When we first joined the Sturbridge Woods Swim Team as a new team parents, we had no idea what a swim meet entailed. Many of us barely knew what swimming strokes there were! Our first season was filled with many questions. Our goals with this are to help new parents feel comfortable and to provide parents with a crash course in swim team jargon. Hope you find this helpful.   MEET OVERVIEW Swim meets during the summer have the same events taking place in the same order each meet. The meets are generally 2 1/2 to 3 hours long and move along very quickly. There is rarely a lull in the action. We swim "dual meets" in the summer, which simply means it's US against another team. The home team always swims in the even numbered lanes, generally lanes 2, 4 and 6. The visiting team swims in lanes 1, 3 and 5. Before the swim meet, the coaches make up the meet sheets that tell us who is swimming what events and in what lane. An index card is made up for each child with his/her name, event number, event name, and what lane the child is swimming. These cards are handed out during the meet, when it is time for the child to go "line up" behind the starting block to get ready to swim. The card is then handed to a timer who is at the swimmer's block. The timers use this card to record the children's times. Parents of 8 and under children are of crucial importance to our team. We rely on them to keep all the younger children together in the team area. When we're handing out the event cards, we need to be able to find them quickly and easily, to avoid having a child miss a race. It may seem that we're handing out cards for events that seem a long way off. Races go very quickly, especially the older age groups, who are quite fast! So when a card is given to your child, it's crucial to get your swimmer to the designated area as soon as possible. All children swim in their age groups. They are broken down as follows: 8 and under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, and 15-18. It's summer. Meets can be hot! Make sure to put lots of sunscreen on both yourself and your child. Bring lots of water and a good hat. For away meets, families should bring their own chairs, since seating may be limited at some pools.   MEET EVENTS Boys and girls generally swim each event separately. The events for each stroke go from youngest to oldest. The girls in a given age group swim the event first, followed by the boys. 100 Meter Individual Medley The first event of every meet is the 100 meter Individual Medley, aka the 100 IM. We use abbreviations for everything! It's like learning a new language. Girls and boys ages 9 and up can swim this event. Ages 8 and under do not swim the 100 IM in competition in our league. In the 100 IM, one swimmer swims one lap, one length of the pool, of each stroke in a specific order: butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle.   Medley Relay   All age groups swim the Medley Relay, including 8 and under. The Medley Relay is a relay consisting of 4 swimmers. In the 8 and under category, boys and girls may be mixed in this relay. For 8 and under and 9-10 age groups only, each swimmer swims one lap of the pool, each swimmer a different stroke. Swimmers in the 11-12, 13-14 and 15-18 age groups each complete two laps of a particular stroke. The Medley Relay has a specific stroke order: backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and freestyle. Since the younger children only swim one lap each, those swimmers swimming the breaststroke and freestyle portion of the relay must be at the opposite end of the pool, not the starting block end. Before the Medley Relay, we need the assistance of those crucial parents of the younger children! We need a parent stationed at each lane at the opposite end of the pool, making sure that the children are in the right place and lane. Freestyle   After the Medley Relays come the freestyle events. These progress as the events above, from youngest to oldest, with the girls swimming before the boys in each age category. The children 8 and under swim a 25 meter freestyle. That's simply one lap. Ages 9-10 and 11-12 swim a 50 meter freestyle, or 2 laps. Ages 13-14 and 15-18 swim a 100 meter freestyle, or 4 laps. Backstroke   Backstroke events follow the freestyle events. Ages 8 and under and 9-10 swim a 25 meter backstroke. Ages 11-12, 13-14 and 15-18 swim a 50 meter backstroke. Breaststroke Breaststroke follows backstroke events. Ages 8 and under and 9-10 swim a 25 meter breaststroke. Ages 11-12, 13-14 and 15-18 swim a 50 meter backstroke. Butterfly   Butterfly events follow the breaststroke. Ages 8 and under and 9-10 swim a 25 meter butterfly. Ages 11-12, 13-14 and 15-18 swim a 50 meter butterfly. Freestyle Relay The freestyle relays are the last events of the meet. Make sure to check with the coaches before you leave a meet. Your child may be scheduled to swim in this final relay. The children love relays and get a real sense of being part of a team by competing in them. Unforeseen circumstances may result in a child being placed in the relay at last minute! The relay team has 4 swimmers. Ages 8 and under swim a 100 meter relay, which means each swimmer swims one lap of freestyle. Ages 9-10 and up all swim a 200 meter relay, which means each swimmer swims two laps of freestyle.   Events   100IM Medley Relay Freestyle Backstroke Breaststroke Butterfly Free Relay 8 & U N/A 1 lap ea. stroke 1 1 1 1 1 lap each 9-10 1 lap ea. stroke 1 lap ea. stroke 2 1 1 1 2 laps each 11-12 1 lap ea. stroke 2 laps ea. stroke 2 2 2 2 2 laps each 13-14 1 lap ea. stroke 2 laps ea. stroke 4 2 2 2 2 laps each 15-18 1 lap ea. stroke 2 laps ea. stroke 4 2 2 2 2 laps each Table 1. Number of laps per event Each lap is 25 meters in length. Quick Reference 100 IM aka 100 Meter Individual Medley Order: Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Freestyle 8 and under does not swim this event. Medley Relay Order: Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly, Freestyle All ages swim this event. 8 &U and 9-10 ONLY: one lap of each stroke -Breaststroker and Freestyler must be at opposite end of the pool! Freestyle Relay aka Free Relay For 8 & U only: One lap of freestyle -2nd and 4th (aka "anchor") child must be at the opposite end of the pool. All others - 2 laps of freestyle each. Image 1. Sample medley relay card for away meet   Image 2. Sample event card, home meet. Suburban Swim Association of South Jersey ORDER OF EVENTS Every dual meet has the same 67 events in the same order: Event # DIVISION EVENT 1 Girls 9-10 100 Meter Individual Medley 2 Boys 9-10 100 Meter Individual Medley 3 Girls 11-12 100 Meter Individual Medley 4 Boys 11-12 100 Meter Individual Medley 5 Girls 13-14 100 Meter Individual Medley 6 Boys 13-14 100 Meter Individual Medley 7 Girls 15-18 100 Meter Individual Medley 8 Boys 15-18 100 Meter Individual Medley       9 Open 8 & Under 100 Meter Medley Relay 10 Girls 9-10 100 Meter Medley Relay 11 Boys 9-10 100 Meter Medley Relay 12 Girls 11-12 200 Meter Medley Relay 13 Boys 11-12 200 Meter Medley Relay 14 Girls 13-14 200 Meter Medley Relay 15 Open 13-14 200 Meter Medley Relay 16 Girls 15-18 200 Meter Medley Relay 17 Open 15-18 200 Meter Medley Relay       18 Girls 8 & Under 25 Meter Freestyle 19 Boys 8 & Under 25 Meter Freestyle 20 Girls 9-10 50 Meter Freestyle 21 Boys 9-10 50 Meter Freestyle 22 Girls 11-12 50 Meter Freestyle 23 Boys 11-12 50 Meter Freestyle 24 Girls 13-14 100 Meter Freestyle 25 Boys 13-14 100 Meter Freestyle 26 Girls 15-18 100 Meter Freestyle 27 Boys 15-18 100 Meter Freestyle       28 Girls 8 & Under 25 Meter Backstroke 29 Boys 8 & Under 25 Meter Backstroke 30 Girls 9-10 25 Meter Backstroke 31 Boys 9-10 25 Meter Backstroke 32 Girls 11-12 50 Meter Backstroke 33 Boys 11-12 50 Meter Backstroke 34 Girls 13-14 50 Meter Backstroke 35 Boys 13-14 50 Meter Backstroke 36 Girls 15-18 50 Meter Backstroke 37 Boys 15-18 50 Meter Backstroke       38 Girls 8 & Under 25 Meter Breaststroke 39 Boys 8 & Under 25 Meter Breaststroke 40 Girls 9-10 25 Meter Breaststroke 41 Boys 9-10 25 Meter Breaststroke 42 Girls 11-12 50 Meter Breaststroke 43 Boys 11-12 50 Meter Breaststroke 44 Girls 13-14 50 Meter Breaststroke 45 Boys 13-14 50 Meter Breaststroke 46 Girls 15-18 50 Meter Breaststroke 47 Boys 15-18 50 Meter Breaststroke       48 Girls 8 & Under 25 Meter Butterfly 49 Boys 8 & Under 25 Meter Butterfly 50 Girls 9-10 25 Meter Butterfly 51 Boys 9-10 25 Meter Butterfly 52 Girls 11-12 50 Meter Butterfly 53 Boys 11-12 50 Meter Butterfly 54 Girls 13-14 50 Meter Butterfly 55 Boys 13-14 50 Meter Butterfly 56 Girls 15-18 50 Meter Butterfly 57 Boys 15-18 50 Meter Butterfly       58 Girls 8 & Under 100 Meter Freestyle Relay 59 Boys 8 & Under 100 Meter Freestyle Relay 60 Girls 9-10 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 61 Boys 9-10 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 62 Girls 11-12 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 63 Boys 11-12 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 64 Girls 13-14 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 65 Open 13-14 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 66 Girls 15-18 200 Meter Freestyle Relay 67 Open 15-18 200 Meter Freestyle Relay   Interested in learning more?   For all the latest swim information, visit the Suburban Swim Association website