07.07.24

Calendar:

• Regular practice Monday - Thursday
• Monday, July 8 - It’s a WHITE OUT home meet against Calhoun. Wear white to celebrate our Senior Swimmer and stay cool for our last dual meet of the season.
  • 4:30 warmup
  • 5:30 start
  • Smothered California Burritos and Kona Ice food trucks are available for eats.
• Thursday - after practice - City Meet Prep
  • Nail painting, jewelry making, shirt dying, poster making - Join us for all the fun. We will meet in the grassy area behind the pool and would LOVE for the big Sharks to help the little Sharks create their swag for City Meet.
  • Please BYOwhite shirt for the tie-dye station.
• Friday & Saturday, July 12 & 13 - City Meet (LOTS more info below)
  • The official CASL info packet
  • Psych Sheet
  • Estimated Time Line of Events 
  • Team Crash Site 
• Sunday, July 14 - end of season celebration at the StH pool, 6-9pm.
  • BYO chairs, drinks, and shade
  • Volunteers are bringing plates, cutlery, side dishes and desserts. Feel free to supplement the meal as desired.
  • Hamburgers will be served by the Johnston family and Armando’s at Chester Frost. Tips for the chef are appreciated but not required.
  • Be ready for the team awards, team picture, belly flop contest, parent vs coach relay, and an evening of camaraderie!

Hunker down for a bit of a read…..

The Chattanooga Area Swim League City Meet is a two-day championship event for the teams in all three CASL divisions (in other words, all the summer swimmers in our area). The meet is divided into 2 preliminary sessions and two finals. Each swimmer may swim up to 5 individual events and 2 relays in total. The top 16 in each event for 8 and up will return Friday and Saturday evening for finals.

When committing to swim this meet, be prepared to return for finals, on Friday & Saturday evenings, beginning at about 5 pm. It is so important that qualified swimmers attend finals to earn points for the team! You MUST let Coach Katie know if you cannot come to finals. The team will be fined $25 for no-show finals athletes. The final events determine the points a team and individual receives. There is an awards ceremony for high-point swimmers and teams following Saturday night finals.

We are still in our Shark Era and our City Meet theme is the Paris Olympics. We are still looking for items from our Wish List for our prep event, to decorate the team area, and to have post-swim treats for the kids. Special thanks to the families who have already purchased many items on our list: Benford, Collins, Reece, Saunders, and Sorrow. 💌

CASL City Meet Traditions:

• City Meet is named after a long-time CASL official and board member Bill Caulkins. Read more about his 40-year commitment to our sport here and here.
• The Jennifer Fugate Scholarship Award recognizes a high school swimmer’s or diver’s commitment to the sport. This award is not always for the best or fastest swimmer or diver in the city, but for the one who is always out there doing their best. Fugate was an outstanding swimmer for Ringgold who died unexpectedly in 1986. A scholarship in her honor was established a year later by her parents and is still going strong more than 30 years later. Each CASL team will nominate one senior swimmer for this recognition to be presented on Saturday evening. Congratulations to our StH nominee Scout Chapin!
• Coaches Relay - Come cheer our coaches as they battle it out in the pool! Typically Saturday between morning & afternoon sessions.
• Check out the Sharks who have City Meet Records! It’s a great year to update that list with a few new times!

Info From CASL:

• The 2024 Bill Caulkins City Meet will be held on Friday, July 12th, and Saturday, July 13th. This year the meet will once again be held at the Ft. Oglethorpe Pool, located at 19 Van Cleave St., 30742.
• Heat sheets will be posted online only via the CASL and www.ccacswim.com
• The top-8 finishers from the preliminaries will qualify for the Championship Finals. The 9-16 place finishers from the preliminaries will qualify for the Consolation Finals (B Final). The next two (2) places, who will be listed as “Alternates”, will move into the Consolation heat (B Final) should there be any scratches. A swimmer who swims in the Consolation Finals can place no higher than 9th
• The top-8 relay finishers from the preliminaries will compete in the Championship Final. Only two (2) freestyle and medley relay per team may qualify for finals, in any age group/gender. Only one (1) mixed medley relay per team may qualify for finals, in any age group.
• Any swimmer who does not scratch and fails to report to the blocks for an A or B final event will cause their team to be fined $25.00 per instance.
• No glass containers are allowed. No smoking at the park and no alcoholic beverages are allowed. Cameras and cellphones are prohibited in the locker rooms and behind the blocks
• When City Meet is held at an outdoor venue and a Heat Index of 105F or greater (observed at the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport) is expected, CASL leadership will communicate with participating teams any required changes to the schedule, which we will relay via our Remind app. Other changes may include:
  • Swimmer warmups will be limited to a maximum of 10 minutes
  • Meet Referee will limit the number of stroke and turn judges and implement a rotation of judges
  • Meet Director will implement a rotation of timers
  • Increase distribution of water to on-deck personnel
• There will be a clerk of course for the 10 & under sessions and all swimmers in finals will need to go to the clerk of course. Relays will report directly to the block and NOT to the clerk of course for the 10 & under session. Finals relays WILL come to the clerk of course so we can verify they are all present.

Approximate timeline:

*we will send exact morning warm-up times when notified

Info From StH:

• Our team site is different from years past. As in the past, drive around to the back of the park to Gilbert Drive to park close to the StH area (see graphic below).  We have a pavilion and If you prefer to bring a shade tent, set up may begin on July 11th after 4 pm. (No RVs are allowed at City Meet.)  Think strategically to place your tent to be as inclusive as possible, giving room for all the Sharks to gather together.
• Parents/swimmers will walk back and forth to the pool. There is no room to camp out on the pool deck, so bring your walking shoes.
  • There is a creek in the area. Please advise your swimmers to stay out as there are always reports of poisonous snake sightings.
• Swim caps must be a StH cap, solid color, or an Emily’s Power for a Cure cap.
• Swimsuits must be the StH team suit or a generic practice suit, black, grey or red preferred. Practice or team suits for other teams are NOT allowed and can result in a disqualification. Several swimmers are still bending this rule and we don’t want to lose points at City Meet!
• Swimmers should check in with coaches after every event. Not only for tips but also for some CIty Meet TREATS!
• Bring your floppy hat, camp chairs, bug spray, icy water, snacks, towels, team cap & suit, goggles, extra goggles, sharpie marker, sunscreen, and dry clothes for the ride home.
• As you might imagine, sitting outside in mid-July, in a Georgia field Is HOT. Battery-powered fans, misters, cooling towels, and coolers of ice are recommended. Tips for staying cool:
  • Put a drop of peppermint oil on a wet rag stored in the ice. Place it on the back of your neck for a quick cooling.
  • Place ice in front of your fan to cool the air.
  • Ice in a portable baby pool to flail around in.
  • “Ice, ice, baby.”
• There are concessions available and multiple restaurants in the area, but bringing your food is always a good idea. Foods with high water content are perfect for this day: strawberries, cucumber, watermelon, peaches, oranges, frozen grapes, peppermint-infused water, pickle juice, and frozen electrolyte drinks.
• And, oh yeah, it will rain. Even with only a 4% chance, it has been known to thunderstorm on Ft O sending families scrambling to their cars. Just be prepared….
• Updated relay swimmers will be posted via Remind app during the meet. If you’ve not yet, please join @e7eh68.
• We will update you as to our Team shirt arrival. Bring your swag and get ready for a SHARK PAR-TAY! 

If you made it to the end, congratulations on your perseverance.  Please let us know if you have any questions and we will see you at the pool!