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An
open letter to SST parents,
If
you child is involved in swimming one of the best ways I know of to
connect with them and their sport is to get yourself down off of
the bleachers and onto the pool deck as an
official.
I
have been a Stroke and Turn Official for two years and I know that
my extra efforts as a swim parent haven’t gone unnoticed by
my daughter.
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Q: Is becoming an official hard?
·
A: No it isn’t. You will have to attend a
2 hour course ($10), take an open book test (on your own time) and
then serve as a Novice Official for at least four
sessions.
·
Q: Will this take a lot of my
time?
·
A: No. The class session is 2 hours.
Afterwards you have at about a month to take the open book
test. And then you have the better part of one year to
complete your Novice training.
·
Q: Do I have to be an official at every swim meet my
child is entered in?
·
A: No. Over the past 2 years I have officiated
17 sessions. My daughter has probably swim more than double
that number.
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Q: Is it difficult?
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A: No not really. For me the backstroke turn is
still the hardest judgment call I have to make. The other
strokes are EZ. Regardless, the swimmer is always given the
benefit of doubt.
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Q: Isn’t it boring?
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A: The 500 freestyle is boring. The other
strokes keep you engaged and really help make time
fly.
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Q: Will I miss my kids swim?
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A: I have only missed my daughter’s finish
twice. In both instances the heats were extremely competitive
and she wasn’t in the lanes I was in charge
of.
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Q: What do I do next?
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A:
http://www.pns.org/. Click
on the “officials” tab and look for the next Stroke and
Turn Clinic.
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Q: What is in it for SST?
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A: Better events to host. At present SST has
one Stroke and Turn official. King has 19, Vast 13, IST 13,
OAC 11, ESC 6, TSC 4, Metro 3…when the PNS decides which
clubs will be given the opportunity to host important (as in
lucrative…keep our dues down, make our kids
proud…etc) swim meets SST will be skipped over in favor of
clubs which have parents who share their kids passion for the
sport.
I
hope you will consider joining the white shirt
crowd,
James Kressler
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