Hello parents and swimmers!

We had a great first week of practice. I was very pleased to see how well our swimmers are doing already. This is going to be a great season.

This week, Coach Bryn and Coach Andi will be joining us to complete our coaching staff. Many thanks to our temporary coaches, Danielle and Deniz, for helping us through the first week while Andi and Bryn finished their college semester.

Our practice swim meet, the Red, White, and Blue, is this Saturday, May 22. The Red, White, and Blue is a chance for the swimmers and volunteers to learn the routines of a meet. Use the opportunity to ask questions, whether you are new or returning. Look to your section heads for help or advice, or talk to any board member. Board members will be wearing badges on lanyards to identify themselves.

Remember to check your folders daily. And if you have additional or alternate email addresses you want on the mailing list, let me know.

Email me any time at board@wbarmada.org. For complete team information, visit www.wbarmada.org.

Hi Armada!
Hope you have enjoyed the first week back in the water as much as I have, and are getting ready to wind down the school year, and kick start an awesome summer league season! The returning Armada are looking great and not at all rusty, and our new Armada are blowing the coaches away with how much they can do already!

I hope you have already turned in your MAF (Meet Attendance Form) and are ready for a fun Red, White and Blue meet. It's a good meet for parents and for swimmers to see how we run things at the meets.

As we get deeper into summer, please remember to wear sunscreen and keep yourself hydrated! It's going to get really hot pretty soon, and we want everyone to stay healthy!

See y'all at the pool :)
Coach Elisa
coach@wbarmada.org

Hi Parents!

Don’t forget to fill out your Meet Attendance Forms, including the bottom portion, which is the volunteer information. I use this information to complete the volunteer schedule for meets—the first being the Red, White & Blue meet coming up on May 22.

On Wednesdays prior to meets, I will send group emails by position to notify those who are scheduled. The schedules are always subject to change as we work out the kinks before the meet. The final volunteer schedule will be posted at the meet, as close to the entrance to the pit area as I can get.

On another note, I need people to volunteer to be the leaders for the following volunteer positions:

• Head Scorekeeping: You will talk to the scorekeepers at the beginning of each half and be sure they understand their duties. You will report scoring problems to the meet director/computer table. Scorekeeping will be much different this year with our new semi-automatic timing system. Home meets will be less intense for the scoring table.
• Set up: The head of this group is available at meet set-up the night before swim meets and follows the check list to be sure the volunteers have completed everything. The morning of the meet, you direct the putting up of tents etc. For away meets, you coordinate getting tents to the pool and setting them up and taking them down.

I also need additional people to volunteer for the following positions:

• Stroke judges and corner judges (attendance at a clinic is required, May 19 at 7p.m. at the Balcones Country Club) ·
• Pit Parents for Girls 7-8; Boys 11-12; and Girls 13-14

Let me know if you’re able to assist with any of the above positions. As always, if you have any questions, please contact me at volunteers@wbarmada.org. Thanks for your help!

This meet will be a "shortened" version of a regular dual meet. We will start by having every swimmer who is able participate in the freestyle relays. In order to allow everyone to swim, some swimmers may swim twice. We will not be scoring the relays (give winner ribbons).

Following the relays, each swimmers will have the opportunity to swim all four strokes -- freestyle, back, breast and butterfly. Swimmers who have not learned a stroke yet will not have to swim it.

This will give all participating swimmers seed times to use next week when we put together the relays and will also help us get them seeded correctly in events.

Younger swimmers will be allowed to have kickboards and coaches in the water at this meet if needed.

We should be finished before noon.

Here are a few important tips to make your swim meet experience successful:

	Be on time. At the beginning of the meet the coaches will make changes to relay events if there are swimmers that are absent or missing. It is important that swimmers check-in with their pit parent to avoid being scratched from any relay event.
	Bring nutritious snacks. The swim meets begin very early in the morning and last until noon or later. Please pack healthy snacks for your swimmers to eat such as, fresh fruit, bagels, crackers, water, sports drinks etc. We make an attempt to offer healthy items at the concession stand.
	Pack appropriate supplies.Towels, sunscreen, goggles, etc - See checklist below...
	Swimmers should stay in their pit areas The Pit Parents are responsible for watching the swimmers in the pit area and getting them to the ready bench when it is time for their event. If your child is going somewhere with you, please let the pit parents know.
	MARK EVERYTHING! Please write your child's name on ALL belongings. At the meet, you will be dozens of identical t-shirts, caps, goggles - plus similar towels, flip flips, sunscreen. Don't forget to mark any electronic games - they get mixed up!

	2 towels		water or sport's drinks
	blanket to sit on in pit area		nutritious snacks
	warm clothes for after warm-up in early a.m.		Quiet activities to keep them occupied in the pit area between races
	Swim cap		sunblock
	goggles		Parents: Bring a chair, wear a hat, apply sunblock!

Here are a few important things to remember...

	The kiddie pool will be closed during swim meets.
	WB Armada swimmers should stay inside the pool gates and are not allowed on the playscape during the meet.
	Swimmers are not allowed to play in the showers, take extended showers or spend unnecessary time in the bathrooms. This applies to practices also.
	Swimmers should remain in their pit areas. Parents of young children who take a swimmer from the pit area should inform the pit parent of their whereabouts.
	Swimmers and parents should be respectful of pit parents and make their job easier by marking all personal items and cleaning up all personal items and trash before leaving.
	The WB Armada and/or the pit parents are not responsible for lost or stolen items. Please be sure your swimmer has a bag to keep their belongings in and they put their belongings in the bag when they leave the pit area. Any unmarked items left at the end of the swim meet will be put in the pool's lost and found. Items left at away meets may be lost.

Swimming is a fantastic sport because each time a swimmer races, they are really racing against themselves. The goal for the swimmers should be to beat their best times each week. Everyone can't win a race but everyone can get a personal best time! Here are some fun awards our swimmers can earn this season.

	2010 Ribbon Carabineers Each swimmer will receive a WB Armada ribbon holder after they swim in their first meet.
	Participation Ribbons We give a participation ribbon to each swimmer, age 12 and under, if they participate in a meet and don't earn another ribbon.
	Time Improvement Ribbons Swimmers will receive a time improvement ribbon each time they swim a best time at a meet.
	Heat Winner Ribbons In a swim meet, we have a number of heats per event. The winner of each heat is awarded a heat winner ribbon.
	Place ribbons Swimmers placing 1-10 in each event win a ribbon
	Fast Fishy Each week we will award a "Fast Fishy" to the swimmer in each age group that shows the biggest time improvement at a swim meet. There will be awards for boys and girls in each age group.
	Kickin' Hard Each week the coaches will recognize swimmers who have been working really hard in practice but may not have earned a ribbon or other award.
	Team Awards Each swimmer will receive a team award at the end of the season award's night on July 8.
	High Point Trophies Boys and girls in each age group can earn the award for earning the most points for the WB Armada over the course of the season.
	Swim-A-Thon Awards Swimmers can earn awards for earning the most money for the team.
	Invitational Team When a swimmer qualifies for the WB Armada Invitational Team, they will be awarded a special swim cap. View Time Standards
	Team Records If a swimmer breaks a team record this season and is the owner of the record at the end of the season they will be recognized. http://www.wbarmada.org/WBA_team_records.html

The WB Armada has a snack bar open at each home meet. We sell items such as breakfast tacos, coffee, baked goods, hot dogs, sausage wraps, water, sports drinks, soda, etc
 
Parents - Please help the team by donating baked goods to our concession stand for each home meet. It is fine to purchase items such as muffins and bagels but please avoid pre-packaged items such as store-bought rice crispy treats, Twinkies, etc. Important notes: Chocolate melts too quickly in the summer heat. Fruit, such as individual-size bags of grapes, or cups of cut-up fruit are very welcome. The snack bar donation schedule is:

The Meet Attendance Form for the Block House Creek Meet is due Friday, May 21. Please put in the "completed" folder in the MAF Box.

We encourage 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.)

BHC is located in Leander and is an easy trip if you utilize the toll roads. Take 45 West to 183A - north. Exit at Cty Rd 181/New Hope Road and turn left. Turn right on Block House Drive South. Or, you can take the free route by taking 183 north to Block House Drive N. It is only 15 miles -- about 25 minutes.

Pool Directions:
http://www.teamunify.com/SubTabGeneric.jsp?team=reccibhc&_stabid_=6761

Photo Day - We will take individual, age group and team photos during practice hours on May 25. A schedule and order forms will be available in your family folders prior to that day. All swimmers are encouraged to participate in the team and age group photos even if you don't want to purchase individual photos.

Tucker Lewis is offering a $50 reward for the return of his Zune music player taken from his Speedo bag in the locker room Monday. The device must be in good working condition. It may be returned to Tucker, to a coach, put in a coach's folder or returned to the lifeguard office. This theft is being investigated by the sheriff's office. The case will be dropped when the device is returned.

Parent, please remind your swimmers to not leave any bags unattended anywhere at the pool. Cash was also taken from the boy's locker room and a pair of sunglasses were taken from the girl's locker room.

The Swim Shop will be open during the RWB Meet and all home meets.

Items for purchase:

• Goggles - prices vary on brand/style
• Bungee Cords - for goggles
• Armada Swim Bags - $15.00
• Armada Baseball Caps - $10.00
• WBA Koozies - $3.00
• Decal orders - $10 - $12.00
  (Orders will be taken 1st week of practice)
• Armada Shirts (limited sizes available)
  - Crew neck - $10.00
  - Men's tanks - $15.00
  - Ladies Tanks - $15.00
  - Ladies Cami Tanks - $15.00
  - Ladies V-Neck - $15.00

Our annual Swim-a-thon & Silent Auction will be held Tuesday, June 22. This is our primary fundraiser for the year and the funds raised help us keep our registration fees low and help us purchase needed equipment.

We are asking for donations of goods or services or gift certificates that we can auction off during the event. We are a registered 501c3 non-profit organization and donations are tax decuctible.

Please contact Mary Hale at 789-3903 or email her at mjhale@austin.rr.com. She has letters you can distribute to areas businesses.

• Captain's Log
• Coach's Corner
• Volunteer Spot
• Red, White, Blue Meet
• Swim Meets tips and checklist
• Restrictions at swim meets
• Swimmer acknowledgements & awards
• Concession Schedule
• MAF due for SR
• Photo Day
• Reward Offered
• Swim Shop
• Donations needed for Silent Auction