Scarlet-NJW – Meet Entry Process
* A NEW PROCESS FOR DECLINING MEET ENTRY THROUGH OUR WEBSITE IS INCLUDED.
For a printable version of this document (click here):
DETAILED INSRUCTIONS FOR DECLINING (OPTING OUT FROM) A MEET VIA OUR WEBSITE (click here)
This document provides an overview on how we enter swim meets. Please read this material carefully:
- Print out and become familiar with the meet schedule by group document. This schedule is a tentative schedule of the meets we plan to attend broken down by groups. It may be subject to change as some meets fill fast and we are sometimes denied entrance into a meet.
- In addition to the meet schedule, check the Upcoming Events section on the homepage of our website. When we are “closed” out of a meet due to it filling too fast, we’ll often post a replacement meet on this section of our website. Also, new meets are added during the season that the coaches may determine to fit our needs. It is best to keep in regular contact with your respective coach to keep abreast of any potential changes to the meet schedule. Our Communication Chair, Anne Cervone ( annecervone@verizon.net) will help communicate meet entries, meet information, timing assignments, etc. currently through e-mail communication OR information will be emailed directly to parents via their child’s coach or the Head Coach (Ken).
- NEW SYSTEM: Swimmers will automatically be entered into meets by their child’s coach based on the meet schedule. If you cannot attend a meet, you will need to “DECLINE” the meet on the team website. Since meets entries are due far in advance parents who want to “DECLINE” a meet will have to do it by the Meet Registration date on the website for that particular meet (it is often 4-8 weeks in advance). Sometimes this registration date will be even before we have the full meet information and details. It is not unusual for us to receive the meet information and have to do the entries in the same day to make it into a meet without being “closed out”.
- TO USE THE NEW “DECLINE” FEATURE ON OUR WEBSITE, IT IS LOCATED UNDER THE UPCOMING MEET SECTION. PARENTS WOULD CLICK ON THE “ATTEND/DECLINE” BUTTON ON THE WEBSITE TO “DECLINE A MEET”. (CLICK HERE FOR DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS). It is ALSO the parent’s responsibility to let your respective coach AND Anne Cervone (annecervone@verizon.net) know as early as possible if they know they cannot attend a meet. If you don’t decline the meet on the team website by the meet registration date (often 4-8 weeks in advance), the swimmers are automatically entered in the meet. If your child is entered, we cannot get the money back from the host team, so you will be charged. Please keep in mind that the meet registration date is not the date the entries are due to the host club but rather a date set by our club to make sure we can do the entries in time. Meets often close well before their meet entry deadline.
- We generally enter 1-2 meets per month. We do not like to attend too many meets as we feel we need time to “put the bun back in the oven”; i.e. we need time between meets to practice and get better. Too many meets at the loss of too much practice time could limit the development of a swimmer.
- Coaches do the entries for the swimmers. They will not enter your child in all the same events each meet. Generally, swimmers are entered in their better events for bigger meets and then other events for smaller meets. We purposely swim the kids in a variety of strokes and distances to develop them as an IM Based athlete (i.e. development in all 4 competitive strokes). Any questions regarding your child’s meet entries must be directed to their respective coach (They will communicate with our meet entry coordinator Nina Degnan). The meet entry coordinator, Nina Degnan has nothing to do with the events selected for a child and will not be able to change events.
- For most of the meets we enter in New Jersey or the surrounding area (NY, etc), the swimmers are charged a fee for each event they swim. The fee is generally $5-10 per event in the Fall/Winter (Short Course season) and slightly more per event in the Spring/Summer (Long Course season). The fee goes to the team that is hosting the meet. In order to avoid continually asking parents for small checks to cover these costs, we set up an escrow account for each swimmer.
- Please contact Anne Cervone (annecervone@verizon.net) to set up an escrow account. They will ask you for a check between $200 and $500+ depending on the group your child is in. The account is your money but we will deduct meet fees from the account during the year until the account is depleted or near depletion. At that time, you’ll be asked for another check to put toward escrow. If at any time you leave the team, you’re entitled to your balance in your escrow account. Just simply request that a check be sent to you by the groups meets secretary. We are looking into a different system in the near future.
- If the meet your child goes to has relays, the coaching staff decides who is to be placed on relays. If your child is placed on a relay, you do not pay for relays directly. The team charges a $2 surcharge per swimmer per meet to cover the cost of relays. This surcharge also helps cover administrative costs (ink, paper, etc.).
- Entries for many meets often fill very fast; sometimes in a matter of days or hours. We do not always get into every meet we want to attend. If that is the case, we may substitute another meet in it’s place. This also means that the coaches often do the entries months in advance.
- On the www.newjerseywave.org website you are able to click on upcoming events on the home page. From there you will see all of the upcoming meets as well as meets that have been attended in the past.
- Good sites to bookmark regarding upcoming meet information:
