Hi makos,

Happy Monday! September is around the corner and that means competition season is about to begin. We have a fairly busy and exciting season ahead! It's going to fly by, so please remain communicative and efficient as submission dates for entries approach.

RSVP FOR MEETS VIA SWIMTOPIA
I want to make sure that everyone is able to open SwimTopia and mark their swimmer's as "attending" or "not attending" for meets in a timely manner.  I will always give you enough time to confirm attendance while still allowing myself wiggle room to complete entries and make any last minute changes before the hard due date listed within meet invitations. 

I, of course, prefer athletes to attend the entire meet, but if you cannot attend certain days, please note what days you are unavailable in the comment section.

If you are able to work ahead and mark your commitments throughout the season, you are welcome to as all meets are currently open to do so. 

To mark RSVPs, click HERE!

We have the following meets with upcoming entry due dates...

1. TROPIC LIKE IT'S HOT OPEN in PCB 9/19-21
Our first USAS meet will take place Friday Sept. 19 through Sunday Sept. 21.  to my current knowledge, we have 8 athletes attending. Friday's warm-up begins at 3 p.m. and the meet starts at 4:30 p.m., so swimmer's will have to be dismissed from school a little early. The meet invitation is attached on the website.
You must be a USA Swimming-registered athlete to compete in this meet.

All entry submissions are due Wednesday, Sept 3rd by noon! Please confirm attendance beforehand. Once entries are submitted, I will inform you of your entry fee amount and either CC or a check made out to "City of Orange Beach" will need to be paid at the OBAC front desk by the EOD Friday, Sept 5th.

I will choose athlete events. A swimmer is allowed up to 5 events day and the cost breakdown is as follows:
Entry Fees: $4.00 per individual
SES surcharge $8.00 per individual event ($10.00 if late entry)
Facility Fee $20.00 per entered swimmer (Downloadable Heat Sheet Included)

2. CMSA VANCE ROSE INVITATIONAL in MOBILE 10/4-5
This meet was originally listed as a 3-day meet, but it is actually Saturday and Sunday only. All events will be timed finals, swam in fast to slow heat order, and swimmers may swim up to three (3) individual events per session and up to four (4) individual events per day. Qualifying Times for 500 Free (7:29.99) and 400 IM (6:29.99) will apply. See the meet invitation attached to the calendar for further details regarding warm-ups, session timelines, etc.
You must be a USA Swimming-registered athlete to compete in this meet.

All entry submissions AND payments are due Monday, Sept 15h by EOD! The cost for this meet will be a flat fee of $50.00 per athlete. This includes the facility and SES surcharges and a digitized heat sheet. Please make a payment via CC or a check made out to "City of Orange Beach" at the OBAC front desk.

USA SWIMMING MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS
A friendly reminder, on or after Sept 1st, all returning year-round swimmers will renew their memberships and all athletes wanting to join USAS will establish their membership at this date or later. A USAS membership allows athletes to swim at a higher level of sanctioned competitions and also includes athlete insurance coverage when competing. Please wait until 9/1 to do this or you will end up paying double for the current year and have to pay a renewal again come that Monday for 2026.

I would like to provide a disclaimer. I know some teams automatically provide USAS membership within their dues, however, at OBST we opt to have all families choose when and whether to do so as we have a mix of levels from green newbies to seasoned competitors. For most, USAS makes sense and is what we strive for, but if a swimmer isn't quite ready to compete at this level, there is no need to pay the $82.00 annual fee.

EQUIPMENT
There are a couple athlete's who do not have all of their required equipment for practice yet. I would appreciate swimmer's having necessary equipment ordered/in-hand by the beginning of September. (This includes water bottles! Stay hydrated in this immense heat!) If there is a personal or financial reason behind not having equipment, please just make me aware. I completely understand the juggling of life's demands. 

See each group gear listings here: https://obstmakos.swimtopia.com/uniform-and-equipment

We utilize Swim & Tri. Instructions on how to view our team portal are also at the above weblink. 

FACILITY POLICY
Recently there have been a lot of individuals dropped off at the pool who are under the age requirement to be unattended at the OBAC. I've been asked by our facility's AD to clarify the policy. It is a major rule of the facility that children under the age of 14 y/o may NOT be left at the pool unattended by a parent or legal guardian. I understand for those with multiple children on the team that this is an inconvenience, especially when an of age and mature older sibling is present, however this goes against the facility's policy. It comes down to what is best in terms of safety and liability of patrons and employees. We appreciate your respect and understanding!

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Best,

Coach Dakota