Welcome to the Escondido Swim Club

Where Every Swimmer Counts!

 

About ESC

 

Since 1962 the Escondido Swim Club (ESC), has earned the reputation as one of the finest teams in the San Diego area. At ESC, our mission is to promote the education, interest and moral benefits of amateur competitive swimming to the children of Escondido. Our swimmers, coach and parents are proud of our accomplishments and are pleased you have shown an interest in our program. Because the world of competitive swimming can be confusing at times, and somewhat overwhelming to new swimmers and their families, this introduction letter is provided to facilitate the initiation process. ESC runs a year round swim program consisting of two sessions, as follows:

 

•  The “Short Course” Season from September to March. Swim meets held during the Short Course Season are held in 25-yard long pools.
•  The “Long Course” Season from April to August. Swim meets held during the Long Course Season are held in50-meter long pools.

 

Since swimming is a full conditioning sport for all ages, ESC runs a year round Masters Program for adult swimmers. Please see our website for the Masters Practice times.

 

How do I register?

 

ESC’s Registration form, Financial Commitment, Volunteer Sign Up & Code of Conduct must be completed, signed and returned together with payment (as defined below) to the ESC office at Washington Park Pool or mailed to P.O. Box 2271, Escondido CA 92033.

 

ESC’s registration commitment is for the season. ESC offers a discount to those who opt to pay the season dues in full by 11/10/08. However, to ease the financial burden on our families we do offer installment billing. Installment bills are due on the first of the month with a10 day grace period. Payments may be mailed or you may also leave a check in a locked drop box in the office. This wood box is labeled “ESC” but is used for payments of any sort, questions for our coaches and for any suggestions you may have.

 

In addition to ESC’s registration process, swimmers must join “USA Swimming” prior to competing in any sanctioned meets. USA Swimming’s Registration Application (available on-line at http://www.siswimming.com/2009%20Application%20-%20YR%20Athlete.pdf, or in the office of the Washington Park Pool must be completed and returned with either the swimmer’s original (or a notarized copy of their) birth certificate.

Representatives from the USA Swimming San Diego office will be at Washington Park Pool on Registration day to verify the swimmer’s age on the birth certificate and then it will be returned directly to you. USA Swimming’s registration fee provides insurance coverage and the fee is payable annually although there are two types of registrations: seasonal (4/15-10/1, $32) and year round ($55).

 

What do the swimmers need?

 

For practices any brand/color swimsuit can be worn. Girls’ suits should be one piece and for those with long hair, caps are recommended during practices to keep hair out of their faces. Boys’ suits can be either the “jammer” style (longer legs) or the traditional smaller style. The ESC team uniform for meets is a navy blue Speedo swimsuit with the ESC logo and an ESC t-shirt. Team suits, shirts and caps can all be ordered from our website (www.escswim.net) then click on the “Team Store” tab. There you will find links to Discount Swim’s website (to order team suits, practice suits, goggles, parkas and other swim equipment) and to “Pro Sport’s website (to order team shirts, sweats, jackets and lots of other “team swag”). Please be sure to read the explanations provided on our team store page prior to placing your order. Caps and goggles are strongly recommended. During practices, kickboards or fins may be required but the team supplies these and they are located in large bins in the supply room (the door just East of the Women’s locker room), or if you prefer you may purchase your own. Hydration is important so please have your swimmer bring a water bottle to practice.

 

How do I get information/updates?

 

We use our website (www.escswim.net) to post practice schedules, swim meet information and notices of changes. The website is updated with swimmer’s meet results (click on “Team Manager Online”, then “Meet Results”), a team phone directory and team store information (click on the “Members” link above then type “member” where it says “User” and type the password which will be provided once you’ve registered with the team). We use email to notify of schedule changes and other notices, so please send your email address to esch2o@yahoo.com to ensure you receive all team communication. On the pool deck there are two cork bulletin boards just north of the Men’s locker room. It is important to check these regularly as meet sign up sheets are posted here as well as meet results, social events and team store/fundraising information.

There is a two drawer black file cabinet just to the right as you enter the office. In the top drawer each family has a file folder with their name on it. Please either check your family file or have your swimmer(s) check it regularly. Ribbons from meets, personal best time cards and information/updates regarding fundraising or other events may be placed in your file.

 

Our Head Coach

 

ESC is fortunate to have a high caliber professional swim coach with over 25 years experience coaching children and adults with great success. Our Coach (John Abrami), is very willing to talk to parents, however, of course not during practice time, nor the 30 minutes prior, as during this time he must be focused on the children & practice preparations. Please refrain from asking the Coach questions just prior to or during practice (what we often think is quick & not disruptive, is not and detracts from practice). He is available via phone (760-522-5582), e-mail (esch2o@yahoo.com) or in the office by appointment.

 

What to expect during practices

 

Swimmers should arrive 15 minutes prior to practice so that they are completely ready to be in the water at the scheduled practice time. Practice begins with a warm up which is important to avoid injury and which late swimmers may miss. Upon arrival, parents/their swimmers should check the bulletin boards and their family folder. Upon completion though, if parents (and siblings) would like to observe the practice they should stay in the gated area at the pool entrance to enable swimmers and the coach to focus on their practice and because our insurance requires that non-swimmers remain off the pool deck. Practice schedules are posted on the web site. However, we lease the pool from the city so the local high schools have priority on pool time so there could be schedule changes due to time conflicts. Changes will be posted on the web site or you can also be notified by email once you’ve sent your e-mail address to esch2o@yahoo.com.

 

Swim Meets

 

Sign Ups:

Upcoming swim meets will be posted on the bulletin boards and on the website. Swimmers are encouraged to attend as many meets as possible. Meet entry forms showing eligible swimmers are usually posted on the bulletin boards two weeks prior to the meet for a few days. It is up to you and your swimmer to sign up for the meet (by writing “yes” by the swimmers name and encircling the events they would like to swim) by the posted deadline.

 

Payment:

Swim meets average about $12-14 per day. Each family needs to establish a “meet account” by making a $50 payment. Your monthly billing statement will reflect amounts deducted from the balance for swim meets attended. ESC prepays the meet entry fees to the host team. So as to not leave the team in a cash deficit position, we ask that you maintain your swimmers’ meet accounts at a $50 minimum balance. So please be sure to replenish the balance as needed to ensure your swimmer can participate in future meets.

 

At Swim Meets:

Directions to away meets are posted on the bulletin board the week prior to the meet. You may want to bring chairs, sunscreen, snacks, beverages, and blankets for cold mornings, canopies for hot days and a permanent marker for the swimmers to record their entries on their arm

Upon arrival at a swim meet, swimmers should first check in and then check the events listing posting for their race numbers, heats and lane assignments. It is customary to write this information on the swimmers arm in a permanent marker, as they will need to refer to it throughout the meet. Upon completion, swimmers should report to the designated ESC area and check in with the Coach. Parent volunteers run swim meets, thus parent participation is expected. Parents can help by timing races, completing ribbons or assisting in the snack bar. “Sanctioned meets” are those in which officials preside (who are parent volunteers who have trained to observe for disqualifications).

 

After Swim Meets:

Meet results are posted on the website and on the bulletin board after the meet. Any ribbons or medals earned will be placed in family folders and all swimmers that earn individual best times will receive a card showing their results. Please retain these cards since once a swimmer has earned 10 individual best times, the cards should be turned into the Coach in exchange for a medal.

 

Time Standards

 

There are established time standards for swimmers and the different levels are designated as A through C. Beginning swimmer is considered a “C” swimmer or novice swimmer, until they improve their times to reach the “B” level. As they progress and their times improve they will move to “A”, then “AA”, then “AAA” and finally to “AAAA”. On our web site you can find the by clicking on the “Team Manager On-line” link. The time standards (and the swim meets) are structured so that similar ages and abilities are grouped together (so that a 7 year old would not be competing against a 15 year old).