will swim with our team only and will then combine our times with Golden and possibly AAC since they too are doing virtual meets as well. We will have relays and all the standard dual meet events.  We will need to create a new volunteer sign up sheet for our home meet. This will be done by Friday. Please check in Friday to sign up.  THANK YOU.