We had another great meet on Saturday against a very fast Anderson Mill team. The challenge resulted in many of our swimmers improving their times significantly.

This Sunday is July 4, and Armada will be participating in the parade as usual. The pirate ship from years past is in permanent dry dock, so stay tuned for details on the new float.

The next day, Monday, July 5th is our family fun day at Volente Beach and many of our families are going. Look in this issue for more information.

Thanks to the many families who came to Swim-a-thon on Tuesday. Swim-a-thon is always a very fun night, but this one was a blast. I want to take a moment to thank Mary Hale and her family for doing so much to make it a great event. We had great food, great silent auction items, great raffle items and a whole lot of fun.

You can contact me with questions at board@wbarmada.org. For more team information, check our website at www.wbarmada.org.

Hi Armada Parents and Swimmers!

What a meet! It just goes to show when the Armada is challenged- we step up and perform. And we did just that on Saturday. We had some tough races, but no one gave up and all the coaches are so proud of y'all. We dont' have a meet this weekend, so spend some quality time with your friends and family. We will be working hard this week and next preparing for our last regular dual meet of the season, and getting the final touches ready for DIVISIONALS!!

Divisionals is a very fun meet and I hope every family can participate. It's the last time our whole team will be swimming together for the summer, so I hope everyone has made time to attend this meet. Make sure that you mark on your MAFs for Pflugerville and Divisonals which events you are close to getting Invitational times in- and we will do our best to make sure you get in those events. As far as Divisionals goes, the coaches get together and look at every single individual swimmer and put them in the events that would be the best for the team. A lot of hard work goes into selecting events, so if there's something you absolutely have to swim, please let us know. We can't read your mind :)

Make sure, especially at meets, but at practice too- that we are staying positive. There have been some age group pit situations that have not shown the Armada way, and there is no reason for that. Keep in mind at practices- that the bathrooms and around the pool area are not areas for negativity and bad sportsmanship either. Even if the coaches don't hear it first hand, we will find out, and there will be consequences. Please finish up the rest of the summer session on a high note and strong! I know the Armada will settle for nothing but the best!!

Keep up the hard work, and have a wonderful 4th of July!

See ya at the pool!
Coach Elisa
coach@wbarmada.org

The WBA loves participating in the Annual Wells Branch 4th of July parade!

This year, we will have a pick-up truck and a boat for the younger swimmers to ride in. The older swimmers will walk behind the "float" and throw candy. Swimmers should wear their team t-shirts or dress up like a pirate - arg!

Swimmers should report to the float that will be parked in front of the Katherine Fletcher Pool on Klattenhoff Drive at 9 a.m. Sunday, July 4, to help decorate. There is limited space on the float and we will put the 6 and unders and some 7-8s if there is space. Parents are welcome to walk the short parade route with the swimmers.

They do allow bicycles, scooters, etc in the parade but ususally at the end of the parade. You can bring decorations and candy to throw. We will have the "treasure chest" filled with candy,

Following the parade, The Wells Branch Mud will host fun and games in the park and pool area. the games are free and there are prizes. Come into the pool area for fun races and relays! The WBA will be giving away free popcorn to all.

The fireworks show begins at 9:45 at our swim team pool. Please pay attention to the no parking signs.

See this link for the schedule

There are over 100 Armada members enjoying our outing on July 5th! We all look forward to an awesome day of friends and water rides... What more could we ask for? Here are a few things to keep in mind for that day:

Armada families that have paid for their tickets ahead of time will be on a list given to Admissions. This list will have the family name and number of tickets purchased.

If you find last minute you need an additional ticket, please contact Beth Gavin as quickly as possible. Her email address is: gavinfamily99@yahoo.com You can pay Beth the discounted price of $13.99.

Park Rules to be aware of for Volente Beach:
**Arriving and Departuring are fine in the circle drive in front, however you must then enter the parking lot across the street. Parking is $5 per car. There are other Armada swimmers who may want to carpool. Please feel free to set up carpools for the trip.
**Ice chests may be brought in but cannot contain any glass, alcohol, or food that needs to be cooked.

Please be sure to read the rules for each ride.

• Flash Flood and Road runner: 42" or taller
• Sidewinder: 42" or taller, two riders required on each tube with 100 lb. minimum weight
• Texas Twister: 48" or taller. You must weigh 100 lbs or more!
• Gator Crossing: Only one person across at a time
• Lake Area: stay within designated swim area. Lines are formed for Rock Slide and the Trampoline
• Pirate Ship: For children under 42" ONLY

Remember, the park opens at 10:00 a.m. We are looking forward to seeing everyone!

If you purchased a WBA swim bag this season and are not happy with it, we will give you a full refund if you return it by July 14.

Please fill out the orange form that was put in your family foldercompletely and place it inside your defective bag. Put both into the box located by the team folders. If you have more than one bag, please tie your bags together.

We will process refunds and let you know soon how to pick them up.

Requests must be made by July 14 and refunds must be claimed by end-of-season. Any refunds remaining at the end of our season will be forfeited.

The Meet Attendance Form for the away meet against Pflugerville is due Friday, July 2. Please put in the "completed" folder in the MAF Box. Do not return to your own folder.

EVERY swimmer should turn these forms in by the deadline. Mark the box indicating if you will swim or not.

We want all swimmers who are able to swim the length of the pool unassisted to participate in all meets. Swim Meets are an important part of being on the WBA. (We understand if you are out-of-town or unable to participate due to religious reasons.) We are a team - we need you!

The Meet Attendance Form for the Divisional Championships is due Tuesday, July 6. Please put in the "completed" folder in the MAF Box. Do not return to your own folder.

EVERY swimmer should turn these forms in by the deadline. Mark the box indicating if you will swim or not.

Please indicate what events you want to swim in order with number one indicating your top choice. If there is an event or two you are trying to get an Invitational time in, we will make every effort to let you swim that event.

It is so important to our team that as many swimmers participate as possible in this meet. The winning team gets a giant team trophy and the individual swimmers can earn special awards. This final meet ranks our team for next year and determines our division.

All swimmers who have competed in two dual meets and have a legal time in each event they are signed up for can participate in the championship meet.

Following the Saturday meet against Pflugerville, you can email Mindy if you want to change your number one choice for the Divisional meet.

Yes, you can qualify for Invitationals at the Divisional meet.

What great fun our annual swimathon was. Thanks for all of you who came out and had fun with us!

Kudos to Mary Hale who spent hours and hours collecting donations of prizes and silent auction items. Mary wants to thank everyone who helped out during set-up and clean-up and her committee of volunteers - several of whom do not even have a swimmer on our team.

Thanks to Cindy Padavick, Linda Casper, Lisa Rankine, Pam Simpson, Tod Stehling, Donny Koester, Shawna Harper, Joy Bryant, and Debbie Brown. Mary also sends thanks to the board members who helped out.

We are still collecting donations and will announce a grand total at Awards Night. the deadline for swimmers to turn in their money is July 7 - there is a folder in the file boxes you can use that is checked frequently. Money received after July 7 is not eligible for prizes.

The grand prizes will be awarded to the top three swimmers who raise the most funds.
1st place - $150 gift card
2nd place - $125 gift card
3rd place - $100 gift card

Movie tickets will be awarded to individual swimmers who raise $100 in funds.

The grand prizes and the movie tickets are per swimmer, not per family. Each child that is interested in trying for the grand prizes or movie tickets should have their own sponsorship envelope. There will be extras located in the front of the swimmer's file box in a folder marked Swim-A-Thon. The prizes will be awarded at the WBA Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, July 14th.

Silent Auction
We would like to thank the sponsors listed below!

There is still time to buy raffle tickets to support your WBA swim team.
Win an IPOD Touch or a Romantic Evning on the town.

Tickets will be sold until the drawing at Awards Night on July 14. Buy one for $1 and 6 for $5. You choose which item you want to try to win.

We have put envelopes in your family folders. You can use these to purchase raffle tickets by filling out the label on the envelope and placing cash or check inside. Checks should be made payable to: Wells Branch Armada. The envelopes should be placed in the marked folder in the MAF box.

WBA has the BEST sponsors! We get great support from them in goods, services and even cash. We hope each of you will patronize the sponsors you are able to and tell them how much we appreciate their help.
Anytime is a great time to visit our sponsors but we have also set-up the following times for a special Armada "Thank-You"

Each week the WBA honors the swimmers in each age group that record the largest time improvement. In swimming, the goal is to try to beat your previous best time each week by recording a new personal best.
Great job against Anderson Mill!!!

Each week the WBA coaches will recognize swimmers that are working extra hard at practice. Congratulations to this week's winners - keep up the great work!
 

These WBA swimmers excelled by placing first in one, two or three individual events against Steiner Ranch Blue Stars. The WB Armada won the meet 427.5 to 203.5. Yay WBA!
 

The Northwest Swim Circuit holds a Championship Meet at the end of the season for qualifying swimmers. Congratulations to our WBA who have qualified in the following events.

The MAF for the Invitational Meet will be put in the file folders no later than Friday, July 9. It is due Tuesday, July 12. Qualifers from the Pflugerville and Divisional meets will be added to the Invitational meet.

Congratulations to our new WBA Record Holders!

Girls 13-14 100 yd Medley Relay - 2:05.46:
Delaney Quinn, Zina Sator, Katherine Turner and Jocelyn Chambers

Girls 13-14 50 yd Breast - 0:35.14 - - Zina Sator

Sing the National Anthem at this year's Northwest Swim Circuit Invitational Meet
Location: Lee and Joe Jamail Swim Center - University of Texas
When: Sunday July 18, 2010

Entry Process:
WBA singers - submit your entry on CD to Mary Hale by July 6. Mary will deliver all entries to the NWSC in time for judging. There will be one winner chosen, and a back-up winner chosen. To ensure a fair judging process the entrants name should not appear anywhere on the CD or CD case. Judges will be independent of any NWSC team. Winner will be notified the week of July 12th.

Contest rules:

• Must be a current member of a NWSC team
• Do not have to be an invitational qualifier
• Must submit entry to the circuit on CD
• Must be sung a cappella
• Must use traditional song base
• There can be more than one performer per entry
• Not more than one entry per CD

Our annual "thank the coaches" day is Monday July 12 during all swim practices. Swimmers are invited to show their appreciation with cards, posters or a big hug!

The board will provide breakfast for the coaches and junior coaches.

• Captain's Log
• Coach's Corner
• 4th of July Parade and Fun!
• Volente Beach Fun Day
• Swim bag refunds offered.
• MAF due for Pville on 7/3
• Divisional MAF due 7/6
• Swim-A-Thon Donations Deadline
• Buy Raffle Tickets
• Sponsors - Thank You
• Fast Fishies
• Kickin' Hard
• Gold Medal Winners
• Invitational Team Qualifers
• National Anthem contest
• Coaches Appreciation Day