The Most Important Person at Our Meets: YOU!
Volunteers are crucial. Without them, we have no timers, no scorers, no officials, and we can’t hold a meet. I urge each and every one of you to find something YOU can do to help out at the meets. Timing and starting takes very little time to learn, while officiating, scoring, and running the timing system may take about an hour plus some hands on time seeing things at a meet to get started comfortable with. We’d love to have at least one member of every family volunteer for at least one job a meet.
What are those folks with the clipboards doing?
This question refers to two groups of volunteers. The first group of volunteers is timers. They are the ones using stopwatches or timing system components to time our swimmers (The time decides the order of finish, as we do not employ a referee to track order of finish for each race). It is very easy and often a lot of fun to time for our meets, and you get an excellent view of the action in the water, as well as a chance to meet folks from other teams timing alongside you.
The second group of volunteers you’ll see are stroke and turn officials. Don’t let the name fool you. They are parents of swimmers, too, and they aren’t scary! They want the kids to do their best, just like the rest of us. Many have chosen to help the team in this capacity because they wanted to learn more about the sport, and the training they undergo helps them do that. Their job isn’t to play gotcha when a swimmer does something incorrect, but rather to help the swimmers improve by pointing out errors or deficiencies and to ensure a level playing field/pool.
To train as a stroke and turn official, we ask that you view the videos from USA Swimming (https://www.usaswimming.org/officials/officials-training-videos), spend some time at a meet shadowing an experienced official, and taking a 25 question quiz. It’s a simple three-step process that can be done quick and easy in a little more than an hour. We always need more officials, so don’t be shy and get in touch with Coach Andersen to work out a training.
Something we always tell officials, though, is that ugly, non-Phelpsian or non-Ledeckian swimming isn’t illegal (we often refer to it as UBL- Ugly But Legal), and that the swimmer should always get the benefit of a doubt. Should your child be disqualified, come talk to a coach if you have a question. We should get information in the form of a disqualification (DQ) slip from the official. PLEASE do not approach the officials if you have a question about a call. Should your child get DQ’ed in an event, please don’t take it personally. The official saw something they thought was incorrect, and they made the call they thought necessary. They don’t derive some sick joy out of disqualifying kids.
A fun, often overlooked job, is the heat-winner ribbon distributor (sometimes quickly referred to as the “giver-outer”). This person has the pleasure of seeing a young swimmer or relay light up when they get a heat winner ribbon. For many, this may be the first ribbon they ever receive, and they will be absolutely thrilled when you give it to them.
A crucial part of running our meets is scoring and keeping track of results. We use Hy-Tek Meet Manager, the industry standard software program, to compile results we get from timer sheets or from the timing system. It takes some time to get used to the software, and the best way to learn is to work with a more experienced Hy-Tek operator. We have several on the team, but it is always good to have more who know what to do. This is also a skill needed for high school swim meets. Usually after working on the program for a meet or two, operators feel pretty confident.
At away meets, most teams use stopwatches only to record times. We are different in that we use an automated Colorado Timing System 5 system. We can configure it to work with plunger buttons, or with a button and a touchpad. Using pads is one of the best ways to get times, but we often face some difficulties with younger swimmers triggering them. For most meets we will use only the buttons with a stopwatch for an additional back up. The timing system communicates directly with the Hy-Tek software, making the Hy-Tek operator job easier. We are in the process of expanding our equipment so we can place pads at both ends of the pool, allowing us to use the system for 25 yard races, too. It is not difficult to use, and, like the Hy-Tek, the easiest way to learn how to use the system is hands on experience. Talk to Coach Andersen about learning how to use the system.
