Frequently Asked Questions
Registration
Q: What are the registration fees?
A: Swim team registration fees are the primary source of team revenue and cover for the following: coaches' salaries, life guards, swim insurance, ribbons and award, age-group photograph, individual trophy, team equipment and administrative expenses. The cost of the team swimsuit and other equipment is not included in the registration fees and must be purchased separately.
Hurricane registration fees for 2024 are as follows:
- February 26th-March 17th - Special Price for Returning Families ONLY. The registration fee for is $190 per swimmer
- March 17th- April 21st – Registration is open to all families for $205 per swimmer.
- Registration ends on April 21st.
Q: What is the mailing address to send registration checks?
A: 6001 W Parmer Lane
Ste 370 #631
Austin, TX 78727
Q: What is the refund policy?
A: You may withdraw from the team and request a refund on or prior to the end of the second week of practice. Swimmers will be refunded the registration cost minus the club's administration fee which covers insurance fees and processing costs. After the second week of practice, no refunds will be granted.
Practice
Q: When do practices begin?
A: Swim practice typically begins late April. The first day of practice for the 2024 season will be Monday, April 22nd. The first few weeks of practice will be after school. Morning practice will begin after the school semester ends. Practice times are subject to change based on enrollment. Check our website for up-to-date information on the Practice tab found under the Team page.
Q: How often are swim practices held?
A: Practices are held five days a week, Monday through Friday at the Rattan Creek Community neighborhood pool. We do not require swimmers to attend every practice. However, the more time you swimmer spends at practice, the more improvement he/she will see.
Q: What equipment will my swimmer need?
A: During practice, it is important for all swimmers to have the following items:
- Competition style suit (a practice suit, not the team suit)
- Swim cap
- Goggles
- Fins (for Ages 9&up)
The prices of the suit and goggles are NOT included in the registration fees
Q: Do I have to purchase a team swimsuit? Where can I buy the team suit?
A. Team suits are encouraged to promote team unity but are not required.
**Team suits are not yet decided and will be updated soon.
Every swimmer must wear a team swim cap at all swim meets. Swim caps are included in the cost of registration.
Q. It's raining. Will practice be cancelled?
A. Practice will not be cancelled due to rain alone. However, safety is our first priority. At the first sign of thunder or lightning, the pool will be cleared for 30 minutes. The clock will start over at each subsequent instance of thunder/lightning. The decision to cancel practice will be made by the head coach based on the current conditions as well as the forecast and will be communicated via one or more of the following ways: email blast to the team; Remind101 text; and Twitter, Facebook, or website update.
Swim Meets
Q: What time do swim meets start?
A: The start time for swim meets can vary and are subject to change. However, they typically begin around 7:00am. You will receive an email a day or two before each meet with the timeline and other info. For home swim meets, swimmers are generally required to check in at the pool by 6:00 am. Check-in times for away meets are often around 6:15 or 6:30. Always check your email to verify the timeline for any specific meet.
Q: What do I do when I arrive at a meet?
A: The first thing you should do upon arrival at any meet is check in with each of your swimmers' tent parents to let them know your swimmers are present at the meet. If you are volunteering, you will need to check in at the volunteer station prior to your shift.
Q. What should I bring to a meet?
A. Here is a list of items you may want to bring to swim meets:
- Swim cap
- Goggles. It is a good idea to bring an extra pair for backup.
- Team swim suit
- Sunscreen
- Activities to entertain your swimmer between events. It is a good idea to bring items that the swimmers can play with together.
- Heat sheet
- Cooler with water or sports drinks, and healthy snacks for your swimmer
- Chairs for every member of your family.
Q. How long do meets last?
A. You should plan on attending dual meets from 6am to approximately 1pm on Saturdays. Some meets will finish earlier, some later. The heat sheets list approximate times for every event. If you need to leave early, please check your swimmer out with his/her tent parent.
Q. What are heat sheets? Where do I find them? What about meet results?
A. Heat sheets are a timeline of all events for all swimmers in the meet. You can use the heat sheet to determine which event, heat and lane your child will swim. Heat sheets will be emailed a day or two before the meet and uploaded to the Results page of our website. It's a good idea to print heat sheets the night before the meet, and highlight your swimmers' events. Results are usually emailed in the evening after the swim meet has ended and will be posted to the Results page of our website. Additionally, you can find heat sheets and results on the Meet Mobile app for I phone and Android devices.
Q. Does my swimmer have to attend every meet?
A. Swimmers are encouraged but not required to attend all meets. However, in order to participate in the Divisional meet, a swimmer must have swum in two dual meets in the current season.
Q. How do I sign up for a meet?
A. You may select up to 3 individual events for each meet on the Meets & Events page of our website. Click on Edit Entries for the meet which you would like to enter. Select the individual events and save entries. Coaches may assign your swimmer to a morning medley and afternoon freestyle relay, unless you indicate that your swimmer will not be available for relays. When signing up for a meet, please indicate if your swimmer will not be available to swim in the morning or afternoon relays.
Volunteering
Q: Do I have to volunteer at the swim meets?
A: Yes. Parent volunteers are vital to our swim team. We could not operate without the generous work of parent volunteers. For this reason, we require every Hurricane family to volunteer a minimum of 24-28 points (official points required are based on final registration numbers) throughout the season regardless of whether a swimmer participates in the meets. We have several volunteer options during meets as well as during the week to fit your family's needs. You will receive an email when volunteer sign-up is open for the meets. Please check the website regularly as additional volunteer opportunities become available throughout the season. Please see our handbook for specific details on our volunteer policy and procedures.
Q. How do I sign up to volunteer?
A. You can sign up for all volunteer positions on the Meets & Events page of our website. Find the meet for which you would like to volunteer and click on Job Sign-Up, then Sign Up for Jobs. Select the volunteer position you would like and save assignments.
Q: When I volunteer at a meet, what time do shift 1 and shift 2 occur?
A: The first shift begins at the start of the meet. There will be an announcement calling all first shift volunteers approximately 15 minutes before the first event of the meet. Listen for the announcement so you will know when and where to report for your assignment. The second shift will begin after event #45 is complete. There is usually a 15 minute break after event #45 has finished and that is when the shift change happens. Again, there will be an announcement calling all second shift volunteers.
Q: How do I check how many volunteer points I have?
A: When you are logged into swimtopia, click your name in the upper right corner. Your volunteer details are under “Your Account”.
Miscellaneous
Q. What is a Bingo?
A: A swimmer earns a Bingo when he improves his time in all 3 individual events in the same meet. The Bingo swimmers will be recognized at one of our pep rallies or Spirit nights. Bingos are not awarded at the Red/White meet.
Q. Where do my swimmers get their meet ribbons?
A: Ribbons will be filed in the swimmer’s file folder, which you can find on the pool deck during practice. These folders should be checked regularly for other important information.
Q: What is the Red/White meet?
A: This is the first meet of the season. It’s an intra-squad practice meet for Hurricanes. For new parent volunteers, it is also an opportunity to learn the duties associated with running a swim meet.
Q. What is the Divisional Meet?
A. The Divisional Meet is our championship meet at the end of the season against the other teams in our division. Please note: In order to participate, your swimmer must have swum in at least two dual meets from the current season prior to the Divisional Meet.
Q. What is Invitationals?
A. Invitationals is a meet for swimmers who have met the invitational time qualifying time standards during the current swim season. Invitational time standards can be found under the Resource tab on our website or on the NWSC website.. The invitational meet will be held at (TBD).
Q. What is Hurrithon?
A. The Hurrithon is a swim-a-thon and is our biggest fundraiser of the year. Ask family and friends to sponsor your swimmer on a per lap basis or a flat donation. During regular practice, swimmers will swim as many laps as they can. The more laps, the more money they can collect! A pancake breakfast will be served after each practice. This is a great endurance exercise for our swimmers as well.
Q: I have more questions. Who do I contact?
A: Please feel free to contact any Board member or the coaches. You can find our contact information on the Team page of our website. You can also contact us here: https://hurricanes.swimtopia.com/contact-us
