New/Prospective Members
- Where are you located?
- Who do I contact?
- What are the seasons like?
- How are the swim groups structured?
- When do you practice?
- How do swim meets work?
- How much does it cost?
- Why Westfield Aquatics?
- What if I have more questions?
Swim Meets
- Should my child compete in meets?
- What should my child hope to accomplish at a meet?
- What information can be found in a meet entry letter?
- What should I bring for my swimmer?
- When should I arrive for a meet?
- How will I know which events my child will swim?
- How should parents dress for the meet?
- What is positive check-in?
- Can parents go on deck during a meet?
- What does a swimmer do after a race?
- Can swimmers go in the stands during a meet?
- What is a clerk of course?
- How do athletes know when to report to their race?
- Is there a concession stand at the meet?
- What is the difference between a heat sheet and a psych sheet?
- In what order do swimmers swim in the events?
- How are disqualifications of swimmers handled?
- How do I know what swim meets may be best for my child?
- When can a swimmer leave the meet?
- What is the difference between a short course and long course meet?
- What is the best way to support my child as a competitor?
Where are you located?
We are located at the Westfield Washington Schools Aquatic Center. Click Here for more information on our training location.
For swimmers entering 8th grade or below, reach out to Coach Garrett
For swimmers entering high school or above, reach out to Coach Darrick
For 11 and Under swimmers in our Age Group 1 (AG1) or below groups, we operate on a block schedule. A block schedule means your swimmer will practice for 6-weeks and then have a 2-week break. Offering a block schedule eliminates the seasonal commitment of most clubs. It allows your swimmer the flexibility to take a block break to do other sports, travel, or just be a kid!
For 12 and Older swimmers, we operate on a normal seasonal structure, however we are flexible with attendance!
How are the swim groups structured?
Swim groups are broken up by age first and ability second. Click Here for a full description of our practice groups.
Click Here for our current season practice schedule.
- During our winter season we typically offer a meet per month, and during the summer potentially two meets per month as the season is much shorter.
- Most meets are in the Indianapolis area, with a select few being travel meets outside of this area for swimmers who are fast enough to meet the time requirements.
- We also offer inter-squad meets at the end of each block for those who might not be ready for a bigger meet but still want to test the competitive waters.
- No meets are ever required
Click Here for our season information page and click on the link for the appropriate payment schedule.
We have bulit our club on the foundation of family first. This means while we strive to be competitive at the highest level we also want to make sure every swimmer has the ability to be a kid, spend time with family, take vacations, etc. Click Here for more information.
What if I have more questions?
Visit our Contact Us Page and send us a message. Someone will respond as quickly as possible.
Swim Meets
Should my child compete in meets?
All swimmers are strongly encouraged to participate in the meets that are appropriate for their age and ability. Most meets run two days (Saturday and Sunday) plus distance events on Friday evening. A given age group swims either in the morning (approximately 7:00 am until noon) or in the afternoon (approximately noon until 4:30 pm). There is usually enough variation between meets that your swimmer will have some morning meets and some afternoon meets. You can choose to participate one, two or three days of any meet. Meet entry packets will be posted on the web site and at each pool as soon as they are available. If you have any questions as to which meets are appropriate for your child, please speak to a coach before signing up.
What should my child hope to accomplish at a meet?
Have Fun! Have Fun!
Your child should strive to post a legal time in an event. Once a legal time is posted they should swim to improve upon that time.
What information can be found in a meet entry letter?
The entry letter (usually attached to the meet sign up) contains important meet information. Some of the items that can be found in the entry letter are the meet location, meet times and dates, events offered by each day, warm up times, cost of events, awards, whether the meet is a positive check in meet, etc. Please visit our "How To Register For A Swim Meet" page for more information.
What should I bring for my swimmer.
You should pack the swim bag with the following: swimsuit, towel, goggles (possible extra pair in case they break), swim cap, swim team shirt, healthy snack and drink (water or Gatorade - no sugar), possible games for meet (please be advised that there can be risk associated with the loss of video games). To recover from a race, water and some fresh fruit eaten within ten minutes of the swim is best. Some pool decks have a cool air temperature, so it’s good to have warm-up pants and a shirt to wear between swims.
When should I arrive for a meet?
Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the scheduled warm up time. Your child should be lined up and ready to jump in the water before the warm up period is set to begin.
How will I know which events my child will swim?
Your job is to let the coaches know which days your child will be swimming at the meet. The coaches will determine which events they swim based upon meet requirements (some meets limit the number of events each swimmer may enter per day) and ability. The coaches will put the kids in the events at which they have the best chance to have a positive experience. The Westfield Aquatics web site will provide the event number and event for each child after the entries are made for each meet. Simply sign back in and try to commit to the meet again to see what your child’s events are.
How should parents dress for the meet?
Almost all pools are very warm (the exception is the natatorium at IU Indianapolis). It is not uncommon for people to wear short sleeves and even shorts in the winter to meets. You are always encouraged to wear your team shirts.
This means the swimmer is here and intends to swim in the meet. A listing of swimmers entered in the meet will be posted near the entrance to the pool area. The swimmer must highlight their name on this list. If they do not do this by the time listed in the meet letter they are scratched from swimming on that day in the meet.
Can parents go on deck during a meet?
Due to USA Swimming Insurance requirements, parents are not allowed on deck at a swim meet unless they are a volunteer. Most meets will have deck marshals and they will help you if you really need to get something to a swimmer (goggles, snack, etc.). This provides safety for your swimmer. It also provides the coaches the ability to concentrate on the swimmers in the water during the meet.
What does a swimmer do after a race?
- Talk to their coach about their swim—the good and the bad.
- Cool down and get back into “deck clothes.”
- Stay on deck and cheer for their team mates.
Can swimmers go in the stands during a swim meet?
Swimmers should stay on deck with their team during the meet. Coaches may need to find them and can't be chasing around finding the children. They are encouraged to watch and cheer for their teammates.
This is a staging area for small children to report before their event. The swimmers report to a pre-determined area of the pool and are lined up by volunteers for their event. They are then escorted to the starting area for their competition.
How do athletes know when to report to their race?
Coaches will do their best to help make sure swimmers do not miss events. This can be difficult because they are coaching athletes in the pool at the same time. Most meets will have an announcement made that indicates a 1st and 2nd call for each event. An example of how this works is as follows: this is the 1st call for event # 1 the boys 10 and under 50 freestyle. New swimmers should make their way to the starting blocks or clerk of course at this time.
Is there a concession stand at the meet?
Most meets will provide a concession stand.
What is the difference between a heat sheet and psych sheet?
A psych sheet lists the swimmers entered in each event in order arranged from slowest to fastest (if a swimmer has not completed a legal swim in that event they will be listed as "no time" - NT). A heat sheet will list the swimmers in the event with their lane and heat assignments. You may be able to purchase these at each meet. At most meets, this is available on the Meet Mobile app.
In what order do swimmers swim in the events?
Heats begin with the slowest and no time (NT) swimmers. The fastest seeded swimmers end the event. The fastest seeded swimmers begin in the middle lanes of the pool. Children are lined up in their heats according to their seeded time and thus swim against children of equal ability in their individual heats. There are exceptions to this rule for meets in which there are prelims and timed finals (mostly for older swimmers).
How are disqualifications of swimmers handled?
If a swimmer does not complete the event legally they will be disqualified. The official on deck will raise their hand to signal a swimmer has been disqualified from the event. If possible, an official will then speak to the swimmer after the race to explain what mistake was made. All swimmers will be disqualified (even the very best) so please don’t be discouraged when this happens to your child. The coaches will work in practice to correct mistakes made during the meet.
How do I know what swim meets may be best for my child?
Please speak to your child’s coach for questions about meet entry. All Westfield parents will be more than willing to help new parents with any meet questions. Each meet letter will let you know the events offered on each day of the meet.
When can a swimmer leave the meet?
Your child is free to leave the meet upon the conclusion of their events. Please have them speak to their coach before leaving to make sure they have completed all of their events, and they have all the information they need for upcoming events and days.
What is the difference between a short course and long course meet?
Westfield swimmers will swim what is referred to as the short course season from September thru March. This means they will be swimming in a yards swimming pool. If they are swimming in a 50 yards race the swimmer will be required to swim the length of the pool, touch the wall, and then swim back to their original starting position.
Westfield swimmers will swim what is referred to as the long course season from April thru July. This means they will be swimming in a meter swimming pool. If they are swimming in a 50 meter race the swimmer will be required to swim one length of the pool.
What is the best way to support your child as a competitor?
Leave the coaching to the coaches—support your child, and always stay positive. Great swim? “Good job! Keep up the hard work!” Bad swim? “I love you, and your hard work will pay off in the next swim. Keep at it!” If you let your child own their improvement and just stick to positively supporting them, they will enjoy the sport more.
