Plan on arriving at the pool 10-15 mins before the warm-up time for your age group begins. This will give you time to find a parking spot, find a good place to camp out for the day around the pool, and get goggles/cap ready for warmups. Warm up time is very short, so it’s important to be ready to dive in on time!

Where should I sit?

Look for any Nelson Farm signs or other teammates to sit near. It’s helpful (and more fun) when the team is sitting in close proximity to each other so coaches and parents know where to find the swimmers, if needed. 

Look for shade or bring your own! The morning is cool, but it is usually quite warm by the end of the meet.

What should I bring?

• Goggles, swim cap (bring extras of both if you have) and swimsuit, of course! 
• Towels (at least two per swimmer) 
• Snacks (fruit, carbs, etc.) and hydration (water, Gatorade) 
• Sunscreen, sunglasses, hat 
• Team swim shirt as well as a warm clothes for after warm-up 
• Copy of the heat sheet with your events highlighted 
• Things to do! Meets can be long so bring books, card games, etc.

What are the order of events?

The meet runs in a series of numbered events. There are about 80 events total. Events are swam in increasing numerical order, and sometimes events will be combined for efficiency. 

Each event is unique based on what stroke is swam, distance of the race, age of the swimmers, and gender. Generally speaking, the events are grouped by type. For example, all the butterfly events are grouped to go in order from youngest to oldest, girls swimming before boys within an age group. 

Keep track of the event numbers as the meet progresses. The announcer calls out event numbers when swimmers need to get ready to swim (go to the heating area) and when a specific race is on the starting blocks. 

There are relay events at the start and at the end of each meet. 

Events start with medley relays, backstroke, sprint freestyle, butterfly, breaststroke, mid-distance freestyle, IM, freestyle relays, and distance freestyle. 

What are heats and lanes?

Each event can have multiple heats. A heat is a group of swimmers who will swim at the same time. They are numbered and swam in increasing numerical order. 

Each swimmer has a heat number and lane number assigned for the race. So, the swimmer needs to know their heat number and lane number for each event number. This information is in the heat sheet published before the meet. 

The number of heats per event depends on the size of the pool (how many lanes) and the number of swimmers signed up for that event. For example, if a pool has six lanes and 12 kids are signed up for that event, there will be two heats of six swimmers per heat. The first heats usually are swimmers who do not yet have a time for that race, and each heat typically has faster swimmers racing than the prior heat. 

How does the heating area work?

There is an area designated for swimmers to organize before the race. This is called the heating area. It is an array of seats, where the rows are the heats and columns line up with the lanes of the pool. 

Swimmers check-in to the heating area volunteers when the announcer calls an event to report to the heating area. The event number expected in the heating area is also usually also displayed near the starter. Watch this number and listen for first call/last call heating from the announcer. 

Upon check-in, report your event number, heat number, AND lane number to the volunteers. They will get the swimmers into the proper chairs to line up before the race. 

Bring your cap (already on) and goggles to the heating area. Ideally, don’t bring anything else. Be ready to swim! 

How do I see results? 

Results will be posted on paper as the computer team is available to create them during the meet. 

Results will be uploaded to Swimtopia live during the meet, although those are subject to change when DQs are scored. 

Results will usually be emailed out within a day or two of the meet. 

What are DQs? 

DQ stands for disqualification. Some teams try to have a referee watching for illegal starts, strokes, and turns, but this is not common at dual meets. 

DQs are common at the City Meet when there are more highly trained refs watching each swimmer closely. Swimmers who have illegal starts, strokes or turns are noted for DQ, and their time doesn’t count towards the standings. Oftentimes, the ref will explain to the swimmer about their infraction that resulted in a DQ for learning purposes.