The Nanton Marlin Swim
Club offers five programs: The Minnow
Marlins, two Middle Groups, the Seniors and the Masters.
a) A Minnow
Marlin is a swimmer of any age who is not quite ready either mentally or
physically to participate in the swim club to the same extent as our middle or
senior swimmers. These swimmers must be
comfortable putting their face into the water, float on front and back
unassisted, have a basic flutter kick on front and back with or without a
flutter board, can tread water, paddle or swim 20 meters unassisted above water
at the end of our trail period, listen well to instruction and have a
willingness to learn (at the discretion
of the head coach). The Minnow
Marlins are expected to participate in the Nanton Marlin Swim Club home meet or
one alternate meet and attend the Regional Meet. At the discretion of the head
coach, these swimmers have approximately half an hour practices Monday
through Thursday throughout the summer which should be attended as much as possible. The purpose of the Minnow Marlin program is
to develop the younger swimmer’s skills and strengths thus giving him/her the
capabilities to become a middle or senior swimmer. If the head coaches feel that a swimmer is not ready
to join the club, they will ask them to try some swimming lessons through the
summer and try again later in the season or next year. THIS
IS NOT TO BE SUBSTITUTED FOR SWIM LESSONS.
b) A Middle Group 1 Marlin is a swimmer of
any age who is not quite ready either mentally or physically to participate in
the swim club to the same extent as our Middle Group 2 or Senior swimmers. These swimmers must be able to swim 25m of nonstop
recognizable freestyle and backstroke, be comfortable jumping into deep water,
listen well to instruction and have a willingness to learn (at the discretion of the head coach). The Middle Group 1 Marlins are expected to
participate in the Nanton Marlin Swim Club home meet, 2 other regular season
meets and the Regional Meet. At the discretion of the head coach,
the Middle Group 1 Marlins have approximately 1 hour practices Monday through
Thursday throughout the summer which should be attended as much as possible. The purpose of the Middle Group 1 Marlin
program is to further develop the swimmer’s skills and strengths thus giving
him/her the capabilities to become a Middle Group 2 or Senior swimmer. THIS
IS NOT TO BE SUBSTITUTED FOR SWIM LESSONS.
c) A Middle Group 2 Marlin is a swimmer of
any age who must be able to swim 50m of recognizable freestyle and backstroke
and 25m breaststroke, can do a well-executed turn, listen well to instruction
and have a willingness to learn (at the
discretion of the head coach). The
Middle Group 2 Marlins will be expected to participate in at least the Nanton
Marlin Swim Club home meet, 4 other regular season meets and the Regional Meet. At the
discretion of the head coach, these swimmers have approximately 1.5 hour
daily practices Monday through Thursday throughout the summer which should be
attended as much as possible. The
purpose of the Middle Group 2 Marlin program is to further develop the
swimmer’s skills and strengths thus giving him/her the capabilities to become a
Senior swimmer. THIS IS NOT TO BE SUBSTITUTED FOR SWIM LESSONS.
d) A Senior Marlin is a swimmer of any age
who must be able to swim all 4 strokes without being disqualified, have a solid
technical foundation, do dives and turns complete with underwater recovery,
take a workout and complete it without constant supervision, listen well to
instruction and have a willingness to learn (at the discretion of the head coach). Senior swimmers will be expected to
participate in the Nanton Marlin Swim Club home meet, 4 other regular season
meets and the Regional Meet. At the discretion of the head coach, the
Senior Marlins have approximately 1.5 hour daily practices Monday through
Thursday throughout the summer which should be attended as much as possible.
e) A
Master Marlin is a swimmer 18 years of age or older who must be able to swim
100m continuously with a basic familiarity of various strokes and training
methods. At the discretion of the head coach, the Master Marlins have
approximately 1 hour daily practices Monday through Thursday throughout the
summer.
There
are many levels of ability; swimmers are divided by ability for practices and
their practices will be structured accordingly.
The purpose of this is to enable the individual swimmer to obtain the
utmost from his/her practice. At swim
meets, they compete in their age group but are put into “heats” with swimmers
with similar ability and times, called “senior seeding”.
There will be a trial period
for new swimmers at the beginning of each season. This period is for children to try out swim
club to see if they like it and give the coaches a chance to see if:
a)
The kids in the Minnow Marlin group or NEW
swimmers meet the requirements to join the club.
b)
Which group to place other new swimmers into.
DRYLAND TRAINING will
be offered to each swimmer, mandatory for the middle 2 group swimmers and
senior swimmers; this training will begin once we are swimming in Nanton and
will be one hour 2 times per week.
1.
EXPECTATIONS
OF SWIMMERS
1.1
To obey all rules and regulations of the
Club, Coaches, ASSA, Swim Alberta and all Pools.
1.2
To listen to and respect their coach(es)
during practices, meets and other club functions.
1.3
To be on time for practices and meets.
1.4
To participate as a team member in meets.
1.5
To notify the Coach which swim meets they
wish to attend.
1.6
To attend practices.
1.7
To attend as many meets as possible, the
Nanton Marlin Swim Club Meet is mandatory as well as one other meet for the
minnow Marlins and two other meets for the Spearfish and Swordfish Marlins. The Regional meet is also mandatory for all
swimmers to attend.
1.8
To represent the Club in an honorable manner
when attending practices, meets and other club activities.
1.9
To make sure the deck and other areas the
club is utilizing at meets is kept clean and tidy.
2.
EXPECTATIONS
OF PARENTS
2.1
To participate in fund raising activities.
2.2
To attend official’s clinics when offered to
be able to help at all meets attended.
2.3
To provide transportation for swimmers to
meets.
2.4
To officiate at meets.
2.5
To encourage their children to participate in
all Club activities.
2.6
To allow the Coach(es) to do the
coaching. Comments and complaints are
welcome only after practice or meets through the Coach or Coach Liaison.
2.7
To not take concerns to those not directly
involved. A negative effect from talk
behind the scenes is harmful to the Marlins morale and unity.
3.
EXPECTATIONS
OF COACHES
3.1
To take into consideration the directives of
the Club Executive.
3.2
To provide a training program outline to the
Club Executive.
3.3
To carry out the program or arrange for a
competent and qualified substitute as per ASSA and Swim Alberta coaching
guidelines.
3.4
To communicate with the Club Executive
regarding comments or complaints.
3.5
To encourage full participation of swimmers
in practices and meets.
3.6
To prepare entries for swim meets.
3.7
To be attentive to all swimmers at practices
and meets.
3.8
To attend all swim meets OR arrange for a
competent and qualified substitute as per ASSA and Swim Alberta coaching
guidelines.
3.9
To keep the swimmers Best Times Sheets
up-to-date or delegate to a Club Executive member.
3.10
To implement pool side discipline.
3.11
To represent the Club in an honorable manner always.
4.
CLUB
POLICIES
4.1
All swimmers will begin training on or around
May 1st of each season. These
practices will be four days a week (days to be determined each season) and held
in another pool, either in Claresholm or High River. Length of practices will be determined by how
much pool time is available to the Marlins.
Our regular schedule will begin once the Nanton pool opens, normally the
Tuesday after the May long weekend each season.
4.2
There will be a trial period for new swimmers
at the very beginning of the season. All
registration fees are to be paid in full or arrangements made at the end of
this period if the swimmer wishes to continue with the club.
4.3
Registration fees are non-refundable once the
season has commenced without a note from a doctor.
4.4
The Club will offer five programs: the Minnow Marlins, Middle group 1 Marlins,
Middle group 2 Marlins, Senior Marlins and Master Marlins. The Master Marlins (18+) group will be
offered if there are a minimum of 5 who would like to register, the coach(es)
are willing to run the group and there is available pool time.
4.5
Swimmers will be kept up to date of proposed
activities, meets, etc. throughout the year on our club bulletin board, via
email and through the club Facebook page. Information outlining meet details,
etc., will be posted on the bulletin board at the pool. Swimmers are expected to confirm their
participation in the meets via sign-up sheet posted on bulletin board or with
the Head Coach prior to the date specified for each meet.
4.6
Regarding relay events – if a swimmer misses
a relay and causes the team to be scratched, this swimmer stands the
possibility of not being selected for future relay teams.
4.7
At the Regional Meet, each member may swim
their four individual events. Swimmers
are chosen to swim “A” relays according to their recorded times. Every effort will be made to include all other
swimmers on the other relay teams.
4.8
All members are encouraged to attend all
practices and meets. Swimmers are to
notify the Coach in writing (via email) of holiday plans and known extended
absences. Also, it is expected that a
swimmer will notify the Coach via telephone if s/he is entered for a meet but
must withdraw.
4.9
If a swimmer is withdrawing from a meet for
which an individual entry fee is paid, it will be the responsibility of that
swimmer to reimburse the Club for this expense before s/he can swim in the next
meet.
4.10
Swimmers and their families are expected to
participate in all fund-raising activities, including but not limited to, the
Casino.
4.11
Parents are expected to help at all swim
meets. Official certification clinics
are offered online so that parents may be qualified to work on deck at swim
meets. One parent from each family must
take the timer’s course (level 1).
4.12
At the beginning of the season the executive
requires a $100 cheque per family, made payable for August 31 of that year, for
volunteering. This cheque will be
returned to each family if volunteer commitments are fulfilled. Duties include, but are not limited to:
·
Executive Positions
·
Fundraising coordinator
·
Club Reporter
·
Year-end wind up – set up, take down, etc.
·
Trophies and gifts
·
Our home swim meet duties – set up, take
down, food chairperson, food helpers, runners, office people, marshals, safety
marshals, timers, announcers, raffle tables, 50/50, etc.
IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE VOLUNTEER
DUTIES ALL FAMILIES MUST SEND FOOD OR MONEY TO HELP WITH OUR HOME SWIM MEET AND
THE REGIONAL SWIM MEET!
4.13
The Club t-shirts are provided to all
swimmers as part of the registration fee and must be worn at all times (outside
of the pool) at every swim meet. Club
swim suits and caps are available to purchase at the beginning of the season
and it is mandatory for the club caps to be worn at all meets, encouraged to
wear club suits. It is recommended for
the swimmers to have one piece training suits for practices.
4.14
Fundraising pays a large portion of coaching,
pool rental, equipment and other expenses.
All Marlin Swim Club Families are required to support fundraising
efforts by participating in each fundraising event or paying the $250 opt-out
fee.
4.15
Parents are welcome to watch daily workouts
quietly from the observation area, leaving the coaching to the coaches. Disruptive parents will be asked to
leave. Repeated disruption could mean a
lengthy leave from the observation area and or a behavioral discussion with the
Head Coach and the Swim Club Executive.
4.16
Training and practices will end for all
swimmers, except for those who will be participating in Provincials, at the end
of the last practice prior to the Regional Meet each season.
4.17
The Coach/Swimmer relationship is one of
trust, and any inappropriate behavior and/or relationship between a coach and a
swimmer will be reported to the authorities and may lead to immediate
dismissal.
4.18
The Coach and Coach Liaison are available to
address all coaching concerns – if the problem(s) persist a letter to the Club
Executive is required and will be handled with the upmost confidentiality and
concern.
4.19
The meet schedule will be decided upon by the
Coaches and Executive prior to the start of each season. Swimmers are not permitted to attend any
meets outside of this schedule, unless a swimmer makes the ASSA All Star team
or qualifies for Alberta Summer Games.
4.20
In regards to the Swim Club Executive, if a
member with an executive position fails to attend three consecutive meetings
another executive member will contact the individual to give them the option to
begin attending meetings or step down from the executive. If the member steps down their position
becomes vacant to fill at the next scheduled executive meeting.
5.
RULES
5.1
Pushing or throwing a member in the pool at a
practice or meet could result in automatic suspension for that practice or
meet.
5.2
Swimmers will be disciplined by the Coach(es)
at their discretion if constantly fooling around in the pool or not training as
per the Coach(es) instructions.
5.3
Each swimmer is required to have a pair of
swim goggles, a cap and proper one piece suit for all practices. For swimmers participating in dry land (12+),
proper dry land attire (comfortable clothing – t-shirt and stretchy pants or
shorts, socks and running shoes) is required.
5.4
Swimmers are responsible for making sure they
are adequately stretched or warmed up at a meet.
5.5
All swimmers will obey all instructions from
the Coach(es). A 3-strike rule will be
implemented for disruptive swimmers. 1st
strike = warning, 2nd strike = warning and a time out, 3rd
strike the swimmer will be asked to leave the practice or meet for the
day. If disruptive or inappropriate
behavior continues possible suspension or expulsion may occur.
5.6
Swimmers and Parent’s complaints or questions
may be taken up with either the Coach or the Coach Liaison AFTER the practice or meet.
5.7
Swimmers are responsible for deck tidiness
and for looking after their own belongings.
5.8
Swimmers must inform the Coach as to their
whereabouts if they leave the Club area at a meet.
5.9
Swimmers are required to wear the club
t-shirts and caps at all swim meets, encouraged to wear team suits.
5.10
A swimmer cannot be entered a meet unless
they can swim 25m (one length) of the pool unassisted and above water.
Revised
March 2017