Sienna Plantation Sharks
FAQ’S
- What league do the Sharks swim for?
- Where do the Sharks swim?
- We live in a nearby neighborhood can we swim for the
sharks?
- What if my child swims on a USA year round team?
- Swim lessons or Swim team?
- When is Registration?
- What is a volunteer deposit fee?
- What is Rookie Camp?
- Is Rookie Camp available for returning swimmers?
- How many teams compete?
- How are the teams made?
- Will siblings be on the same team?
- Pick up and Drop off?
- Why can’t parents and siblings be on deck during
practice?
- Does every child get to swim in a swim meet?
- How many meets will my child compete in?
- What should I do if my child is going to miss a meet?
- What is a Heat Sheet?
- Why does my child get DQ’D all the time?
- What is a divisional meet?
- What is Summer Champs?
- How are time standards made?
- Can only the fastest heat get points for your team?
- What is a Rainbow Ribbon?
- When will the swimmers receive their ribbons?
Sienna Plantation Sharks FAQ’s
- What league do the Sharks swim for? Sienna Plantation Sharks currently swim
in the Fort Bend Premier Aquatic League (FBPAL), which is located in
Sienna. (Back)
- Where do the Sharks swim?
The Sharks practice and compete all in Sienna. Currently we are practicing at Brushy Lakes pool and meets
are held at both Club Sienna and Brushy Lakes.
(Back)
- We live in a nearby neighborhood; can we swim on your team?
Yes. The Sharks are an ‘open’ swim
team. This means that we do not cap
our registration and do take members from outside the neighborhood. Our league is a lot like Eclipse Soccer
or Missouri City Baseball. We are
open to anyone but only compete in a certain area. (Back)
- What
if my child swims on a USA year
round team? Your child
is able to swim both with us and their year round team. We do not require them to pull out or
discontinue practicing with their club team. We do ask that they make some of the
summer leagues practices so that the coaches and teammates get to know
them. (Back)
- Swim lessons or swim team?
Sienna Sharks require that by the end of 3 weeks of practice
every swimmer needs to be able to swim the length of the pool only holding
onto the ropes 3 times. In a meet
if a child holds onto the rope more than 3
times they will be disqualified and a coach will be asked to get them out
of the water. The swim team is not
a “Learn to Swim” program, but is intended to enhance the skills already
learned in swim lessons. We do,
however, teach strokes to those swimmers who have a strong desire to
compete on the swim team, and have demonstrated the ability required as
described above. If after the 3
weeks of practice they cannot meet the requirements they will be
recommended to go into a “Swim Lesson” program and your money will be refunded. (Back)
- When is Registration? Registration opened online the beginning
of February and will close May 7 before time trials. (Back)
- What is a volunteer deposit fee? At registration, a
volunteer deposit of
$60 will be collected and held. When a family has worked a minimum of 4
meets your check will either be shredded or if you prefer will be returned
to you. Please contact the
Treasurer if you would like it returned. (Back)
- What is Rookie Camp? Rookie
Camp is required for all new swimmers to Sienna Sharks. It gives new kids a chance to get in the
water before everyone else does and it also gives the coaches an extra
week to help those who need extra help making it across the pool. Rookie Camp is $25 for a full week. (Back)
- Is Rookie Camp available for returning swimmers?
Yes. If your child would
like to get in the water a week early to freshen up on skills they are
more than welcome too. (Back)
- How many teams compete?
Last year we had close to 300 swimmers and broke up into 3 teams. The number of registered swimmers this year will determine how many teams compete.
(Back)
- How are the teams made?
For the first couple of weeks all swimmers will swim together
with their age group. We will then
host a mock meet where each child will have the chance to get a time in
freestyle and backstroke. The
coaches and board members will then sit down and break up the teams as
evenly as possible. (Back)
- Will siblings be on the same team? Yes siblings will
always be on the same team. We can
not however guarantee friends will be together but given everything takes
place in Sienna they will have a chance
to make new friends while still seeing friends
they already know. (Back)
- Pick up and Drop off?
Please have your swimmer at the pool on time for their scheduled
practice. Swim coaches will
supervise your children during practice, only. If you are dropping off please pull
around the parking lot so that the passenger side door is facing the
pool. This not only ensures the
safety of our swimmers but also helps with the flow of traffic. Please do not park in front of the work
out facility. We need to reserve
these spots for those using the Brushy Lakes Facilities. (Back)
- Why can’t parents and siblings be on deck during practice?
This question comes up more than any other during the swim
season. The normal response that
“it’s a pool rule, not a swim team rule” is often misunderstood. The homeowner’s liability insurance
requires that a trained and certified lifeguard be on duty any time the
pool is open to the public.
Liability insurance for swim team members is provided by a separate
policy purchased by the swim team through FBPAL. This policy does not cover parents,
siblings or friends of swimmers.
Should there be an accident involving an unauthorized person on the
pool deck, the potential for negative ramifications could be felt not only
by the swim team, but also by Sienna Residents. We hope this clarifies why you are not
allowed to be on deck. We need
parental support to enforce this policy.
You are more than welcome to bring your own chairs from home to
sit outside the gate and watch or to drop your child off and have some
free time for yourself. (Back)
- Does every child get to swim in a swim meet?
Yes. Your child may swim in
as little as 1 event, but no more than 3 individual events and 2 relay
events, totaling 5 events maximum.
What your child swims is primarily determined at time trials,
practices, and then their times at the remaining meets. The coaches have the Final authority over what your child will
swim. (Back)
- How many meets will my child compete in?
There are 4 regular meets during the season, plus 1 divisional meet
for a total of 5 meets. Your
swimmer may also qualify for an additional swim meet based on their best
times in individual events during the previous swim meets. (Back)
- What should I do if my child is going to miss a meet?
As soon as you know your child is going to miss a meet please alert
the coach with the date by filling in the vacation logbook. You can also send your coach an email. Since our meets are pre-heated (meaning the kids are placed in their heat and lane
assignments before the meet), it is
very important to let your coach know as soon as possible so that are
clerk of course can put the heat sheets together. It is also important for the coaches in
order to put relays together. If
you need to leave a meet early for some reason please tell your coach so
that they can make arrangements for their relays. (Back)
- What is a Heat Sheet? A Heat Sheet is a guide that each
family will receive when they arrive at the pool for a swim meet. The heat sheet will show you what event your child is swimming
in and what Heat and Lane your child will be in. (Back)
- Why
does my child always get “DQ’d”?
Just like anything else, sometimes it takes awhile for swimmers
to understand the stroke mechanics.
There is not enough time or resources for frequent individual
attention, although the coach does the best he/she can. The best solution for you as a parent
(in addition to continuing to encourage your swimmer) is to attend stroke
clinics when offered, talk to coaches about a private lesson, or talk to
coaches about what they are being DQ’d for and try to work with them on your
own. If you feel there has been a
mistake please talk to your coach first.
Our stroke judges are volunteers like everyone else and are trying
the best they can. We do not want
to discourage volunteers for this position if they are constantly being harassed.
(Back)
- What is a divisional meet? A divisional meet is
a meet at the end of the season where all teams come together for one last
chance to compete. It will also
determine the overall team winner for the season and finally it gives
swimmers one more chance to qualify for summer champs. (Back)
- What is Summer Champs and how does my child qualify?
Summer Champs is a meet in which swimmers qualify in individual
events. FBPAL has time standards that
swimmers have to meet in order to qualify.
These times can be met at any point throughout the season, time
trials included. Once the time standard has been met
your child may swim at Summer Champs. (Back)
- How are time standards made? We came up with FBPAL’s time standards by looking
at other leagues standards, USA standards, and based on swimmers’ times from previous years. Will they always be the same? We will look at them on a yearly basis
and determine whether they need to be changed or not. (Back)
- Can only the fastest heat get points for your team? No.
Each event will have a number of heats in it depending on how many
swimmers are entered in that race.
After all the swimmers have swum, their
times will be entered into a computer program that will then rank them in
order of fastest to slowest. The
top 8 fastest times will receive points and ribbons for their team. (Back)
- What are Rainbow Ribbons? Rainbow ribbons are
the most important ribbons your child will receive. These are ribbons they receive every
time they improve their time. The
whole goal in swimming is not to beat your competitor but to beat
yourself. Kids should be really
proud of themselves when they receive these. (Back)
- When will the swimmers receive their ribbons?
Swimmers will receive their ribbons at the next practice after a
meet. (Back)