We are excited to officially kick-off the 2020 Swim Team Season! Welcome new families!!  We have a lot to communicate over the next few weeks.  Please read through carefully and let us know if you have any questions.

Important Dates:

• Sunday, May 31, 4:00 - 4:30 PM - Parent meeting on the field. Please plan to attend as we will discuss important policies
• Monday, June 1 - Practice begins
• June 11th, June 18th, June 25th, June 30th (Tuesday), July 9th, July 17th & 18th (Friday/Saturday) - Current schedule of virtual meets.
• View and/or subscribe to our calendar at https://foxcroft.swimtopia.com/calendar-and-meets. The events listed on the right hand side of our homepage are not correct. These meets need to be updated directly by SAIL.

Practice Policies:

This year, we will have 3 practice groups instead of 2. The groups will be split by ability level not necessarily age. Group 1 will be our youngest/newest swimmers, Group 2 will be our middle swimmers, and Group 3 will be our oldest/fastest swimmers. We will have approximately 25 swimmers assigned to each group. Some portions of practice may involve dry land drills to promote social distancing, and swimmers will start at opposite ends of the pool to minimize congregating at the walls. Our coaches will address this more at the parent meeting Sunday as well as explaining it to the swimmers on Monday. Our initial groups will be communicated by Sunday night.

Practice Schedule:

The week of June 1 (Monday - Friday):

• Youngest Group (7:30 - 8:15 AM)
• Middle Group (8:15 - 9:00 AM)
• Oldest Group (9:00 - 10:00 AM and 9:00 - 10:00 PM)

The HOA board is meeting on Sunday, May 31 to discuss pool policies including whether the Swim Team will be allowed to practice during open pool hours. If approved, we will change our practice times as soon as possible. We hope to change times on June 8, but may communicate via Remind “text” if we are able to change the times even sooner. Our proposed practice times are:

• Youngest Group (8:30 - 9:15 AM and 3:00 - 4:00 PM)
• Middle Group (9:15 - 10:00 AM and 4:00 - 5:00 PM)
• Oldest Group (10:00 - 11:00 AM and 9:00 - 10:00 PM)

Swim Suits: We will not have a new official team suit this year, but our team colors are red and black if your swimmer needs a new suit and would like to coordinate. Alpine Ski Center (Orchard Park and Haywood) is only open at limited times right now. They will be open on Wednesday, June 3 from 10 AM - 4 PM. This is a great local place to try on suits and they usually have a good selection. They also offer a discount to swim team members, so make sure to tell them you are with Foxcroft.  On-line, great prices and selection can be found at swimoutlet.com. Additionally, we have received the following offer for JOLYN & FINIS through SAIL: Right now, FINIS is offering 20% off sitewide Finisswim.com by using the discount code KFREP2020, and JOLYN is offering 15% sitewide jolyn.com for using the discount code KFREP2020 at checkout. By using these codes, you're also supporting our local rep, Kristi, and helping keep her business afloat during these challenging times. Follow their instagram @jolynmidatlantic for updates on pop-ups in your area, new inventory, and More.

Caps: If we have enough interest to meet the minimum, we will be placing an order for Foxcroft swim caps. These caps are silicone and personalized with your last name. This is a fantastic way to build team spirit.  It also makes it so much easier to pick your child out on the deck and in photographs. The cost is $26.50 for 2 caps. There will be a sign-up (payment required when you place your order) at the parent meeting on Sunday or you can e-mail Susan at [email protected].

Texting App: We will continue to use Remind to communicate weather delays, cancellations, and other urgent matters. If you are not already in our group, please sign-up. Make sure you add any phones that need the information (kids, babysitter, etc).

Sign-up options:

1. Text the message @foxswims to 81010 and follow instructions
2. From the Remind app, join the group @foxswims
3. Register online at https://www.remind.com/join/foxswims

Volunteers: There will be no in person classroom sessions this year. The only training requirement will be online. Online certification tests are ready and available at the following link: https://sail.swimtopia.com/training. Training materials can be found here: https://sail.swimtopia.com/education-materials. The links with names ending in “clinic” can be used to take and pass the tests. We request that all parents certify as Timer, Records/Ribbons, and Runner. Parents who have previously volunteered in other certified positions are requested to do so again this year.

If you are new to Swim Team, you likely have a lot of questions about the volunteer positions and what they do during a meet. Please ask at the parent meeting on Sunday or any board member will be happy to help. There is also some great information on our website here and here.  As we will not need as many volunteers to run meets this year, there will be more time for new families to learn how a meet is run. It is also a great year for any parent to learn about and/or shadow for certified positions.

Swimtopia Mobile App: Please download the free Swimtopia App onto your smart phone. On meet days, the app will display what events children are swimming and what volunteer positions parents will be filling. The app also stores past event history. You can see your child’s fastest times to help them set goals and see improvements. The Swimtopia Mobile Pro feature of the app is available for purchase. During typical in-person meets, it allows you to see scores and get alerts when your swimmer's event is coming. These features may not work properly during virtual meets.

Fish Team: If you have not already heard, we are excited to be able to offer a modified version of our instructional Fish Team for children 3 and older. Parental involvement is required as the coaches will not be in the water assisting swimmers. Fish practice will start June 8. Registration will be on our website when it opens.