UNIVERSITY CITY SWIM CLUB (UCSC)

Small Club Invitational

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:55:00 +0000

Our big home meet is fast approaching. The Small Club Invitational is a meet that we host on April 24 and April 25. Participation is mandatory. Parents or family members must also sign up to help with the meet. Please go to the following link to access the on-line signup page.

Fantastic Opportunity - Swim with Olympic Swimmers

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:28:00 +0000

Our friends at Bridgeton Swim Club have invited us to attend their Breakout Swim Clinic hosted on Sunday, March 7. The clinic will be led by Gold Medalists Josh Davis and Misty Hyman.

I sent my son to it last year and can personally vouch that it's a unique and exciting opportunity. To get the most from it I'd suggest your child be at least 8 years old. Josh Davis is a dynamic and energetic speaker who uses swimming to also validate principles for living life in the fullest way possible. It's very exciting for the kids to get to swim with Olympic Medalists and learn tips to help improve their strokes.

I won't be handling the forms or the money, so you'll need to send it in yourself. Though, if you are attending, I'd certainly like to hear about it!
/2010%20Olympican%20Clinic.pdf (application form)

Thanks,
Karen Palmer - UCSC

January 2010 Practice Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:17:00 +0000

Thursday, Jan 28, 2010 Coach Mary's swimmers begin practice at 6:00 pm. Parents you can pick your children up by 7:00 pm

Thank you

2010 Swim-a-Thon

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:15:00 +0000

February 18, 2010, get ready to help raise money for our club. We will host our annual swim-a-thon on that date. This year each swimmer should have a goal of raising at least $80. This money will help us with club expenses such as pool rental.

If you can, bring a side dish for the pizza party too. We look forward to load of fun!

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

2009 December Practice Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:37:00 +0000

The School District is closed on the following dates:

Dec 23, 24, 25, 26, and Dec 31, 2009.

Practices for youth groups will be modified so that everyone can swim at least twice each week of the holiday schedule.

For those swimmers that normally swim on Tuesday and Thursday (with Jesse and Mary) your schedule during the last two weeks of December has changed to the following dates:
Monday, Dec 21 and Tuesday, Dec 22. Monday, Dec 28 and Tuesday Dec 29. Times are as usual.

Have a good break!

News Update for 2009-2010 Indoor Season

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:31:00 +0000

Thursday, July 30, 2009, is the last swim practice for outdoor season. Thank you to all that participated.

Registration for Indoor Season is on September 8, 2009, 5:00-5:45 pm. Swim practice will start immediately after from 5:45 pm - 7:00 pm. If you have questions for the coaches please come at the beginning of the registration period. As always, you may still join the club at anytime during the year.

swim schedule:
M, T, W, Th 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm (youth)
T, Th 6:00 am - 7:00 am (adults)
Saturday 8 am - 10 am (adults and youth)

I'll be posting registration papers soon.

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

Summer Swim Meets

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 19:17:00 +0000

Dear Team,

Mark your calendars for the summer "optional" fun meets.

June 25 at Center of Clayton
July 9 at Maplewood - CANCELED
July 16 at Center of Clayton

(All dates 5:15pm warm-up, with 5:30pm competition start, over in about an hour.)

The events are short and should offer an opportunity for competition experience.

Swim Practice Canceled

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Sat, 16 May 2009 21:44:00 +0000

The Nat has had a mechanical failure. As of now, practice is canceled for the week of May 17, 2009.
If the status changes you'll get an email.

Have a good week.

Karen Palmer

2009-2010 Indoor Practice Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Thu, 07 May 2009 14:37:00 +0000

U City Swim Club Indoor Season

When: Sept 8, 2009 - May 2010
Where: University City High School Natatorium, located at 7420 Shaftesbury

View Larger Map

Masters (Adult) Schedule:
T, TH 6:00 - 7:00 AM
Sat 8:00-10:00 AM

Youth Schedule:
M, T, W, Th 5:30-7:00 pm
Sat 8:00-10:00 am

No pool pass fees are required.

U City Swim Club 2009 Outdoor Season
When: June 8 – July 31, 2009
Where: Heman Park Pool, 7210 Olive, University City, MO

Masters (Adult) Schedule:
M, W 6 - 7:00 AM
Sat 7- 8:30 AM

Youth Schedule:
T, Th 7- 8 pm
Sat 7-8:30 am

In addition to regular club fees, to swim or stay on the deck at Heman pool, a pool pass is required. Note: Parents wishing to walk their children in and leave may do so, but please be prompt in picking up your children.

Here are your options:
Residents: (As a reminder you must present your resident card)
Daily Admission Fees:
Youth: $3
Adult $4
Resident Senior (60 and older) $3

Resident Annual Swim Pass
Youth $70
Adult $87
Senior (60 and older) $70
Family ($140)

Non Resident:
Daily Admission Fees:
$6 (must be accompanied by a U. City Resident)
Our swim coach can accompany 4 swimmers under this rule - on a first request basis.

Non Resident Annual Swim Pass
Youth $105
Adult $130.50
Senior (60 and older) $105
Family $210

I recommend that you factor in how many times you think you'll be at the pool this summer and determine if a pool pass or daily admission is most cost effective for your family needs. If you are getting a pool pass, make sure you have it before practice season starts!

If you are already registered with the club you do not need to fill out any new paper work. For those that are new, we will have paper work available as needed.

Thanks,
Karen Palmer
U City Swim Club

Changes to Practice Schedule for March and April

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 13:23:00 +0000

Hello to all. Due to upcoming tournaments for the UCHS water polo team we will be making some modifications to our regular practice schedule. Please make note of the following time changes:

For the following days, practice will start at 6:00 pm and end at 7:00 pm. Coach Mary's groups will begin their sessions at 6:00 and 6:30.

WED , MARCH 25 -
TH, MARCH 26
TUES, APRIL 7
TH, APRIL 9
TUES, APRIL 21

There will be no practice on the following days:
MON, APRIL 13
MON, APRIL 27
TUES, APRIL 28

Please remember that if you come early and a water polo match is in progress, wait upstairs in the bleacher area.

As a side note, our home meet is scheduled for April 25 and 26. Once again we will need all families to volunteer as timers or for other duties. Instead of email, I will be using a sign up sheet to fill volunteer slots. I'll let you know when that is posted.

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

MEET CALENDAR

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 23:09:00 +0000

2009-2010 Youth Meet Schedule:

ENTRIES

Fall Festival Entries

Fall Frenzy Entries - home meet

Swim Your Own Age Entries
Parkway B-C Invitational

Gator Great Times Meet - Entries

INVITATIONS

Date	Meet name	Location
Oct 10-11	Fall Festival	St Peters Rec-Plex
Nov 14	Fall Frenzy Pentathlon	U City HS
Dec 6	Swim Your Own Age	Clayton Comm. Center
Jan 9-10, 2010	Parkway B-C	Parkway North High School
Feb 6-7, 2010	Gator Great Times Invitation	Central Municipal Pool,Cape Girardeau, MO 63701
April 24-25	Small Club Invitational	U City HS

In this video, Josh Davis, Olypmic Gold Medalist, gives tips for swimming butterfly.

Team Swim-a-thon, February 19, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 22:41:00 +0000

Congratulations to our 2008-2009 Team Members who participated in our Swim-a-thon fund raiser. Way to go and thank you for your dedication!!!!

OK, the final results are in!

We had a GREAT fundraiser - we raised $1703!!! We had 22 swimmers + 3 more who did not swim but who made contributions.

Gator Great Times Entries - Feb 09

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 14:01:00 +0000

Dear Parents,

Here are the events that your child will be swimming at the Gator Great Times meet this coming weekend.

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer
/UCSC-OZ-Entries003.pdf

Swim-a-Thons , General Information

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 20:33:00 +0000

2009 swim-a-thon team photo

We cannot rely on monthly swim fees alone to cover the operations, equipment, and staff needed to run a successful swim club. In the past, our club has relied on the USA Swimming Swim-a-Thon as a fun and active event to raise some of those extra funds.

Swim-a-Thons are a USA Swimming sponsored event. Our club keeps 95% of raised funds and the other 5% goes back to USA Swimming to help run their programs at a national level.

We conduct the event under USA Swimming, so information packets and pledge forms are provided. We must return all unused packets in good condition or the club gets billed, so please don’t take a packet unless you are participating.

During the weeks leading to the event we ask that you collect pledges (either by the lap swam, or a flat donation).

Work with a parent in obtaining your pledges and stick to people that you know or local businesses. And remember a big thank you!

Here is an example of what to say as you collect pledges:

The University Swim Club is holding a swim-a-thon on ___________.

The swim-a-thon is to help us raise funds so we can maintain our swimming program. We have a team that teaches kids how to swim and how to become better swimmers. We also get to compete in swim meets. It’s our team’s goal to raise at least $2,000.

We get to keep 95% of the funds and 5% goes to USA Swimming to help with their national programs.

The way it works is that you can make a pledge to me and I will try to swim one mile (that’s 70 lengths) within a one and one-half hour limit. Or you can also make a pledge to me for each length I swim. Checks should be made out to the University City Swim Club.

Thank you!

The process is pretty simple, but effective; it also builds team spirit and feelings of pride. So, join in on the fun and participate.

Jan Thaw - Parent Jobs During Meet

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 22:44:00 +0000

Dear Parents,

Please review the PDF file /work%20schedule%20for%20Jan%20Thaw%202009.pdf.
Here you will find the jobs that you will be participating in at our January Thaw meet. I have broken each page down by AM or PM Sessions and by Day (Saturday or Sunday). If you see your name in Red that means we didn't hear from you on a job preference so you get the opportunity of a random assignment.

You must let me know if I have made a mistake. I'll be working to fill the open positions.

Thank you so much.

Karen Palmer - Happy Swimming

Swim Clinic with Olympic Swimmers Coming Soon

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 16:26:00 +0000

We have a unique opportunity to participate in the upcoming Mutual of Omaha Breakout Swim Clinic. This clinic is being hosted by our small club friends the Bridgeton Flying Tigers Swim Club.

Date: Sunday, March 8, 2009
Time: 1:00- 5:00 PM
Cost is $55.00 (Limit of 70 swimmers)

It looks like Olympians Josh Davis and Peter Vanderkaay will be conducting this session. They should also be getting in the water with the swimmers and giving individual attention.

I will have registration forms later this week at the Nat and am also including a PDF file of the registration form. /olympic_training_camp.pdf

For more details on the clinic and organization please visit: breakoutswimclinic.com

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

Club Policy For Home Meets

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:56:00 +0000

Hosting a swim meet is a task that requires the talents and time of all our families.

In order to ensure a fun and rewarding meet we ask that you be aware of our policies regarding participation.

We assume all swimmmers participate in our home meets - unless you inform us of other plans.

Since we are a parent run club we have always depended on at least one member from each family to work in a volunteer capacity at the meet for a minimum of two sessions. Those sessions can be all on one day or split between Saturday and Sunday. If you have a teenager they are welcome to help, though we'd like timers to be a minimum age of 15 and have good focus abilities.

If you are a single-parent family and your child is not old enough to get to his events on his own, we can assign a parent in the stands to help your child. Everyone in the club tends to be helpful!

If you choose not to volunteer please let us know, because we do assign positions to parents that we have not heard from. Otherwise in the absence of your participation we request a $25 donation to the University City Swim Club.

We thank you for helping us build team spirit and to host a meet that brings enjoyment to your swimmers.

Jan 6, Jan 27, & Feb 3, 2009 - Change of schedule with Coach Mary

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 01:19:00 +0000

For those of you with children swimming with Coach Mary we will need to adjust the time for three of our practice dates.

The dates are Tuesday Jan 6, Jan 27, and Feb 3.
First session will begin at 6:00 pm and second session swimmers will begin at 6:30 pm.

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

2008 Winter Break Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 17:57:00 +0000

We normally follow the school district's schedule, since that dictates when the pool is open for our use.

Last regular practice is Dec 20. We will resume practice January 6,2009.
It does not look like we will be able to hold any special sessions during the school district's break.

If we are able to hold any other additional practices, I'll be posting on the web site.

Thank you and Happy Holidays.

U. City Swim Club

January Thaw Swim Meet

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 20:19:00 +0000

Our January Thaw Meet is scheduled for January 31 & Feb 1. (Note these are new days) For those of you new to the club, this is a home meet, which is a lot of fun for our swimmers. We do require that parents volunteer in some capacity during the meet or in the planning stages. As time nears we will be calling on you to help us!!!

/UCSC-2009-Jan-24-25.pdf

Event File /Meet%20Events-UCSC%20January%20Thaw%202009-24Jan2009-001.zip

Basic Swim Rules to Help a Young Swimmer

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 19:48:00 +0000

Okay, parents, you are watching your child swim during a meet and suddenly an official (those people wearing blue shorts and white shirts) raises a hand. What does that mean?

Basically, the official has seen what is called a stroke infraction. USA Swimming has a list of rules that must be followed for each stroke. This ensures everyone swims the same kind of stroke without any unfair advantages.

If you are like me, a few years ago I didn't even know the names of most strokes or even how to swim them. That however changed and I am now one of those swim officials. From my experiences having to disqualify swimmers so far, I am offering you the following basic reminders that you can give your first-time swimmers before they go out to swim each event.

1. Remind your child what event they are swimming. I often have children ask me what event they are about to enter the water for. Often a child begins swimming the wrong stroke and unfortunately is disqualified.

2. If it's butterfly, remind them to touch the walls with both hands at the same time. It doesn't matter where the hands are on the wall, just as long as it is simultaneous.

3. When doing backstroke, remind your youngster to remain on their backs until they've touched the wall with some part of their body.

4. Breastroke requires touching the wall with both hands at the same time. Again it doesn't matter where the hands are relative to each other.

5. Freestyle is hard to get disqualified on. Any kind of touch is acceptable.

There are of course other stroke rules, but these are the basics that any level of swimmer can easily master. The rest will come with your child's individual progress in mastering the strokes.

Happy Swimming - Karen Palmer

Parenting a Champion

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:08:00 +0000

I found the following information on the USA Swimming website and thought it presents helpful advice for parents during various stages of your child's development.
- Happy Swimming, Karen Palmer

The US Tennis Association has developed a chart of guidelines for parents entitled "Parenting My Champion: Developing Talent." The chart shows three stages of development: Introduction/Foundation (ages 5-10), Refinement/Transitional (ages 10-14), and Elite Performance (15 and over). At each stage the USTA gives recommendations for things parents can do to encourage the child, keep things in perspective AND foster long term development and success.

ParentingaChampion.pdf

2009-2010 Registration

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:23:00 +0000

Indoor swimming registration is scheduled for Sept. 8, 2009, but please feel free to join us at any time during the year.

If you would like to join the U City Swim Club please fill out the following registration papers:

Master Swimmers:
Returning and new swimmers please complete the 2009-2010 Membership Forms.

Youth Swimmers:
Returning and new swimmers please complete the 2009-2010 Membership Form

You should also become registered with USA Swimming as an athlete member.

Membership is either annual or Seasonal (Summer):

Annual Membership

membership is for a calendar year period (January-December); new memberships processed on or after September 1 are valid through December 31 of the following year. ($51 for 2010)

Seasonal

at the option of the Local Swimming Committee, seasonal membership may be offered; (available for summer swimming, valid until Aug 31, 2009)

If you are a new member or a seasonal member please fill out the USA Swimming Athlete Membership form (2010) Do not send this to Ozark Swimming. Your payment should be made to U City Swim Club. We will process your registration for you.

Swim Club Brochure.

2008 Thanksgiving Break

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:42:00 +0000

The U. City school district will close Nov. 26-30, which means no swim practice on those days.

Have a safe and fun Thanksgiving.

From,
Karen Palmer

Upcoming December 2008 Meets

noreply@blogger.com (George) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:27:00 +0000

This December, we will be participating in the CSP Swim Your Own Age meet and the HEAT Last Meet of the Year.

The CSP event is scheduled for December 7.
The HEAT meet is scheduled for December 13 and December 14.

Please check with the Ozark Calendar website http://www.ozarkswimming.org/calendar.htm for meet start times and locations. I also will post an announcement at the Nat.

For those of you new to the club, you should, a few days before the meet, receive a list of events your child is signed up to swim. You'll get that from Coach Jon Lane. This will tell you which events your child is swimming. At the actual meet you'll need to purchase a meet sheet or refer to the sheets posted on the walls, so that you'll know the event number that your child is swimming. Some swimmers write the event numbers on their arms with a Sharpie. Then, when the event is called your child will go to the designated "bull pen" area and be directed by a volunteer to the starting blocks. All the experienced parents are more than willing to help. That's how my family made it through my son's first meet!

Swim attire must be non-transparent. Also, a new ruling requires that meet swimsuits for ages 12&U cannot cover neck, arms below shoulders, or below knees. This formally applies even to floppy Bermuda or "board" style shorts.

Swim caps are optional.

Happy Swimming!

Karen Palmer