Meet Guide
On Meet Day
Arrival: Pay attention to emails and notifications from coaches and team reps about when and where to arrive and park. (Occasionally, meet times may change from originally posted times to accomodate anticipated weather.) Away A meets will have a meet up, usually in the VRES parking lot to take attendance before driving to the meet. All other meets you will generally just have to arrive at the correct pool by a certain time.
What to Bring: See the Swim Meets 101 page with suggested items to bring to every meet.
Warm-ups: There will be a warmup period at the beginning of meets. Please be on time for warmups so that your swimmer will have a chance to get in the water and loosen up before racing.
The Team Area: Swimmers should plan to stay in their team area for most of the meet. This is where coaches will look to find swimmers to line them up for their races.
Coach check-ins: Swimmers should stop by and chat with the Riptide coaches after every race for feedback on their races.
Hungry? Most meets will have some sort of concessions/snacks for sale. Families are also welcome to bring their own snacks to meets.
Leaving the meet: Swimmers may leave the meet when their races are finished, however, we also love it when swimmers stay to cheer on their teammates! (Note that parent volunteers must generally stay through the end of the meet, regardless of when their swimmer finishes.)
Meet Expectations
- Swimmers and spectators are expected to exhibit positive and responsible behavior during meets.
- Cheer loudly *for* your swimmer and team, but not *against* other swimmers or teams.
- Be respectful of coaches, officials, and the other team.
- Be great hosts at home, and great guests when away
- Swimmers are expected to remain in the team area to hear their names called for their next events. Going to the bathroom, high fiving a parent, or briefly visiting the concession stand is fine, but swimmers should promptly return to the team area.
- Swimmers must keep the team area clean and dispose of all their trash at meets. We want to leave the area looking better than we found it.
- Parents must ensure their family will meet the volunteer requirement by the end of the season.
- If you have questions about something at a meet (including seeding for A meets or DQs) please direct your questions to the team rep - not to the coaches or meet officials.
Weather and Cancellations
Meets and practices will generally run even if it is raining. Meets or practices will pause if thunder or lightning is observed, or if it is raining heavily enough that the lifeguards cannot see the bottom of the pool.
In the event of thunder or lightning during a meet, the meet will delay for 30 (sometimes 45) minutes after the last thunder/lightning event. Return to your car (you must leave the pool deck) and wait for communication from your team rep. Do not leave the meet unless you are specifically told that the meet has been cancelled.
Race Lingo
Swimming has some terminology that, if you learn it, will help you navigate a meet.
- Event: a specific race defined by the stroke, distance, gender, and age group. For example, Event #1 might be the 6&U Boys 25m Freestyle
- Heat: A group of swimmers racing at the same time within an event. If there are more swimmers entered in an event than there are lanes in the pool, the event is divided into multiple heats.
- Lane: The numbered lane a swimmer is swimming in.
- DQ: Disqualification.
