Swim Team Registration 2023

2023 Fee: $120.00
Registration Dates: Monday, May 22nd, 2023 - Thursday, June 1st, 2023

Timeline of Events

Tryouts for new members will be on Tuesday, June 6th and Wednesday, June 7th. Once registered, parents/guardians will receive information on how to pick a time for a try out. Only new swim team members will need to try out. 

Practices will begin Thursday, June 8th. While children are still in school, practices will take place after school hours 2-3 days a week. An email will go to parents/guardians with specific dates and times once registration is over. 

During summer break, practices are 45 minutes-1 hour, depending on the age group, in the mornings from 7:45am-12:00pm. Participants will practice every day or have a meet. Parents/guardians will receive more detailed information after teams are made on specific dates and times of their child's practices. 

Most participants will swim in 1-2 meets per week. Meets are scheduled for the month of July and end the last weekend in July with a championship. Home meets are typically in the mornings prior to the pool opening to the general public. Some meets at visiting pools will take place in the evenings. 

What is Expected of the Swimmer at Tryouts

Potential team members will be expected to display good rotary breathing techniques as well as the ability to float comfortably on the back and stomach and also feel confident being underwater. Swimmers who are 10 years old and younger must demonstrate comfortable swimming for 25 meters. Swimmers 11 years old and up must be comfortable swimming 50 meters. All potential team members will also be asked to demonstrate a good flutter kick with a kick board; 25 meters for 10 years and under and 50 meters for 11 years and up. Swimmers age 9 and older will also be asked to try a shallow dive into the deep end of the lap pool and possibly another stroke.

Extra Details about the Marlins Swim Team

We are proud of our program, which has been in existence since 1971. The purpose of our program is for the children to have fun, learn new skills, meet new friends, and build self-confidence. We do require that the swimmers be able to do freestyle with good form, proper flutter kick and rotary breathing as well as other basic water safety skills in order for them to function comfortably at practice.

Our teams compete locally and are in separate leagues. The Blue Team swims in the North Jersey Summer Swim League and competes against New Providence, West Orange, West Caldwell, and South Orange. The White Team is a member of the Union County Outdoor Swim League (UCOSL) and competes against Nomahegan, Willow Grove, Highland, Manor Park, and Cranford Swim Clubs. The Green Team also participates in some UCOSL as well as having some out-of-league meets. A more detailed schedule and calendar will be given to the swimmers after the final team selections.

Each dual meet consists of events swum in different age groups and different strokes, individually as well as in relay format. The common age groups are 8 and under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and 15-18 with the White Team also offering separate events in freestyle for 6 and 7 year old's.

Practices are held Monday through Friday between the hours of 7:45 AM and 12:00 PM with the practice groups being divided based on age and ability. We will have a staff of 5 experienced coaches to help with both meets and workouts. It is very important for swimmers and their parents to communicate with the coaching staff, especially when swimmers are going to miss meets. *We require an email at least a week in advance if a swimmer needs to miss a meet so that we are better able to make lineups and give everyone the best opportunity to swim. The swim team email address is: wmpmarlins@gmail.com.  

Parent volunteers are a big part of summer swimming, just as they are in all recreational activities for our children. We rely on parent help at the meets for timing, scoring, judging, and awards. No experience is necessary; we are more than happy to help you learn! There will be sign-up sheets as well as on-line information distributed to parents when swimmers find out what team they will be on. We hope you take the opportunity to volunteer at that time.

The competition is secondary and in fact we would prefer that swimmers be encouraged not to so much beat other swimmers as to do their best times and learn better technique. Swimming is a lifetime sport, and we hope to instill an appreciation for it through our short time together this summer.