Hello OBST families, 

Happy first day of school! I hope everyone has a fantastic start to the new school year and adjusts well to their new schedules. We will kick off our first practice of the Fall season on Monday, 8/11! You'll be hearing from me regularly with my weekly newsletters every Monday moving forward. 

Some general knowledge and reminders to kickstart all in the right direction... 

If you have not received an e-mail from SwimTopia about account set-up, please let me know. At least one parent from each family should have access to their SwimTopia account by now. I can always follow through with a password reset if need be. SwimTopia is crucial for communication, competition sign-up, and all things related to OBST. 

Whether a seasoned mako or just joining OBST, year-round swimmers or those who plan to compete in any USA Swimming competition, must be a member of USA Swimming. All USAS athletes will renew their membership come September 1st! Please WAIT to pay for membership until 9/1. If you renew or join before 9/1, you will be charged again on said date for the next term (Sept '25 - December '26). If an athlete is a transfer from another team, you are more than welcome to initiate the team transfer, membership renewal is separate and will follow for those athletes on 9/1 too. 

Please be mindful of the day of the week and your swimmer's schedule as orange, junior, and senior groups practice times fluctuate a bit during the week. Tuesdays/Thursdays include a 30 min dry-land workout for those three groups as well. Sneakers please! All practice schedules are posted here: https://obstmakos.swimtopia.com/schedule-and-fees

Swimmers who attend OBES and/or EE: 
Please remember, if your child is a student at OBES and in the blue group, I will be picking them up from school and walking athletes over to the pool. I would really appreciate everyone working together to inform across the board if a child is not at school or being picked up early. All other OBES student-athletes (mostly orange & junior group) will report to Expect Excellence ahead of their swim practice unless otherwise noted in registration.

I have provided all appropriate rosters to school, EE, and our facility as well. However, please communicate with your child's teacher and EE so that all are informed directly from each child's parent. This is a huge help! 

For junior and senior group:
The pool will be closing to the public at 5 p.m. and we will have the facility to ourselves sometimes, however, the OB high school team will be practicing at 5 p.m. as well and I would like to ask everyone to be mindful of their surroundings and space at practice. We have a wonderful group of swimmers who all display kindness and great sportsmanship and I would like that to remain constant always. We should have our typical four lanes, but please be flexible as we navigate lane transitions during this time.

That's all for now! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Best, 

Coach Dakota